Seeing these pictures and the lives we once had and shared has had me feeling a bit of nostalgia and melancholy.
It's heartwarming to see the changes the school has made since we've been there, but it's also sad to know that the ground they walk on was the same ground you'd built your memories on. What's sadder still is the fact that the place we consider our home town, where we grew up, is so far away and seemingly so unreachable that we hold on to pictures and any news that stray from there. I think of my friends now and how when asked where they're from they can say they're from someplace so close that to see their old stomping grounds is just a short drive away.
I think of my wife and my son and how I so want to show them where and how I grew up, but the stories seem so inadequate until I can take them there...but it's not a short drive away. It's a 18 hour plane ride and a 2 hour bus ride, not to mention the expense of getting and staying there. I'm so happy for the pictures and home videos I've saved. I'm so thankful that so many of you share the same memories and and the same fondness for Yokosuka and Yo-Hi. It kinda makes things less lonely knowing there are people that come from where I came from and call that tiny little base and that small little school home.
Thanks all of you for sharing your memories of the base and the school. It's been so much fun reminiscing. Keep the stories and memories coming.
5 comments:
Hey Nelson! Great to hear from you! You are so lucky you kept your home videos from Yokosuka. All our Yokosuka home videos are in storage (not air-conditioned) in the Philippines. They are most likely unplayable now...all build up with mildew. All those Fil-Am performances, football games, etc. And those music videos...hahaha...don't worry, I won't mention any more. I don't have much pictures neither so most of my memories of Yo-Hi and Japan are in my head.
Oh gosh Nelson, I totally agree with you on all this! I definitely want to take this time to thank everyone who has contributed to this blog, for bringing back some of the memories of our days back in Japan, and some that I have forgotten. I have said this so many times; that no one can ever truly understand what we went through and experiences we've endure during our time in Japan, that these memories and experiences are truly our own and I'm so grateful that you all have joined and participated in bringing that piece of my history back into my life.
You know, it's funny that a lot of what we miss are the unimportant things. Where we ate lunch, where we watched movies, how we used to get to school, etc. They're things we tend to take for granted and now, well, in hindsight its the small things that count.
It's funny, I still remember our first days in Yokosuka. Living in the old Navy Lodge, only to move to the new one when a room opened up. I remember the "walk-away" breakfast sandwiches in their snackbar area, taking the shuttle bus to Sullivans' until we could get a car. I even remember leaving the base for college, coming back for one last visit for Christmas before finally leaving for good. Hmmm....the things we take for granted!
Here's another "Oh yeah!"...
Do you remember getting a "privelege card"...the ID card you got before you turned 10?
Do you remember the name of the blue building in front of the cherry balm park where you got it? They eventually demolished that building and put the marine barracks there.
Here's an easy one...
What's the name of the "other" exchange on the base? The one you bought your electronics from (upstairs they had all the Japanese things like fans and swords and vases and stuff).
Couldn't you just go to a bazaar right now and shop with those stupid tickets where you'd pay and then have to come back to pick up your items and then go eat that yakisoba?
Ok, I only remember a few of things:
I do remember the privilege cards and was always excited to get a new one!
Don't remember the name of the blue bldg where we got it from.
The name of the other exchange where all the electronics were and those decorations was A33.
And I DEFINITELY miss the bazaars!!!
What about the junkyard offbase? Where all our parents would go to get us an extra tv, pencil sharpener that all the Japanese would throw away after two years.
I remember that junkyard!!!
The name of the place where we got our privelege cards was BLDG G-110.
Damn, I miss that base! LOL
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