Things That Make You Sad When You Become an Adult

“We kind of listen to recent music just so we can hear our juniors or younger people say, ‘Wow, [Name]-san, you know that song too?’”

It started when I went to karaoke with a high school classmate. I think I was singing Vaundy at the time.

When I was a child, I thought adults were much cooler. Now that I’ve become such an adult, what do I think?

There are too many things I’ve lost since becoming an adult. Each time, it makes me sad. Let’s list them one by one.

Dining out means going to an izakaya or a fancy restaurant

I understand that dining is not just about eating delicious food, but also about enjoying the company of the people there. I get that completely.

I drink alcohol, and I like places where I can drink. However, whenever I make plans to meet someone, it always ends up being an izakaya or a fancy restaurant. Adults who have gained some financial leeway try to set up dining venues that match their status.

Since they are close friends, we don’t need to be at such formal dining places. I would be perfectly fine with a daytime cafe or a chain family restaurant. I think people you can have a deep conversation with at a daytime cafe are more trustworthy than those you talk to while using the liquid courage of alcohol at an izakaya. After all, the day after talking while using the power of alcohol, people forget what happened yesterday and treat you like a stranger, as if nothing happened.

People at work who might have definitely become my friends if we had met differently

There is someone at work I get along with very well. We are on the same wavelength, our values align, and they are a very kind person with a calm personality. However, there is a thick, unbreakable wall separating us called 'same workplace'.

If we had met differently, we might have definitely become friends. But as long as we met at work, our relationship is limited to 'getting along at work,' and I can't shake the 'work colleague' label. Meeting people might be like a treasure hunt. Every time I meet someone who makes me think, 'If we had met differently, we would have definitely been friends,' it makes me sad.

A friend’s marriage announcement

It is a very joyous occasion, and since they are an important friend, I offer my heartfelt congratulations while simultaneously thinking, 'Ah, I can’t go back to the relationship we had before.' Because their family will come before time spent with friends. This is how the pattern goes: we go from meeting once every six months to once a year, and eventually, we drift apart.

Judging people only by whether they 'have money' or 'can do their job'

I feel this especially when I am working.

People at work judge others only by 'whether they can do their job.' While that is largely true, it makes me sad to think that is the only way people are evaluated as human beings.

We work to generate profit and develop the company. And those who can do that are evaluated. That is perfectly natural, but when I talk to people at work, I feel that in every aspect, and it makes me dislike it.

On another day, a relative I happened to meet told me, 'Men who don’t have money aren’t popular.' Indeed. Money is also necessary to nurture love. I understand that without money, marriage is... well, it’s difficult. Even so, it is painful when the idea of 'judging people by money' is pushed to the forefront.

I used to admire becoming an adult, but

When I was a child, I vaguely thought that adults were cool, but there are many difficult things about it.

As I get older, I feel like I'm just pretending to be an adult because I have no other choice. Things I didn't feel when I was young have been visiting me frequently lately.

It's different from those days when I was in love with a typical youth. We have become too much of an adult.