As I look at this photo a year later I still can’t believe that I was there. As each day passed since the last day in a place I only saw in other people’s photos, movies, television shows, and in my dreams I knew that I really did something special. All I had was a book bag and a suit case. A book bag and a suit case. I had the best time by myself yet and by all of my pictures you would have thought that I knew all of the people that I came in contact with. There are a few that I still communicate with, but the biggest attainment was that I was free of the day to day struggles of a 9-5, flakey friends who promised the world and gave nothing return, myself running around in circles not know what I really wanted to do with my life, and whatever else I was going through at the time.

This blog is mainly about making my life the best possible one for me. I got that very feel for 2 whole weeks. 2 whole weeks of waking up whenever, doing whatever I felt I wanted to do, and forgetting what time it was, damn just thinking of that gets me going. While being in the magical place of Japan I wanted to transfer the feeling of “making my life the best possible” to my life back in the States. I also told myself that I was going to move there, which I still want to do in a different type of situation with a very special person. But anyways after being in a place that I only dreamt about my life has surely gotten better. I don’t let the little things get me down as much, less time sensitive, care-free and totally willing to try new things, and the most important one is living as much in the moment as possible.

Living in the moment as much as possible is perhaps the most important thing that I learned from my trip to Japan. However, taking nearly 1000 pics, meeting cool and interesting people which I still keep in contact with some, expressing myself and opening up to perfect strangers as they did the same, walking everywhere and finding out more about myself, and meeting Japanese people and living as they do is something that I will never forget and always cherish.

Now being back in the States for a year I have bought many plane tickets to realize dreams that I have been thinking of doing for sometime. Some of the dreams have really turned out to be part of my daily life and others have fallen by the way side. When dreams are realized something in your body, something in your mind, and your whole look on life changes. I feel most of the time for the better and it is up to that person to grab hold of that dream and realize and grow from it.

Who would have thought this could have happened with a book bag, a small ass suit case, and a curious dreamer that actually did the impossible (well to me).

Thanks Japan,

Oke Atatah