There but for the grace of God go I...

On the afternoon of June 8th, a man drove a white truck into a crowded area of the popular Akihabara electronics district, Electric Town. At an intersection, the man struck five innocent pedestrians, killing three of them. The man, later identified as Tomohiro Kato, exited his truck and proceeded to cut or stab approximately 17 people. Tragically, seven people died that day.

For a full article from the Associated Press please click here

As a travel blog writer, I have the privilege of showing readers the wonders, humor, nuances, beauty of the country that has become my home. But with that privilege, comes the obligation for me to also report on unpleasant and, in this case, horrific events which take place in Japan. I'm not sure what to say about such a tragedy. What insight can I offer that would convey the horror and madness of the situation, and what solace could my words offer to the victims and their families? So I've decided to tell my little story of fate, I may write more about the situation later, but for now this is the best I can do.

I came home from my trip to Kyoto on Sunday June 8th. It had been a more or less wonderful end to an amazing and memorable weekend. The morning and early afternoon had been spent with Valley-chan exploring sites in Kyoto. After a relaxing day and a calm Shinkansen ride home, my whole host family welcomed me home. My host mother, non nonchalantly told me about the tragedy, in the ever aloof and disconnected way the Japanese talk about such matters. I'm sure that everyone who heard about the news was shocked. While the tragedy itself was disturbing enough, I was struck by a realization. Akihabara is such a unique place with such wonderful and interesting things to see, that I go fairly often. But for some reason life unfolded in such a way that the Kyoto trip, which I wanted to do in May, was delayed until June and the weekend of June 6-8 was chosen because Valley-chan's Friday class happened to be canceled. Had I not been in Kyoto with Valley-chan that weekend, there was a very good possibility that I would have been in Akihbara that day.

No jokes or witty and sarcastic comments today, just something I have been thinking about for a few weeks...

~DPN