[Creative Award Entry] The True Meaning of "Daijoubu desu" - The Spinning Fairy of the Japanese Language -

Is "Daijoubu desu" a YES or a NO?
The moment a foreign staff member's expression froze at a convenience store, I doubted my own Japanese for the first time.

It has been a long time since the term 'inbound' became established, and seeing foreign staff at convenience stores has become a common sight.

In the area where I live, and especially at my previous workplace in a part of Tokyo with many residents and tourists, the proportion was even higher. People from various countries stood at the register.

Some people don't speak much Japanese yet and serve customers in near silence, doing their best.
But most people handle the register brilliantly while serving customers in Japanese.
They don't just ring up items; they do things like this too.

Tobacco numbers, inquiries about products, utility bills, courier services, whether a plastic bag is needed, how to use points...
In a language that is foreign to them.

I wonder, how talented are they?

Could I do it?
...No, I couldn't.

However, the 'ambiguity' of Japanese seems to confuse them sometimes.

One day, I was asked at the register, 'Do you need a plastic bag?'
I answered out of habit, without thinking.

"Daijoubu desu" (It's fine/I'm fine).

At that moment, the other person's expression froze.

—Ah...!

Come to think of it, the Japanese language has an unusually large number of 'polite refusals'.
"Daijoubu desu," "Kekkou desu," "Ii desu."
This trio can all mean both YES and NO. Moreover, since you are expected to judge based on tone of voice and subtle pauses, it is an impossible game for those who are not native speakers.

Japanese is a language based on the premise that 'you should understand without me saying it.'
A culture of guessing. A culture of reading the air and reading between the lines.
But there are people for whom that 'please guess' doesn't work. In fact, the confused look on a foreign staff member's face—'Wait, which one was that?'—is a mirror that honestly reflects the very structure of the Japanese language.

And I realized. I use 'Daijoubu' unconsciously, but can I actually explain it well myself?
I had never thought about why this one phrase could mean both YES and NO until I faced this situation.

This is my own example, but
I have traveled to Turkey alone many times and have been exposed to the Turkish language.
I experienced 'not getting through' many times because the language didn't connect.
So, I would use gestures, choose the words I knew one by one, and speak while thinking, 'How should I say this to make it understood?'

Yet, when I return to Japan, I confuse people with the single phrase 'Daijoubu desu'.
In Turkish (and English, too), it ends with 'yes' or 'no'.
Only in Japanese does it suddenly become a quiz.

I ended up being taught about the Japanese language by a foreign staff member.

In Japanese, there are these spinning fairies living in every room that say, 'I won't say much, but please guess.'
We live with them without even noticing their existence.

Since then, when asked about a plastic bag, I make sure to say 'I don't need one' while shaking my head from side to side.
Simple, easy-to-understand words plus gestures to supplement.
Because that is the most reliable way.

#CreativeAward2026 #ComicEssayCategory