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“I with to go to Japan”
Simon, age 12
Wish Adopted by: San Diego National Bank & Memorial Academy
The fascination with language and other cultures is a growing interest among young people, and 12-year-old Simon is no exception. He chose a trip to Japan for his wish.
Simon’s interest with other cultures began when he was a 3rd grader. Because of his school’s close proximity to UCSD, he encountered many international families and was encouraged by his dad to become bilingual. Simon was very interested in Japanese and actually taught himself the language through grammar, writing, and pronunciation books. Moreover, Simon also developed a growing interest in Japanese anime films and comic books.
Simon’s wish started with a limousine pick-up at his house to take him and his family, including mother Anne, father Tim, and big brother Benjamin to the airport for their long flight to Tokyo. As Simon stepped off the plane, he realized that dreams really do come true. “My first thought was Wow! I’m actually in Japan!” says Simon.
Simon’s family was greeted by their very own Japanese tour guide, and began their adventure in the city of Tokyo, where they experienced authentic Japanese theatre, Japanese food and temples, the bullet train, and best of all, the Anime museums. The Ghibili museum was Simon’s favorite. This museum was constructed by Hayao Miyazaki, one of Japan’s most famous animators. There, Simon saw a reconstruction of a production studio and learned about anime films through interaction, playing and touching.
Simon had no problems adapting to the culture. He embraced the culture and language to the best of his ability and found it very comfortable speaking there. He even helped translate for a woman on the metro!
Simon has brought so much back from Japan that will change his life forever. He was able to experience his passion and interest for the Japanese culture through an unforgettable journey. He can now speak Japanese at 6th grade level and has a new pen pal in Japan. Simon and his family cannot express enough gratitude for all the people who have been involved in making his wish possible, especially Memorial Academy and San Diego National Bank, who adopted his wish as part of Time Warner Cable’s Wishing On A Star. Simon and his family would like to give back to others, especially the Make-A-Wish Foundation in Japan. There are no words that can match the overwhelming sincerity that Simon and his family feel, except simply put in Japanese, “Domou Arigatou Gozaimashita!” (Thank you very much!)