I think a "place to belong" is a "place where it's okay not to be"

"Welcome. How many in your party?"

I step into the dimly lit shop alone.

"Just one, then. Please have a seat at the counter."

I wonder if this will be my last time coming to this shop.

I think to myself as I take my seat.

I'm graduating from university and leaving this town.

To the me of that time, it felt equivalent to the end of my life.

Once you become a working adult, going to the office is just a matter of course.

But to me, as a student, it felt like an impossible task.

"One of these. And for food, this, and this, and..."

As I did so, I melted into the atmosphere of this shop.

——◆——◆——◆——◆——◆——

This shop is one of my "places to belong."

I can come here with a large group, or I can come here alone.

A comfortable place to belong. A place I want to visit again and again.

But just because of that, it doesn't mean I come here every single day.

(——There was a time when I did come here every day)

Sometimes I visit several times a week,

and sometimes I don't show up for about half a year.

In fact, on this day too, I had come to this shop for the first time in about a year and a half.

During the time I visited frequently, I was seen as a "regular."

The owner and the part-time staff also remembered my face.

But.

I hadn't set foot there for a year and a half.

Is it okay for me to talk to the owner now, acting like a "regular"?

Even if I remember the owner,

it doesn't mean the owner remembers me.

If I were to talk to him as if we were old friends,

and he said, "Hmm, who are you...?", it would be too embarrassing to even look at.

So the action I took was simple and clear.

I pretended it was my "first time meeting him" and kept quiet.

——◆——◆——◆——◆——◆——

The alcohol had started to kick in, and it was time to head home, just then.

"--Oh, did you change your hairstyle by any chance?"

"You hadn't come by for about a year, so I didn't notice at first."

The master peered at me and said.

At that moment, I thought once again.

Ah, this is my "place to belong."

I can come every day, or

I don't have to come for a year.

And even if I show my face for the first time in a year,

they welcome me as if it were just last week.

This shop is truly my "place to belong."

"——I'm leaving this town."

"I see. Well, come visit again when you return, okay?"

I will definitely come back. Definitely.

Keeping that in my heart, I left my "place to belong" behind.

——◆——◆——◆——◆——◆——

A place to belong is a place where it's okay not to be.

——That is what I think.

If it's a place where you 'must be',

then that is a 'place you are required to be,' not a 'place to belong.'

If it's a place where you 'must not be',

then that is a 'place you shouldn't be,' not a 'place to belong.'

In other words, I think a 'place to belong' is a 'place where it doesn't matter if you are there or not.'

To put it another way,

a place where someone will say 'welcome home' no matter when you return

—that is what a 'place to belong' is. That is what I think.

That is why I,

It's not a 'place where you must be',

It's not a 'place where you shouldn't be',

I want to create a 'place where you don't have to be'.

I want to create a 'place that says "welcome back" whenever you return'.

——With that thought in mind, I created this "note river bench".

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