Hey there!
I'm Oda, and I attended a gathering of my wife's relatives, ate so much horse sashimi, and now I want to move in with them forever!
#LoveHorseSashimi
Today, I'd like to talk about
the person who became a turning point in my life.
The reason is that, first and foremost, I love my current workplace and absolutely love my job as a firefighter!
I truly feel that it's the right job for me.
My relationships with my colleagues are going extremely well, and I genuinely like everyone—my superiors, my peers, and my subordinates.
That's why people around me wonder why I quit my job as a firefighter to create this website and write this blog.
I'll talk about that in detail later, but first, I'm going to meet the person who ultimately inspired me to take a big first step.
#ToOkinawa
・What happened one night
Although I had decided to take on a new challenge, I couldn't decide when to start (or when to quit being a firefighter).
Then, while researching various things,
on Instagram
#FirefighterCalendar
when I searched, a certain post appeared.
It was a post by a firefighter in Okinawa,
and simply put, they were already doing what I was trying to do.
#ThatPersonIsAlsoAnActiveFirefighter
Suddenly, I broke into a cold sweat.
#WhatHappenedAt2AM
#ICouldn'tSleep
To be completely honest and without sugarcoating it,
I thought,
"Oh no, they're going to beat me to it."
Even though I knew that they had definitely overcome many obstacles to somehow make this major project a reality, my first thought wasn't support, encouragement, or admiration—it was "anxiety."
#WhatAWeakMan
This goes back about 10 years.
When I was a member of the Public Relations Promotion Section at my workplace headquarters,
we were discussing at a meeting
how to promote our fire department.
Since I knew that the Australian fire service had a calendar project, I was the only one who made a PowerPoint presentation and presented it to everyone in my work uniform.
#IWas23AtTheTime
As a result, the proposal was rejected.
Six years passed, and just before the COVID-19 pandemic, I created another PowerPoint to present it again from a different perspective.
#Like, "Let's do this as a measure against financial difficulties!"
#PresentationMaterialsThatNoOneAskedFor
However, as you know, when COVID-19 hit, I put away the presentation materials that no one had asked for
because "Now is not the time. Now is not the time for that."
#IWantToShowThatPowerPointSomeday
And then more time passed, and it's now 2023.
COVID-19 has eased up, and somehow we've come to this point.
#TheEndingIsReallyRushed
#I'llTalkAboutTheSomehowInDetailLater
Basically, I intuitively felt that there was someone in Okinawa trying to take action just like me,
and I thought,
"I have to go meet them."
In the end, I summoned up the courage to send a DM,
asked when they were free that day,
and booked a flight to Okinawa right then and there.
For some reason, it felt like
"I have to meet this person as soon as possible."
That's how I felt.
We've only met through DMs so far,
but I'm Oda, and I'm looking forward to talking to them in person the day after tomorrow.
I still have a lot more to say about this, so today
I wanted to tell you that
a turning point in life isn't something someone else creates for you; it's something you create for yourself.
#Don'tThinkWhatTheHellIAmSayingWhenIAintAccomplishedAnythingYet
I'll drink plenty of Okinawa Sanshiro the day after tomorrow!
Well then, everyone, have a great trip!
#11PM
