After four years in Canada, I wonder if I have changed any since I was back home. I could have had different experience if I had stayed in Japan.
I think not only the education I had in a foreign country but cultural and social encounters have influenced me greatly.
But it’s still hard to actually see the difference on my own.
On the other hand, it’s always easy to find changes in other places. Sometimes they are evident in a fast-paced environment like Japan.
Every time I go home, I feel like I was away for ages. New prime minister, new technology, new trend; nothing seems to have stayed the same for long enough and everyone is longing for something new.
Since I was away from the country, I now have counter-culture shocks in Japan.
Counter-culture shocks could be harsher, since I’m originally from Japan and have spent most of my life there, even though some people see that I’m not Japanese enough. Living abroad required me to adapt in the western culture and manners; yet it doesn’t mean I became Canadian.
I’m still Japanese.
Some western characteristics could appear in my personality, which are not always advantageous in a society like Japan where cultures in the society are not as diverse as that of Canada.
This has been one of my fears that make me hesitate to go home after graduation.
Having said that, I realized a fear of culture judgment wouldn’t only occur in a foreign country but also in every country, community, or family that has a variety of cultures. Some of the cultures could be very different and hard to adapt.
In fact your option isn’t necessarily to either accept or reject, but admit them as cultures just the way they are.
Getting into a new world means encountering a new culture; it’s not about better or worse culture, but you just explore other cultures on your own while finding comfortable culture to be your base culture.
