Turning negatives to positives

Thursday will be My life in Japan Day.

Growing up, my mother always told me there are two sides to a story. This is one of the reasons I wanted to travel and see the world and eventually made Japan my home.

Making Japan my home put me through many obstacles and it will probably do the same for you. I taught myself that turning negatives into positives is a way of life here.

In my early days of living here, I made so many Japanese friends. One day, some of my friends said, “Let go to a drinking bar where the ladies are. They have to hear you sing” I loved to sing at the time (still do) so I said, “Sure.” Everyone was excited and when we to the door, They said, “No foreigner!” At the time, I spoke Japanese quite well and explained that I’m not a bad guy and I have money, don't worry. My Japanese friends were so angry and couldn't understand why they would not let me in. It just so happened the chief of the club was outside and I started to sing and said, I only wanted to sing. He said, you have a beautiful voice, and allowed me to go in. I was the first foreign to go inside that establishment. They seemed nervous and when I grabbed the mic there was a dead silence. Then I started to sing. 🎤 When the song was over, everyone give me a standing ovation (there were about 50 people there) Everyone enjoyed their drinks more and requested songs. In the end, they paid me and my friend's tab and said, “Please come again when you can!!” I did and became a regular until I left the city. 🤗