THE
TOKYO
DESIDERATA
GO placidly amid the teeming expressways and the urban congestion and remember what joy there may be along Tokyo's sidestreets. Eat of the sushi, the sashimi and the soba and taste the delicious sticks of yakitori, torinegi and sheesh kebab. You are a resident of one of the most bustling cities in the world, so walk with your head held high and your smile attached. As far as possible be on good terms with your neighbors whatever country they may be from and remember that we are all the same in the eyes of the universal Creator. Respect the no smoking signs and the automatic doors, preserve the environment or what's left of it, recycle your garbage and try to stay away from unlicensed fugu restaurants and yakuza loansharks. Take in the sights of Mt. Fuji, Kamakura and Harajuku and soak up the sun in Enoshima, Shimoda and Guam. Oh yes, and enjoy yourself because life is short and the Big One may strike tomorrow.
With your paperback guidebooks and your electronic dictionaries, move leisurely through Tokyo's shitamachi areas and spend a few good hours at your neighborhood yatai sipping hot sake and noshing on skoonae. You are lucky to be young and alive and living in Tokyo, this city of bliss. Believe it and pray for a good exchange rate.
Author unknown Found in a bottle floating down the Sumida River.
Stone Bridge Press sbp@stonebridge.com