“What value does my article have?” Important things to know when you’re feeling down.

What is the point of my note?

“What’s the point of writing articles that no one reads?”

“What’s the point of writing about my trivial daily life?”

Have you ever thought that?

But your posts, even unintentionally, are saving someone.

Today, let me talk about that.

“When you’re doing well, I feel encouraged too”

For two years, I have been sharing my experiences and thoughts on note.

During that time, I have occasionally received some mysterious comments.

“I feel saved by the fact that you are working so energetically.”
“When you seem to be doing well, I feel like I’m being encouraged too.”

To be honest, I was confused at first.

I didn’t understand the true meaning behind these words.

The fact that there is no one to compare myself to

Let me tell you a little about myself.

I have never met anyone whose circumstances are very similar to mine.

I have a mental illness called bipolar disorder, and after graduating from elementary school, I barely went to school and became a shut-in.

I left home in my late teens to live alone, got my high school equivalency, and went on to higher education. And now, while working remotely as an IT engineer, I am, in effect, a “shut-in” again.

Even looking across note, I have yet to meet someone who is “almost exactly like me!”

That is precisely why I almost never compare myself to others... or rather, I cannot do it.

Jealousy and feelings of inferiority are emotions that arise precisely because there is a foundation of “similarity” between you and the other person. If there is no one similar, you are lonely, and you can barely feel the pressure of those emotions.

I now know that the phrase "stop comparing yourself to others" is, in itself, a very difficult challenge for many people.

But at the time, I didn't understand that feeling.

Even if we shared one commonality, such as being a "shut-in," "truant," or having a "mental illness," I wondered how that alone could make me see "my future or the future of someone I care about" reflected in them.

That's why I truly couldn't understand the meaning of the words, "I am encouraged by the fact that you are living well." I'm sorry.

Being alive. That fact itself becomes hope.

But then, one day, I suddenly realized something.

For example, for parents who have children who are truant or have bipolar disorder. Or for friends, partners, or those who are in that situation themselves.

A "person who is living happily while facing the same difficulties"is a model case.

"Just because there are difficulties, it doesn't mean everyone will be unhappy."

Even if you understand that in your head, how much hope can the fact that such a person actually exists and is sharing their own words provide?

The simple fact that that person is "alive" can truly support someone's heart.

I finally realized that recently.

That is why I believe.

Whatever difficulties you may be facing.

Whether it's "mental illness," "HSP," "truancy," or "developmental disabilities."

Whether it's being a "NEET," a "shut-in," "parenting blues," or "physical concerns."

Whatever the struggle, the fact that you are still"alive"while carrying it.

And hopefully, the fact that "you seem happy in your own way."

Sharing that itself is a hope that illuminates someone's future and becomes a salvation.

Perhaps those thoughts may almost never come back to you in the form of "words" or "reactions." For someone who desperately wishes for "someone to read this," this article might also sound empty.

But that power definitely exists.

Just the other day, when I wrote an article titled "Why must we be 'the same as everyone else'? The stifling feeling I felt about school education as a former truant", I received this comment from a Canadian noter.

Mr. Austin mentioned that he currently lives in Japan. I imagined that perhaps his daughter attends a Japanese school and is struggling because she feels blocked by Japan's uniform education system.

I was truly happy just to receive such words, but later, there was a delightful response.

Honestly, there is nothing that makes me happier than receiving words like these. Knowing that the article I wrote was useful to someone, even a little, made me feel truly rewarded from the bottom of my heart.

(Since Mr. Austin gave me permission, I have quoted his comment. Thank you!)

Over the two years of my activities, I have occasionally received such truly grateful words. Thanks to that, I have been able to learn firsthand that even ordinary articles written about my own experiences can still be useful to someone.

And now, I feel a great sense of fulfillment in knowing that my existence can, even in a small way, become someone's hope.

But even I, in the beginning, had almost no reaction even when I wrote with all my might. I have just continued for a reasonably long time, and I think the fact that I have been able to continue is due to luck and being blessed with people who support me.

There is only one thing I want to convey in this article.

Even if the number of people reading your article at this very moment is small, it might become someone's salvation in the future.

"Is there any chance that someone like me can be happy?"

"How are people in the same position as me trying to overcome this suffering?"

Someone who searched Note with those thoughts might arrive at your words.

To imagine that you are being useful to someone you have yet to meet.

That might become one of the forces that supports your expression.

I want you to believe in that possibility, just a little bit.

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