Four women in one room — we almost never let a moment of silence slip by. From the lunch we shared to the dinner time when we each had to head home, the room was filled with endless chit-chat and laughter.

Now, back on a weekend shift, surrounded by glowing monitors and the hum of a busy day, I catch myself replaying that small moment from yesterday — one filled with big, shared happiness.

Here’s how my week 1,526 unfolded.

1. What I read.

Revisiting Thou, Like a Star (『汝、星のごとく』)

I love her writing. The way she uses metaphors and plants foreshadowing is incredibly skillful. In Japanese, subjects are often omitted, which can add a layer of ambiguity to communication — but in her prose, the way she omits subjects feels stylish and authentic. It adds to the realism, and I find it beautifully done.

The quote that stuck with me:

“I’m already on the verge of drowning, struggling desperately, but I don’t even know which way to swim to reach the surface.”（わたしはもう溺れる寸前で、必死でもがくけれど、どちらに泳げば水面に出られるのかもわからない。)

2. Who I saw.

On Monday, we were in a big conference room at a hotel in Tokyo, away from the office. It was the Japan team’s offsite, and it’s not often that the whole Japan team is in one room together.

The little details I observed:

We took this time to recognize the “growing pains” of our rapidly expanding Japan team and think about how we can keep growing in a sustainable way.

One key takeaway was how important it is for everyone to be on the same page. Whether it’s about how we use the office space or our focused strategy, as our team grows, this becomes harder but more important to avoid creating problems down the line.

A big topic was our focused strategy, with the key question being: How will consumers pay in Japan in the future? We broke into groups to discuss related questions, like:
— What should we continue to build?
— What other payment methods should we consider?
— How would we explain our strategy to existing and potential merchants?

I had the chance to discuss these questions with people from other departments — people I don’t normally interact with closely. As someone on the tech side, it was really refreshing and insightful to hear opinions from the commercial side, and I learned a lot from those conversations.

3. What I created.

This weekend, I visited my grandma with my little sister and cousin. We brought her a photo album we had put together, filled with recent snapshots from each of our lives and personal messages from all of us.

She now lives alone in the big house that once held a family of six. We don’t get to visit her as often as we’d like, so we made this album hoping it could ease the loneliness she might feel when we’re not around.

The story behind it:

All of my grandparents, except for her, passed away while I was attending high school in the U.S. What felt like just another ordinary day turned out to be my last moment with them. That experience taught me how suddenly things can change — that any moment could be a final goodbye.

Since returning to Tokyo, I’ve been visiting my grandma whenever I can, trying to savor each moment with her.

Sometimes I realize I’m not just doing this for her — but also for myself. I didn’t get the chance to do this with my other grandparents, and maybe, in some way, I’m making up for that now.

This awareness has helped me grow. I’ve come to accept that life has its limits. But within those limits, there’s still so much we can do — so many small, meaningful moments we can create and cherish.

Next Week’s Peek — What I’m looking forward to and why

I’m looking forward to my second shift of support duty. I want to learn and take away as much as I can from the experience.

Also, there’s a family dinner that my dad organized. I’m excited and grateful that we’ll all be able to be together in one place at the same time.

Hope you had a great week.

Catch you next week!