[Novel 6] Asako, If You're Going to Run, Now's the Time!! ~The Flow~

All episodes included⤵️

Prequel/Original Draft (Non-fiction)⤵️

6. The Flow

Asako, who had started her first job hunt in her late 40s because she wanted to be financially independent from her husband, felt that the "caregiving job" suggested at Hello Work was definitely not for her.
She didn't have a job she wanted to do, but the ones she didn't want to do were "cleaning" and "caregiving."
Fearing she would give up if she stopped moving, she continued to attend two employment support programs and a computer course without taking any breaks.

“Employment counseling just for women?
Isn't it the same everywhere..."
It seemed Hello Work was running a separate support service limited to women at a different location.
Things were at a standstill, so maybe I'll take a peek just once; it's within biking distance anyway.
When she went after lunch, she found an open reception and counseling space, several job search machines, and one private room.
After explaining her business at the reception, she was first interviewed, and then,
“Ms. Maeda, do you have time this evening?
There's one individual counseling slot that just opened up.
You've been working so hard, I really want to support you.”
Apparently, a veteran female counselor would take her family situation into account and provide specific advice.
It was a hassle to come back another day, so she decided to wait on the sofa, reading the book she had brought with her.

“Is Ms. Maeda, who is here for the first time, present?”
It seemed the person who had the appointment had received a job offer, so another slot had opened up.
Hearing that she didn't have to wait until evening and that someone had actually received a job offer raised her expectations.
“Nice to meet you, I'm Kinuta, your counselor.”
She was about halfway between Asako's age and her mother's age.
She looked kind and warm, but also intelligent and sharp.
“I have another appointment after this, so let's be quick,” Ms. Kinuta said, her tone speedy and positive.
She called Asako, who was practically a full-time housewife, a "housewife with a distinguished career," saying, "If you have experience raising children, you can be more considerate than a new graduate who doesn't know left from right," and "It's something to be proud of that you were able to receive new employee training at a top-tier company."
New employee training was decades ago, though...

Why is it? When I talk to Ms. Kinuta, I feel like things are naturally moving forward.
I had forgotten that I once wanted a job where I could "write," "teach," or "provide counseling" while I was raising my children.
“Let's aim for 200,000 yen in take-home pay.”
“You're better suited for a job where you can step up rather than routine work,” she said, and suddenly I felt motivated.
I found out later that Ms. Kinuta herself had the experience of leaving her home with nothing but the clothes on her back, leaving her children behind.
I don't know the circumstances, but apparently, she is now living happily with a younger boyfriend.
“Leaving her children behind” must have been a desperate situation.
Perhaps because of that experience, her support for single mothers and women like Asako is fast, concrete, and accurate.
“Are you saying you hate caregiving jobs just based on the image on TV? Do you know what it's really like on the ground?
In caregiving, there are jobs where you can write, teach, and provide counseling, and you can also get qualifications to step up.
I also have a caregiving qualification.
The current challenge isn't self-actualization, it's making a living.
To do that, it would be a waste not to utilize your strengths as a housewife and your parenting skills, Ms. Maeda.”
When Ms. Kinuta said it, caregiving didn't seem so bad; I felt like I had been talked into it, but I didn't feel bad about it at all.

A flyer for a "Caregiving Job Fair" was tucked into the city's public relations magazine.
If it were before I met Ms. Kinuta, I would have definitely ignored it.
My husband is away on a business trip, Yumi and Shu are at work, and it's no big deal if I'm not home when Susumu, who is in high school, gets back.
It seems I don't need to bring a resume and casual clothes are fine.
Maybe I'll go, thinking of it as a social study.
It was my first time, but I guess it's the caregiving version of the "job fair" you see on the news.
First, I received a thick packet of materials and listened to a general talk from a city official about the "increase in the elderly population requiring care," "increase in dementia," "shortage of care workers," and "improvement in working conditions."
Then, I had individual interviews with representatives from the hiring companies.
There's no way I'm interested in any of these companies, but I lined up for the interviews, telling myself it was "to learn."
“Sigh... I really don't want to do this...”
I'll just have store-bought food for dinner.

Today, I'm meeting with the male representative from Hello Work for the first time in a while.
When I reported what I talked about with Ms. Kinuta and that I participated in the fair, he praised me surprisingly well.
He's always been pushing for caregiving jobs, so it can't be helped.
“Actually, there's a vocational training program that's about to close, and if you apply today, you might just make it in time.
Why don't you at least apply for the course?
There's an interview, so I don't know if you'll be able to take it.”
The materials list a wide variety of courses.
“My recommendation is this one.
It takes 4 months, but if you complete it, you can get qualifications as a certified care worker, a guide helper, and in mental health, and there should be job placement assistance as well. It's free, too.”
Ms. Kinuta also said she was a qualification holder, and if it's free, maybe I should apply...
I'm definitely being talked into this; are they in on it together?

I started job hunting in October after seeing a flyer from the Employment Support Center that said, "I found a job in 3 months," but it's already December and nothing has been decided.
I passed the interview for the vocational training, and the course starts in January.
I thought I would be working by January.
When I went to Hello Work to report that I passed, I was advised, "Before you get busy, it's better to see a care facility, whether it's a visit or volunteering."
Apparently, many people are surprised by the gap between the training and the actual workplace.
Fortunately, I've already finished the employment support and computer classes other than Ms. Kinuta's, so I have nothing but time.

Visit... volunteering...
Since I wasn't interested, I don't know the difference between care facilities, and I have no idea where they are.
Maybe I'll go to that one I can see from the bus; it doesn't matter where it is anyway.
The person who answered the phone was a man with a small voice who said they don't accept volunteers.
When I tried to hang up, he said I could visit, so please bring a resume.
I declined, saying I have no qualifications and the course starts in January, so I wouldn't be qualified until the end of April, but he said that was fine.
I haven't even decided on a "caregiving job," but maybe this is an interview disguised as a visit.

When I went for the visit, the man with the small voice was the facility director.
After visiting all the floors, a woman called a coordinator sat in on the meeting in the reception room and asked me various questions.
Is this really an interview test?
Perhaps they liked my phone manner or they were just that short-staffed, but I was sent off with, "We will let you know the results by phone by the end of the year, so please wait a while."
I didn't say I wanted to work here, did I...?
Asako felt a strange sensation, as if she were being guided and carried along by an invisible flow.
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