'The History Repeats Itself??' (English translation):Ashu-on TV Vol.19

This is Ashu-on TV.

The other day, I went to Bangkok. I assume most of you who read my Twitter already know, but I conducted a trip for five days and four nights to prepare for publishing the book 'SP-2 Final'  These days, many people seem to worry about me as if they worry about their children when they hear I am going on an airplane.  I guess they worry about me because they are affected by the movie 'Kenja Sato-Ken no Real Hirasawa-ban Nisshi(The Philosopher Sato-Ken's Real Hirasawa's Assistant's Journal) which was released a few months ago.  In the movie, Sato-Ken talks about "Hirasawa forgot to bring his airplane ticket to the airport" and "He left his passport in his car" and...

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Sato-Ken:

(The lady at the check-in counter:)"Eh, sir,...Mr. Hirasawa, this is not the ticket for today's flight."

(Sato-Ken:)"Where is it?"

(Hirasawa:)"At home."

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He(Sato-Ken) enjoyed disclosing the video like this, so a lot of people tend to believe I really make this kind of mistakes day-to-day, I think.  However, I don't make mistakes all the time, and those incidents occurred by chance.  That's why it's easy to make these stories the topics of conversation.  I earnestly would like all of you to recognize the truth about it. 

In the trip this time, I had already checked-in through the internet checking-in system before boarding.  The airline I usually use when I go to Thailand had started the internet checking-in system lately.  But their system is quite different from that of Japanese airlines. 'The internet checking-in system' may sound good, but it is actually the system in which they just force the passengers to do a part of the airline staffs' job. It is not convenient at all. 

For example, in a Japanese airline's internet checking-in system, they send a QR code to your phone after you check-in, and you can pass the image over the code readers at the pivotal points to go through them.  But the airline I got on this time requires you to show the check-in desk the proof that you have checked-in already, and they give you a boarding pass. After all, it is merely a half-hearted system that cuts back the jobs of the check-in desk ladies'.  However, it is a secure system in a way because there is no chance of forgetting your ticket if you check-in beforehand, and your seat is already reserved.  

So this time, I went to the check-in desk at ease because I had already checked-in.  I took out my tablet and booted it to show the lady the proof that my internet check-in had completed.  But it didn't display the proof.  It was because the page had a link fixed to it which wasn't displayed unless the tablet was connected to the internet. It could have been avoided if I had completely downloaded the page, but I hadn't expected this might occur.  So I came across this situation.

Accordingly, without panic, I tried to take out my cellphone so that I could connect it to the internet and connect my tablet to it in order to display the non-visited link. But I couldn't find my cellphone neither in my pocket nor in my bag.  Accordingly, without panic, I could have connected my tablet to the airport Wi-Fi which should have been easier(, but I wanted to use my cellphone).  Usually( when I go to Thailand), I bring two cellphones; one is for use in Thailand, and the other is my Japanese cellphone.  But this time, I only had my Japanese cellphone because I was going to change the sim cards to the Thai carrier's when I get there.  And I couldn't find that only cellphone.  I tried to remember deeply about it, and I remembered I had left it in my car.

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Sato-Ken:

(Sato-Ken:) "OK, Shisho, give me your passport"

(Hirasawa:) "Ah!! It's in my car.", 

he said. (laughs)

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It was like that.  So I left the check-in desk now and I called the parking lot office where I had parked my car. The new reception desk lady said, "We will deliver it to you right away.  But there is a charge to do that." "I don't care if you charge me.  Please bring it to me right away.", I asked her.  After waiting for several minutes, my car arrived.  The man with a familiar face handed me my cellphone, with a half smile.  I said, "Thank you very much.  How much do I owe you?" "No. I won't charge you (laughs) because you are Mr. Hirasawa." So I got my cellphone delivered to me without paying anything, and I went back to the check-in desk. I got my boarding pass successfully.   

And now, I went through the embarkation procedure with my boarding pass, and proceeded to the departure gate.  On the way, I heared some announcements paging some passengers like "Mr. Such and Such, boarding on Such and Such Airline's flight such and such, for Such and Such City, Please contact...", which you hear a lot at an airport.  I didn't pay attention to them because they were not calling my name.  When I arrived at the departure gate, I saw a lot of passengers waiting in the chairs. 

So I was hanging about looking for a vacant chair.  Just then I heard an announcement like that again.  In that moment, a foreigner sitting in front of me suddenly became busy looking around.  "Ah, this person is probably being paged.", I thought, and I hanged about again to look for a chair to sit.  Then I heard the same paging announcement again, and the same foreigner stood up suddenly and started to look around more busily.  I thought, "What is this foreigner waiting for? Shouldn't he go to where he is supposed to go?  He is being paged so many times."  But then, I listened more carefully, and found that a rather familiar name is being called.  Then, I tried hard listening, and I heard clearly, "Mr. Hirasawa, boarding on flight such and such of Such  and Such Airline bound for Bangkok...".  I heard my name was called many times.   

