Spinning the Globe

"Where is Cape Verde?"
When I asked, my son slowly spun the globe to the right.
"Oh..." He stared at one spot for a few seconds.
"Found it," he said, pointing his finger.
I peered at the globe, wondering where it was.
"So that's where it is. I never knew that."
"Yeah. Me neither. It's next to the African continent. Close to Senegal."

In the summer of 2023, a world basketball tournament was held in Okinawa.
It was an important match that would determine Olympic qualification.
Japan's opponent was
"Cape Verde."
It was a country name I had never heard before.
Where was it located, and what kind of country was it?
When I looked it up on the globe,
it was right there.
"It must have been a long way from here to Japan. It's amazing that people gather in one place from all over the world," my son said.
I had never thought about that until I checked the globe, but I agreed that it was indeed amazing.

The globe we received as a gift from a relative
has pictures of animals and famous landmarks native to each country, and it lights up when you flip a switch. It's not only beautiful but also a wonderful item.
However, when we first received it, my son didn't know geography yet, and I was afraid he might break it by spinning it roughly, so I kept it on a shelf out of his reach.
Recently, I remembered we had the globe and moved it to a place where he could easily touch it whenever he wanted. The globe was officially unbanned.
Since then, whenever he has a question about geography, he spins the globe. Even when there's nothing specific, just looking at it is fun.
It sounds strange to say, but the Earth has become more familiar to us.

When you spin the globe,
things that were unclear just from hearing or seeing them on the news become clear.
The size of a country, where it is located.
Things that were vague with just knowledge.
For example, seeing the blue globe makes it clear that "70% of the Earth is ocean," and you realize that the world is connected. I am moved by these obvious facts that I should have known long ago.
And I realize that I exist on this round Earth.
Then, problems happening on Earth, which I had heard about so many times but felt were somehow distant, started to feel like my own personal issues.
At the same time, a sense of urgency suddenly emerged.

What can I do for the future?
Why not start by spinning the globe?
Realize that the Earth is blue, round, and spinning, and that you exist on it, and make what you learned in textbooks and on the news your own personal concern.
I would like to propose this as a starting point.

#WhatICanDoForTheFuture