I was thinking about one of my therapy clients I have had two years ago while listening to the Great pianist, Red Garland. You know his left hand moves a lot to push harmony a half note late, don’t you? That yields hopping rhythm that makes your body swing hard.
The thing is if the guy is dead or alive. Two years ago, 2009, summer, Sept. 27th was the last session I
had. He lay on his bed in a room facing west that got sunlight coming in a lot, it was summer, y’know. Yes, the room was hot. Yet, he lay in the bed wearing a so-so thick blanket on. I had to sit in the
room for 50minutes. It’s like a torture because of its hotness.
He lies there whole day. He had been decreasing his volume of food day by day. It’s like committing
suicide. He said he did. He was 78, living with his wife 80. No kids ever. He had been working pretty
hard, well that’s what he said. No, he wasn’t poor. The WW2 pushed him down though, he was born in wealthy family.
He started out his career as he graduated and had got job at steel manufacturer. The cause of his
depression was there. He started working at a family owned organization. Yes, the company was one of them and is the public corporation that is well-known.
He was sent to New York. One of the problem was that he didn’t like New York or USA. He said that he was sent to the city two years after the graduation. That makes 54-55 years ago from 2009, and was 1955. It had passed mere 10 years from the end of WW2. No wonder why he wasn’t comfortable in the City.
He had been feeling anger for the Nuclear bomb though, it was NY city. Wherever he went, he had to hear “Remember Perl Harbor!” He said that he really had wished to go back Japan. I asked him if he was interested in seeing NY at my second session. He bluntly said “I was born in Tokyo” and I felt a rush of his anger. It seemed to have been obvious that he was one of the great company person of the time.
He had worked till 60 years old. but was not able to be the board member. Right, he was accepted as the professional of the trading business, not the talented person who could be in the management. I see the reason with his comment of; “I worked with the philosophy that there won’t to be tomorrow. And I worked forcing myself that I should not carry forward any task.”
He was born with good natures son of wealthy family. But because of the WW2, his family had lost their asset and savings. Yes, Japanese government had executed the denomination a few years after the war. That kill the savings of the wealthy people.
He was not able to get away from the thought that his family had been living in wealth. Oh, there was a photo taken with his wife during 1960es in Hawaii. He was a handsome man with good heights. There is no doubt that he was born in wealthy family from his posture.
Is he dead of alive?I am wondering. It may be easier to visit him. But do you think I am that thoughtless person who can ask that kind of question to living relative? Yes, I can identify his wife. OK, so, I just ask his wife if he is till around. Well, it could be tough. . . . . Can you?
Now Kim Jong-il is dead! His third son Jong-un seems to have been appointed as the third dictator of the family. He is young. Too young. We are hoping to see some kind of social turn over, right? He is born in January 1984 and is 27, twenty-seven? My, my.
What were you doing at your age of twenty-seven? I was leaving from New York and heading my hometown Yokohama after spending 5 years there. Am I ready to earn myself? No way. I had been employed by my father and sent to New York under his wing. I was not prepared to earn myself. Or, to be honest with you, I did not know what I was expected to do or how I should behave then.
When father of Mr. Jong-il was dead in 1994, he was 52. Right, Jong-il was born in 1942. I was born 1943. So I am his age. His birthday was February 16th and mine was 12th of February. So we are under same constellation. Well, yes, I feel like I have to follow him. So, Jong-il was old enough to talk to the circle of old people around his dad. Yet, he took 5-7 years till he came up front of the political scene.
The result?Yes, as you are well aware of, he had to go along with the military group. He had to spend so much money for them. He had to take fighting pose against USA, South Korea and Japan. Worst of all was that the political turn over of the so-called Socialist countries. Russia has gone. The east Germany had dead in 1989. And number of socialist countries were all gone with Russia. North Korea had lost the economic back-up from those countries. Then there must have been famine.
The era hs changed a lot if you compare with 1994. Internet is here to stay and they cannot ignore it. There are rich people emerged from no where. Besides, there is Mac, you know that?I am talking about the hamburger stand. Now the son is mere 27 years old.
Old military personnel who have been with Jong-il cannot know him well. There are over two generations gap in between. Is it possible to understand the basic mentality of your grand son? If you insist, I am quite doubtful. Besides, the successor has learned at school in Swiss. There’s no other Korean there, I assume.
So, here is the scenario of the death of the dictatorship. Jong-un, the successor who had learned in Swiss, has the intention to open up the country. No, he cannot be that fool as opening North Korea right away. He knows that he has to hide the intention a while. Let’s say until he will have some kind mutual understanding of basic concept of the political route to take with the military.
In that concept, he will assure the military group that he won’t cut the expenditure more than 5% annual. And he will promise that he won’t cut the current top personnel out of the offices. He needs a few years at the least just to make the promise realistic. It may take several years unless some of the top personnel will dies of the age.
The thing is if he can be patience for that long. if he ever start taking action other direction, he will be the dead man at the very moment. Then what? Yes, you guessed right. There emerges the final Military Government on the earth that has nuclear weapon in hand. It could be 2020 when North Korea come to occupy Japan.
I sincerely hope that Mr. Kim Jong-un can stand the pressure from military. For that matter, I won’t protest the death of public for famine. Do you? I’ll be dead till then though, my son and daughter are here. . . . . . my goodness.
I have started reading “an American Tragedy” by T. Dreiser second time. You can read it at this site, since it is of public domain.
Basically, I love novels that are with fast plot development. I haven’t paidd much attention to the nature of the characters. I had read this book 10 to 15 years ago. I was impressed or I won’t pick this kind of thick volume up again . You know the story, right? It’s a kind of success story of a boy born in poor family.
I have not been that bad as far as the intellectual faculties is concerned. The thing was that I could have tried harder and have succeeded to gain wealth if I were born poor. Of course there would be an assumption that I would have been equiped with similar level of intellectuality.
Clyde, the guy who would puesue success in this story, broke my belief at this time of reading. He does struggle to get rid of this family. Could I have done that? I am not sure. Yet, Clyde take care of the family. Do I? Sure I would. But I’d better stop here.
Matter of fact, I can’t imagine how I could have been if I were born in poor family. Which suggest that you cannot change your past. Hey, this sounds like one of those self motivation seminar, doesn’t it?
The thing I should have done was to think hard the way to build the wealth. The wealth that had been brought about from the enterprise that my father has established. Or, I should have selected the person who could administer it instead of myself. I now know that there are not many persons who are equiped with the knowledge and guts to administer any size of enterprise or organization. The nature neccesary for the job is to understand the mentality of the people who works for the organization. At the same time, it is necessary to act upon for the survival of the organization in emergency.
I think I have the ability. The problem was that my nature was not able to take the load to face the reality. It was so easy to walk away from the scene.
So, if you were the father who were thinking to transfer your business to your children, you’d better be sure if any of your children is equiped with the ability to face the trouble. Don’t misunderstand. It is not to make trouble but to solve trouble directly facing to it. It may be necessary to check around your nature at the age of your children, right?
