Dawn of Symbiosis #128 Chapter 25 Section 5: The Emergence of New Values, Changes in the Community - Serial Novel
A corner in the shopping district of City A.
Until a few years ago, this place was called a 'shutter street' (a street of closed shops), but now people have returned.
The catalyst was a monthly event named the 'Thank You Market'.
The vendors were local shop owners, housewives, and high school students.
Leftover ingredients, handmade crafts, and sometimes persimmons or pickled plums from their gardens were lined up.
Prices were practically non-existent.
Often, you could 'pay with Yura,' and cash was frequently not used.
Yet, there was a mysterious energy there.
'My grandmother made these dried shiitake mushrooms. If you give me a thank-you card, take as many as you like.'
'Since you helped me yesterday, today's coffee is on the house.'
The exchange of value was determined not by numbers, but by memories and relationships.
The Aya/Yura app records these as 'logs'.
Instead of decreasing when used, the exchange of 'thank yous' is visualized and accumulates as a circulation within the town.
The Welfare Division of City A's municipal office named these citizen movements 'autonomous value circulation' and quietly supported them.
Their stance was closer to 'preparing the environment' than 'providing support'.
As part of this, the Welfare Division installed 'Town Circle Boards' in shopping streets and public facilities, linked with local bulletin boards and the AI Haru.
If someone asks for help, someone else who sees it raises their hand.
'Can someone help with picking up my child?'
'Can someone stop by the pharmacy while they are out shopping?'
'I am looking for someone to go for a walk with.'
When touched, the AI automatically lists candidates and matches the request to the person who is closest and has the capacity to help.
When support is successfully provided, it is recorded on Aya/Yura along with a 'thank you,' which accumulates as that person's 'town trust score'.
This score has no monetary meaning.
However, in City A, it had become a kind of indicator of 'who you can trust in daily life' before anyone realized it.
Furthermore, in several districts within the city, a system like 'local points' was being introduced on a trial basis.
These points, earned through use at the 'Thank You Market,' participation in 'support activities,' and contributions to 'learning workshops,' are supported by subsidies from the local government.
However, it was not merely an incentive.
It was a 'visualization of gratitude' and a circuit for the realization that 'I am a part of society'.
At the 'Town Veranda,' a renovated old vacant house at the end of the shopping street, children and the elderly were naturally gathering that day as well.
On the table were rice balls and barley tea brought by someone in the community.
Children on their way home from school drew pictures, and a circle formed around a grandmother telling old stories.
One middle school student suddenly said,
'Lately, I feel like it's okay even if I don't have money.'
Then, the high school student next to them nodded.
'Yeah, me too. Maybe it's because I know someone is there. It has nothing to do with the app, how should I put it... it feels like the town responds to me.'
A housewife laughed.
'That's a nice thing to say. The other day, when our air conditioner suddenly broke and we were in trouble, the couple across the street brought over a fan. Of course, it helped, but I was also a little surprised at myself for being able to say 'I'm in trouble'.'
In this way, relationships between people are being updated in a form that is neither 'lending and borrowing' nor 'transaction'.
Not 'exchange,' but 'circulation'.
Not 'taking from each other,' but 'giving to each other'.
Although society as a whole was still wavering, a different rhythm was certainly being born in City A.
It was small, fragile, but certainly 'something like a light'.
As the atmosphere of the town changed little by little in this way, a small change was also about to visit Rei's family.
⬇️ Continued