Our mission
Pondering about my parents who live in Japan while I live abroad.
When I was living in London, my mother in Japan was diagnosed with cancer while she was taking care of my father, who had dementia.
From that moment on, every half-term holiday, I traveled back and forth between London and Japan with my boys.
My mother passed away soon after, I searched for a nursing home where could take care of the widower, my father. While my eldest son was in the midst of entrance exam preparation and attending cram school, I would often give him cash for dinner and the house key, then head out with my younger preschool-aged son on numerous occasions.
My baby and I had to make multiple trips to care for my father in Fuji and search for nursing homes for him. Most of the nursing homes didn't have online presence, so I had to make numerous phone calls to them, explaining my family's situation. With my father's insurance card and medical documents, I often visited nursing homes. I was once told that there were 248 people ahead of my father on the waiting list for a popular nursing home. After much searching, I finally found a vacancy at a nursing home for my father. Once my father had moved and settled into the nursing home, I finally felt at ease and could leave Japan with peace of mind. I was able to relocate to Hong Kong, where my husband had been transferred.
Soon after, my father passed away, following my mother.
Too much paperwork and procedures of inheritance
Even if I wanted to handle inheritance procedures with Japanese banks and government offices, I had to go to the bank branch in person and stamp multiple papers with my seal. Even now with digitalization, there are still many procedures that haven't been updated. Online banking has advanced, and digitalization has progressed due to COVID-19, making it very convenient to handle one's own account. However, to handle a parent's bank account or inheritance procedures, you still need to complete very complicated paperwork. Even as a Japanese person, it was very disheartening to repeatedly go through complicated procedures while grieving for my loved ones.
Passing down the accomplishment into the future
The generation that plays an active role in socially important positions tends to coincide with the period when their parents grow old. I started studying law because I could use my experiences to contribute to society, for foreign residents in Japan, and for Japanese living abroad. I want to repay the gratitude I have received from society, schools, colleagues, bosses, teachers, friends, and family by contributing back to society, to pass on the efforts that my parents' generation has made to the next generation, and to create a bright and hopeful future not just for Japan, but for Asia, and the world.
