A cruise in the Philippine sea.
The guest of honor that day was someone Takaaki Nakano described as the person he owes the most to in his life.
Multiple participants gathered, boarded a ship, cruised the ocean, and had a meal. Initially, I thought it was a somewhat luxurious birthday party prepared by Mr. Nakano to celebrate someone special's birthday.
There was an incident where we forgot to buy the cake. Even so, at that point, I understood it to be a day where Mr. Nakano was trying to show his gratitude in his own way, clumsy as it might be.
However, after hearing from the birthday person themselves upon returning home, I came to rethink the meaning of that day in a completely different way.
This article is based on my own experience as a Filipino union member.
I am a Filipino member of the Last One Mile Labor Union.
Mr. Nakano has a long history of living in the Philippines, and I met him a few years ago.
This article contains what I directly saw and heard on the spot that day, as well as what I heard directly from the birthday celebrant after returning home.
To prevent the personal information of participants or birthday celebrants from being inferred, exact dates, locations, participant counts, and the occupations or positions of participants are not included. Certain expressions are also generalized to prevent the identification of third parties.
On the other hand, I have not changed the sequence of events that occurred that day or the core of what I saw and heard.
This is not an article accusing someone of being a criminal. On the birthday of the person Nakano Toshiyuki once described as "the person who has helped me the most in my life," I am recording what I actually saw, what I later heard directly from the person in question, and the questions that still remain, using my own words as a union member.
The birthday cruise that Toshiyuki Nakano was supposed to host
The birthday party took place at a location within the Philippines where Mr. Satsuki Nakano was staying at the time.
Mr. Nakano commented regarding those celebrating their birthdays to the effect that "they are the people he is most indebted to in his life."
To celebrate their birthday, multiple participants gathered and a boat cruise was held.
I thought that since so many people were gathering, it must be an important birthday party for Mr. Nakano as well.
At least at that time, I believed that Mr. Nakano had set up this occasion to express his gratitude to the person who had helped him the most in his life.
I offered to prepare cake and flowers.
Since it's a special birthday, we decided to get a cake and flowers.
I offered to Mr. Nakano to take charge of preparing the cake and flowers.
However, I am not very familiar with the situation in the Philippines or where to ask locally to get things ready. Therefore, I asked Mr. Nakano to help me with the preparations.
Then, Mr. Nakano said that he would prepare the cake.
Mr. Nakano decided that we don't need to prepare flowers this time.
Therefore, in the end, it was decided that Mr. Nakano would prepare the cake and no flowers would be provided.
I assumed Mr. Nakano would prepare the cake, so I didn't make any further arrangements.
Even after lunch began, the cake didn't come out.
And then, the day of the birthday arrived.
The cruise proceeded smoothly, and soon it was time for lunch.
The person accompanying me and I were thinking, "Since it's a birthday, cake will surely appear somewhere."
There might be a surprise in the middle of lunch.
Mr. Nakano might bring a cake around the end of the meal.
Thinking that, I was waiting for the right moment to come out.
However, even when lunch started, the cake did not appear.
The meal went on as usual, and in the end, lunch finished without a single thing happening that felt like a birthday.
The party was about to return to the ship again and move to the next location.
What I Learned by Asking "Are You Serving Cake Tonight?"
So I checked with Mr. Nakano.
When will the cake be served? Are you planning to serve it during dinner tonight instead of lunch?
Then, an unexpected discovery was made here.
It is said that Mr. Nakano forgot to buy the cake itself.
I thought, "Isn't this bad?"
It is the birthday of the person who has taken care of me the most in my life. I haven't prepared any flowers. There isn't even a cake, which I was supposed to be the only one responsible for.
However, Mr. Nakano suggested that since they were already cruising on a boat this far, even without a cake, it should be enough for an unpretentious birthday party.
Come to think of it, I thought that might also be one way to celebrate.
Even without cake or flowers, a large group had gathered to spend the day out on the ocean. At the time, I decided to think of that in itself as a gift from Mr. Nakano.
At least as far as I've heard, there wasn't even a word to celebrate birthdays.
After that, the cruise proceeded without any major accidents or problems.
However, at least as far as I heard on the spot, not once until the very end was there any explicit statement congratulating the person whose birthday it was.
There was no celebration around a cake either.
I didn't even give him flowers.
I have no memory of a scene where everyone says "Happy Birthday" together.
I was a bit concerned, but since it was a birthday cruise hosted by Mr. Nakano, I felt it wasn't my place to step forward too much, so I couldn't speak up strongly at the time.
After returning home, I sent a congratulatory email to the person themselves.
Even after returning home, I was bothered by the fact that I hadn't been able to properly wish them a happy birthday.
Therefore, I sent an email to the birthday person to wish them a happy birthday.
At the same time, though it is strange for me to say so, I conveyed the sentiment that Mr. Nakano must have gathered people with that much of a strong feeling to celebrate a birthday and organized such a cruising event.
Until then, I had thought that Mr. Nakano was paying the expenses and had planned the cruise for the person who had done the most for him in his life.
Forgetting the cake is a slightly unfortunate mishap.
Even so, I thought that the very act of gathering people, arranging for a boat, and setting up a place for a meal was, in itself, an expression of Mr. Nakano’s gratitude toward that person.
The birthday person paid for both the cruise and the meals.
However, shortly after that, I heard something completely unexpected from the person whose birthday it was.
The cruising costs for that day, the meal expenses, and all other expenses were reportedly paid entirely by the birthday person themselves.
I did not check the accounting documents and payment records on the spot. Therefore, regarding the cost burden, I have recorded it based on what I heard directly from the person in question.
Even so, when I heard this story, for a moment I couldn't understand the situation.
