[ Essay ] First Paycheck # Torakichi's Exchange Room Mini Project

This year, I gave out New Year's money during the holidays.

Every year, the amount I put inside isn't based on the so-called 'market rate' found online, but rather on imagining what the child might want to buy and giving them enough to afford that.

This year, what I imagined was 'sweets'.
Since they are at an age where they don't really understand how to use money yet, I gave them what I thought was appropriate, but after handing it over, I started worrying about the difference from the 'market rate,' wondering, 'Was it too much?' or 'Was it too little?' Imagining how someone will spend money is surprisingly difficult.

Speaking of how to spend money, I have a vivid memory of being very troubled when I received my first paycheck as a working adult. I started my job in September, but until August, I had been working part-time, earning about 20,000 yen a month. Since my income increased nearly tenfold in just one month, it's no wonder I had trouble deciding how to spend it.

I had decided, 'Once I become a working adult, I want to live alone.' I could live in my own space without anyone telling me anything. Just imagining it made me feel like I was in a dream. It's no exaggeration to say that this was the biggest motivation that helped me work hard during my job search.

After much deliberation, I decided to use it for moving expenses as a 'reward to myself' for working hard to get a job. I immediately went to a real estate agent to look for a place, paid a large sum of money I had never used before, and started living alone. I was satisfied that it became the best way to spend money, to the point where I wanted to praise myself.

Once I actually started living alone, there were about 10 piles of cardboard boxes in the room. Other than that, there was nothing. I didn't have the money to buy a fluorescent light, nor did I have a refrigerator or a washing machine. It was a silent space, devoid even of 'sound.' Because I had used most of my money for moving expenses, I had nothing left for furniture or appliances.

For once, I was dumbfounded by my own lack of planning. Even so, the joy of being able to start living alone far outweighed such inconveniences, and I didn't feel any pain at all. 'Alright, let's enjoy this life for the month until the next payday!' My spirit, at least, was looking forward.

Every day, when I returned from work, it became my routine to unpack cardboard boxes in a pitch-black room and do laundry in the bathroom, doing things that made me wonder what era I was living in. For light, I relied on the streetlights outside the window. Embarrassingly, I didn't even have curtains.

For the first time, I deeply appreciated the things I had taken for granted. The people of that time really did have a way with words when they coined the term 'Three Sacred Treasures'.

When the first month finally passed, I racked my brain over 'what to get next.' However, imagining things gradually coming together like this was also incredibly fun. After indulging in the true pleasure of living alone for a while, I decided to buy a fluorescent light and curtains first. Living by the light of streetlights was the one thing I found truly painful.

The room was filled with light. Seeing the entire room fill with brightness, just like my heart, moved me. When the light turned on, even my heart felt warmer. It was the moment I finally felt a sense of ease after starting to live alone.

I still had a decent amount of money on hand. What should I buy with this? The answer came immediately.

I headed straight to the 'home appliances' section of an electronics store, where the latest televisions were lined up in the cramped aisles. Having been a TV addict since I was a child, I had always thought, 'Someday, I want a big TV!' The moment to fulfill that wish had arrived.
There was no point in being stingy. Even if I had to endure another month of inconvenient living, I wanted to buy a good TV. With my hand trembling as I gripped my wallet, I steeled myself to make the most expensive purchase of my life.

A super-large television was installed in my room for the first time.
While I gave a wry smile at the TV that was far too large for the size of the room, I noticed myself already starting to feel attached to it. 'Let's get along from now on,' I said to it before pressing the power switch.

'It made a sound!' I shouted in my heart. Having lived in silence for the past month, I was starving for 'sound.' Sounds began to echo throughout the room.

Light had been lit in my heart, and sounds had begun to be born.
It was more than enough to imagine the bright future of the working life that was about to begin in earnest.

From the following month onwards, I finally acquired a washing machine and a refrigerator, and was finally able to maintain a standard of living comparable to the general public. As the necessary items were filled one after another, I felt a little lonely as the excitement of acquiring them began to fade. People only realize the importance of something after they lose it. Perhaps there is nothing more precious than an ordinary, everyday life. And perhaps the same is true for work.

My life as a working professional, which started so recklessly, has now become quite long. Just as what is common for the general public may not be common for me, the reverse is also true. That remains unchanged in any era, any society, and any job. The motto I have cherished since I started living alone is precisely 'carry out one's original intention'.

I would like to participate in this project.

Comments are very welcome💡