Monthly Log March 2025: Graduation Trip

Last month, my first daughter graduated from junior high school. The graduation ceremony was filled with emotion, as it's a major milestone—compulsory education in Japan ends at junior high, so she and her friends will now go their separate ways. I could really felt the weight of the moment in the atmosphere, especially when the students took photos with their friends afterward.

Just a couple of days later, she performed for the last time with her school’s brass band. It was her final junior high performance, and I couldn’t be prouder. She started three years ago without knowing how to play the trumpet, and now she’s come such a long way. Watching her growth has been truly moving.

To kick off the celebrations, we took a short trip to the Kawazu Cherry Blossom Festival in Shizuoka to see the Kawazu-zakura in full bloom. The trip was a bit longer than our usual outings to see cherry blossoms, and it served as a warm-up before our main trip to celebrate my daughter's graduation—more on that below.

Around the same time, we also celebrated my wife’s birthday with a cake at home, all while getting ready for the big family trip.

And finally, we hit the road for about 10 days, traveling by car across various places in Japan—most of them new to us. We visited many fun and beautiful spots, but what stood out most wasn’t just the destinations. It was the journey itself that brought us closer together. It might sound strange, but I feel like my bond with my children grew quite stronger through the shared experiences on this trip.

I’ll just let the photos do the rest of the talking this time! Would definitely love to organize another trip like this sometime soon.