Sorashige Book 2021/05/30
Someone sent a letter to Kato-san sharing their worries: a person who is 18 now will automatically be considered an adult starting from next April because the age of majority in Japan is to be lowered from 20 to 18. "I don't know anything about the adult world, that's scary! What do I do??" Listening to sensei's response, I (aged almost 32 lol hi) got an urge to take quick notes.
It's not like Shige can relate completely, because he didn't live a legal change like that himself, but he can speak about his experience in general. Reaching a certain age doesn't bring along the actual realization of 'I've become an adult'. It didn't hit him at 20, at 30, doesn't feel like it at 34 either. There weren't any drastic changes in his circumstances. Instead of taking a leap into adulthood, it feels more like the adulthood is creeping up on you (lol)
As for "knowing nothing about society", he thinks that it's impossible to comprehend it all in the first place, during one's entire lifetime. The astronomical number of people - those who lived before us, mostly - with their various, countless intentions and motivations make society impossibly complex. It's like a ball of wool that got awfully tangled. You just can't untangle it, no matter which threads you pull. However, if you give up all attempts of comprehending the world around you, that can lead to losing sight of yourself. If you look closely, you can make out a few individual threads and their position in that ball. Trying to make out at least something can help.
It's undserstandable for someone to freak out when it feels as if they're forced to take up a role they're not prepared for. At the same time, he is jealous somewhat because people who are considered adults at 18 have more time (as in, two additional years) to try and learn a little about 'the adult world'.
It seems to Shige that getting older he's gained better shaped out views on some things that are unacceptable for him, and is trying to be more considerate and kind to people. He wishes the sender of the letter not to succumb to fears, and to try and look for the enjoyable sides of adulthood.
(He laughed at some point because he got the feeling that he was giving a speech Dragonzakura-style)
It's not like Shige can relate completely, because he didn't live a legal change like that himself, but he can speak about his experience in general. Reaching a certain age doesn't bring along the actual realization of 'I've become an adult'. It didn't hit him at 20, at 30, doesn't feel like it at 34 either. There weren't any drastic changes in his circumstances. Instead of taking a leap into adulthood, it feels more like the adulthood is creeping up on you (lol)
As for "knowing nothing about society", he thinks that it's impossible to comprehend it all in the first place, during one's entire lifetime. The astronomical number of people - those who lived before us, mostly - with their various, countless intentions and motivations make society impossibly complex. It's like a ball of wool that got awfully tangled. You just can't untangle it, no matter which threads you pull. However, if you give up all attempts of comprehending the world around you, that can lead to losing sight of yourself. If you look closely, you can make out a few individual threads and their position in that ball. Trying to make out at least something can help.
It's undserstandable for someone to freak out when it feels as if they're forced to take up a role they're not prepared for. At the same time, he is jealous somewhat because people who are considered adults at 18 have more time (as in, two additional years) to try and learn a little about 'the adult world'.
It seems to Shige that getting older he's gained better shaped out views on some things that are unacceptable for him, and is trying to be more considerate and kind to people. He wishes the sender of the letter not to succumb to fears, and to try and look for the enjoyable sides of adulthood.
(He laughed at some point because he got the feeling that he was giving a speech Dragonzakura-style)