Let's fail properly. #LetterShop, I've started

I want to change, but I'm afraid of changing.
I don't think things are fine as they are, but I don't know what to do.

I learned through my LINE exchanges with the three monitors for my letter sessions that I'm not the only one holding onto such hazy feelings.

What I find truly amazing is things like, 'Oh! We liked the same anime when we were kids!' or 'Wow, I was in the same club too!' or 'We share the same family troubles that we can't tell anyone else about'...

That there are commonalities in places that are incredibly close and deep for me.(This was quite shocking.)

Even though I've never met any of the three of them. It's so mysterious. I wonder, do like-minded people really attract each other?

I was supposed to be healing them, but I feel like I'm the one being saved, thinking, 'I wasn't the only one!'

[Flow of the Letter Session]

• Purchase via STORES

• Send a message via the official LINE

• Tell me about your recent hazy feelings and worries

• I will ask a few questions about points that caught my attention or areas where I feel like digging deeper

• We exchange messages on LINE a few times to get to know each other, and once the message I want to deliver comes to mind, I write the letter

[Points I value]

• Choosing stationery that suits the person (though I've found that depending on the paper quality, glass pens might not work well or might not write smoothly, so this needs consideration 😭)

• Writing with ink infused with the feeling of being straight and strong 🖊️ (It would be nice to collect several types of ink, but they cost 2,000 to 3,000 yen each, so for now, I'll do what I can)

• Adding a small illustration of something I felt was important during our exchange

I started it like this.

I wonder if they'll be happy. I'm so glad that someone who hasn't even written a letter yet told me, "
I'm already satisfied just being able to have such deep conversations here on LINE that I can't tell anyone else around me"

At first, wanting to "become a letter shop" was just a whim.

Moreover, it was an experience of writing letters with a "glass pen" that I encountered at a shop called "R-za Dokushokan in Tokyo". I wanted to try it myself too. (Self-satisfaction)

But when I looked at other people's notes, I learned that they properly conduct surveys to confirm demand and accessible pricing before starting a service, and I felt embarrassed, thinking, "Oh, I made a mistake again..."

When I hear stories from people who are currently working successfully as freelancers, they say things like they went independent after 10 years in sales, or they started their shop after learning the ropes at an accounting firm.

Or that they opened a general store at first but no customers came at all, so they changed it to a different kind of shop.

Everyone has a proper foundation. What should I do? I have nothing.

But, depending on how you look at it, it might be new.

I don't have a particularly brilliant work history, and I even quit my previous job because I couldn't do the work. I'm not a mom, and I'm nobody special.

Even so, from now on, I should just show this indescribable anxiety from age 35, and my bumpy growth story toward a new self.

Even in dramas about single people, the protagonist is usually a super capable career woman. No, no, no, that's not it~~!

There are so many stories like,
"Chief! The documents for that project are ready!"

"Thanks, that was fast, you're a lifesaver (sharp look)"

but I've never held a position, never wanted to (and I don't have the ability for it anyway), and I've never been able to fit in at a company either.

In reality, we are just living our ordinary days as best we can. Even our current jobs are unstable.

I'm anxious because I can't see the future, I don't have any great skills, and I'm just getting older and feeling the pressure...

But I'm searching for a way to live while cherishing myself! There must be a lot of people like that, right?

Alright, with a clear head, I'll dip my pen in ink and scratch out a message. (I wish I could post videos on note too~~)

I don't draft the text, I just write the message that comes to mind as I feel for the recipient all at once so please forgive me if there are any typos.

I hope you can feel the thoughts, energy, and flow of that moment.

Even though I could just type and send it as a text, I choose to do something troublesome—something others might call a "waste of time." Haha.

Wait? Hmm? Is there even a need for a glass pen in the first place?

In any form, as long as a charm reaches your hands, it should be fine, and with a regular pen, I could surely deliver it better and faster, right?

Well, I'll ask the three people about that later.

When I sent out ZINEs before, a follower told me, "The sticker peeled off!" and when I tried hard to glue it this time, they told me, "The glue and the letter got stuck together!"

It's, it's, it's difficult (haha).

I'm always doing things without knowing what I'm doing.
But, I have no other choice, right?
And surprisingly, there aren't many people who get angry about that.
Everyone teaches me kindly, don't they?

There are so many things you can't understand until you try.

Failure is scary. It's embarrassing.
But if I can weave a growth story that moves someone's heart, then that is nothing but a success.

Let's go ahead and fail properly.

P.S.*

I started a letter shop because I just wanted to do it on my own.

I didn't think there was any need for it, but surprisingly, I often get comments like The letter shop you recently started is great! I used to love pen pals too., which makes me so happy!