So I went to the place I was directed to.  It was the desk at the boarding gate.  When I got there, I found my trunk sitting there, and they asked me, "Please remove the lighter from your luggage."  I usually bring a lighter in my trunk because I want to light a candle with herbal insect-repellent ingredients when I go to sleep.  I have a habit to shut the AC off and keep the windows open if I can when I sleep at a hotel.  Actually the regulations had become more strict recently and I was told to remove the lighter from my luggage.

After that, my trunk was placed at the boarding gate for a while, without being loaded on the luggage cart.  That meant, I thought, my trunk might very well be loaded on the airplane at the end.  It meant that it would come out at first at the destination. I thought it was a very good phenomenon.  If I tell you what it means, I would be able to skip the tedious time after the arrival of the plane to wait for and look for my luggage which comes out on the belt-conveyer.  Everybody, you shouldn't imitate my example, though.  If I put a lighter in my trunk before boarding, I can expect a phenomenon in which it will be loaded on the airplane at last, and will come out first. But please do not imitate my conduct.    

Like this, I got on the airplane and arrived at the destination successfully. I was waiting in front of the belt-conveyer for my luggage.  And, as I expected, the trunk of mine came out at first. This way, I skipped the long cumbersome task to look for my luggage out of the cargo rotating on the looped belt-conveyer. 

At Suvarnabhumi Airport, the philosopher Sato-Ken and Sandy were waiting for me at the appointed spot. We got on the car and we were heading to my hotel.  On the way, I asked as usual, "By the way, I wonder what Ms.Such and Such is doing lately. Do you know by any chance, Sandy?" 

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Sato-Ken: "My Shisho, believe it or not, attracts everything and everybody, including animals and everything. Once he said, 'Ah, I wish I could see that person (in Thailand)." I said to him, "Shisho, that's impossible.  We don't know where she lives, we don't know her phone number, we don't know how to contact her.'

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Of course I knew that Sandy didn't know Ms.Such and Such in person, but I asked without thinking, "Do you know her?" and she said, "Yes, I know her." I asked where they met. Sandy told me that she met Ms.Such and Such when she was working outside the country a month ago. She found her among the workers working  with the same agent as hers.  They happened to find out they both knew Hirasawa, and Sandy kept Ms. Such and Such's contact number, thinking, "This might help someone some day." In this way, I easily found the SP-2 whose whereabouts I hadn't been known for more than five years. 

Sato-Ken: "Wai and I have been working for Shisho for a long time, for a few decades.  I've seen so many  miraculous events and everything about Shisho. There is no lie. There is no lie about it."

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In my trip to Thailand this time, I experienced various events. Overall, I can say that it was one of the  extraordinarily good trips I made these several years.  

In the research travel I made this time,

I acquired information about how to

define clearly the difference between

the good SP-2 and the SP-2 who are not.

The message the good SP-2 have reached to

is the theme commonly applicable to us

who stand at the crossroads

in every way of the world.

When talking about SP-2

and their fate being born with discrepancy

between their minds and bodies,

it is often said, "God made a mistake."

However, after the research travel,

I have come to the conclusion

which is extremely cruel to the SP-2 themselves:

"God did not make a mistake."

Joining hands in prayer,

 

The main purpose of the trip this time was to interview three people: Sandy, another Zandy(pronounced as "Sandy"), and Kukkai, and I had a really great success with it. In addition, actually, I had another big accomplishment in a short time. Its location is only known to philosopher Sato-Ken and me. In the past, there were places where SP-2 would gather in their time off. The Nurse Cafe was one of them, and after it closed, we found several other places like that and we would repeatedly wait for them to show up as if we were staking out at those places. However, these few years, I couldn't find a place like that after one of them closed down. In those years, I continued going on trips to Thailand but I would come back to Japan in vain with no real accomplishment. But this time, I found one by chance. 

The SP-2 who come to this place, whom we always care about, are the people who are not only beautiful but also have so-to-speak subtle sanctity. There, I got a feeling that I might find the second generation of good SP-2. The research of the first generation of good SP-2 will be over with this time (publishing of the book "SP-2 Final"). After that, perhaps we, philosopher Sato-Ken and me, might be able to go on a journey to look for the second generation of good SP-2 in the future. I can't say it is not possible.

Well, this time, I was able to interview three SP-2 people at least, and I could get the picture of the recent lives of the first generation. I will write a book about it. So much for the topic on my last trip to Thailand. 

Sato-Ken: "This man did an extraordinary thing. Hem, hem...(coughs)

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(End)