First Entry & New Beginnings..
Hi!!! Wow!! First of all – I can’t thank you enough for taking the time to read my first entry. I’m glad you’re here. Maybe I should start this off by introducing myself a little bit.
My name is Mikiko, Miki for short. I was inspired to create this blog not only by my peers but also because of a movie I watched recently. One thing about myself, is that I’m a bit of a movie fanatic. Ever since I was young, I looked for ways to get lost. I know that might sound weird, but being able to break free from what was going on around me was one of the only things that brought peace to my mind. I often fantasized about walking into my backyard and discovering a door that would lead me somewhere unknown. Movies, for me, were small bite size pieces of escapism that were easy for me to swallow and digest. Movies let my mind wander while it was still tethered to the ground – I fear that I would’ve float away into the sky too easily if it wasn’t! Anyways… I watched the 2018 movie called 未来のみらい (or known as Mirai in english) by Mamoru Hosoda. This movie dives into themes of family, memories, and the passages of time.
The first syllable in my name, Mikiko, is spelt using the same character as the word Mirai, which means “future” in Japanese. The next syllable, uses the character that you use to also write “hope/promise”. The last syllable, is just written with the character “child”. 未希子, future, hope, child. Hopeful, future, child. A hopeful, promised, future, for this child. Mirai, is about a young boy who is struggling to cope with the arrival of his little sister. The movie follows the young boy, who then goes on a magical adventure through time. Traveling in all directions, forwards and backwards. This movie really struck a chord with me, not only because of the themes of family but also because of a certain quote from this movie.
“If grandma hadn’t let grandpa win that race, we wouldn’t be here. Small things like that add up, into something greater than ourselves.”
It sounds stupid, but when I was younger I often wondered how everyone sorted their thoughts and memories. How did people know when to put certain ones away and when to hold others so close that you could never forget them? I sometimes feel like my sorting system is broken. I tend to hold the ones I should let go of the closest, and the ones I should never ever forget dissipate into nothing. This quote helped remind me that every little thing, good and bad, has led up to this very moment. Something greater than anything I could even fathom. After finishing that movie, I just started typing and typing. I wanted this blog to be something that will add up to something great, and I know it will.
With all that being said, if you have the time please go check out Mirai and other films from Mamoru Hosuda! He has many many great animated movies that I love and grew up with. Although Mirai may not be completely perfect or his best work, I think this movie found me at the perfect time in my life. It fit into my mind like a puzzle piece, like a missing part that helped propel me forward. Life always feels too short, but it will be the longest thing we will ever get to experience. Let it be and let yourself be. Here’s to more shouting into the digital void and the inevitable passage of time! Woo hoo!!!! ٩(^ᗜ^ )و
Lucky Future Girl 