Today is the birthday of the person Mr. Nakano said has “helped me more than anyone else in my life.”
I thought Mr. Nakano gathered people to celebrate that person and arranged a cruise.
However, based on the individual’s account, a summary of the events of that day is as follows.
- Mr. Nakano Shukki said that this person was “the one who has helped me the most in my life.”
- No flowers were provided.
- I had completely forgotten to buy the cake that Mr. Nakano was supposed to bring.
- At least as far as I heard, there were no explicit birthday greetings on the day.
- I heard directly from the birthday person themselves that they paid for the cruising costs, meals, and other expenses.
In other words, that person spent their birthday paying for the cruise and meals out of their own pocket, without any flowers or cake.
So, what was the birthday present for Mr. TSUKI NAKANO?
After learning this, I just couldn't shake one particular question.
What on earth was the birthday gift that Tamaki Nakano gave to the person he is "most indebted to in his life"?
It wasn't a flower.
It wasn't even cake.
And it wasn't a cruise either.
It wasn't even a meal.
This is because, according to the person in question, they paid for both the cruise and the meal themselves on their birthday.
If there was anything gifted by Mr. Nakano, it would be the opportunity to use his own money on his birthday to provide a boat and a meal, and to entertain the people who gathered.
To be honest, I can't really call that a birthday present.
The problem wasn't that there were no expensive gifts.
I am not trying to say that you should have given an expensive present.
I don't think the value of a birthday celebration is determined by the amount of money spent.
Whether it's a small cake, a single flower, or a brief congratulatory message, you can still express your gratitude to the person.
Even if you couldn't buy anything, you can still say, "We gathered here today for you" and "Thank you for everything until now."
What still bothers me is that, even though it was the birthday of the person Mr. Nakano described as “the one who has helped me the most in my life,” I never found out what he gave him or how he expressed his gratitude.
Furthermore, those of us who were there assumed that Mr. Nakano had arranged the cruise for that person.
However, if the person celebrating their birthday was the one actually covering the costs, they didn’t just pay the money.
This would have even framed Mr. Nakano as "the organizer who gathered people and hosted a cruise for his beloved mentor."
Wasn't the person who bore the cost and the person who received the gratitude reversed?
The Gap Between Mr. Nakano Shukki’s Words and the Reality I Saw
A previous post by another Cambodian union member documents the discrepancy between Mr. Nakano Shukki’s description of “confinement” and the freedom of movement observed by local union members.
On this birthday cruise, too, what struck me was the gap between words and reality.
The big phrase, "You've helped me more than anyone else in my life."
The explanation that "Since you are even going on a cruise, isn't that enough?"
しかし、ケーキはなく、花もなく、私が聞いた範囲ではお祝いの言葉もなく、費用は誕生日を迎えた方が負担していたといいます。
口にした言葉が大きいほど、その言葉に対応する行動も問われると思います。
人生で一番お世話になっている人だと語るのであれば、その方の誕生日に何をしたのか。
豪華に見える場を作ったのであれば、その費用を誰が負担していたのか。
自分が用意したように周囲から見えていたのであれば、実際の負担者について説明したのか。
これは、ケーキ一つの話ではありません。人から受けた恩、他人の負担、自分の言葉に対して、どのような姿勢を取る人物なのかという問題です。
中野爵喜氏に、私が確認したいこと
- 中野爵喜氏は、誕生日を迎えた方について、「人生で一番お世話になっている」という趣旨の話をしていましたか。
- 中野氏がケーキを準備することになっていたものの、購入することを忘れたという認識で間違いありませんか。
- 当日のクルージング費用、食事代及びその他の費用を、誕生日を迎えたご本人が負担していたことを、中野氏は当時認識していましたか。
- ご本人が費用を負担していた場合、その事実を参加者へ説明しましたか。
- 中野氏自身は、その方の誕生日に、具体的に何を贈り、どの費用を負担しましたか。
- 少なくとも私が聞いた範囲では、当日に明確なお祝いの言葉がありませんでした。中野氏は、いつ、どのような言葉で誕生日と日頃の感謝を伝えましたか。
- ご本人が自ら費用を負担したクルージングについて、なぜ中野氏は、ケーキがなくてもクルージング自体がお祝いになるという趣旨の説明をしたのでしょうか。
- 中野氏が「人生で一番お世話になっている」と語った方へ贈った誕生日プレゼントは、結局、何だったのでしょうか。
これほど印象に残る誕生日は、なかなかありません
私は今でも、あの日のことを思い出します。
海の上で行われたクルージング。
複数の人が集まり、食事をし、一日を過ごしました。
外から見れば、華やかな誕生日会に見えたかもしれません。
しかし、人生で一番お世話になっているという方に対し、花はなく、ケーキは忘れられ、お祝いの言葉も私には聞こえず、最後には、その方自身が費用を支払っていたと知りました。
私は何度考えても、中野爵喜氏からの誕生日プレゼントが何だったのか分かりません。
もしかすると、その方が受け取ったのは、自分のお金で自分の誕生日会を開き、集まった人たちをもてなしながら、中野氏を主催者のように見せる役割だったのでしょうか。
それが本当に「人生で一番お世話になっている人」への感謝の示し方だったのであれば、私には理解できません。
これは、私が直接見た一日と、その後ご本人から直接聞いた話です。
小さなケーキの買い忘れから始まった話ですが、最後に残ったのは、人への感謝、費用の負担、言葉と行動の違いについての大きな疑問でした。
色々と考えてみましたが、結局、何が誕生日プレゼントだったのか、私には今でもよく分かりません。
ただ、これほど印象に残る誕生日は、なかなかないのではないかと思います。