Autumn, Over in a Flash | Motohiro Tsuchiya, Dean of the Faculty of Policy Management
2020.12.08
I'm often asked, "You must be busy, right?" I never have a good answer.
About 15 years ago, I used to participate in a study group with leading figures from IT (information technology) venture companies. One of them, who is now the president of a certain company, would often say at these meetings, "I'm not busy." Looking at his social media, he was enjoying the outdoors to the fullest on weekends, and it didn't seem like he was slacking off at work. Since then, I've consciously tried saying, "I'm not busy," but I've never been able to truly feel that I had free time.
I had thought that once I became dean, I wouldn't be able to go on overseas business trips as often as before. I figured that while my research colleagues were happily flying around the world, I would have to be stuck on campus. I had also heard there would be a lot of waiting time, so I decided I would read the books I hadn't been able to get to. However, for the first six months, I wasn't so restricted and was even able to go see the Taiwanese presidential election in person in January 2020.
As the novel coronavirus infection spread, I was, of course, no longer able to go on overseas business trips. Since March, I haven't taken a domestic flight or a Shinkansen. I've only been on campus and in Tokyo. During the state of emergency, I kept a low profile, only going out for walks and shopping.
However, I made almost no progress with my reading. Instead, I kept buying one book after another, and the pile of unread books just kept growing. Thinking it would be a nice break outside of work hours once I could return to campus a bit more, I bought some plastic models, but they remain unbuilt in a pile. Online classes continued, as did online meetings both on and off campus. I don't even remember what I did during the summer break.
My favorite season is autumn, but every year I regret that winter arrives before I've had a chance to enjoy it. This year I thought I would surely be able to enjoy autumn, but one day, when I realized November was already ending, Section Chief U came to my room. I thought it was unusual, and then he gave me a present. He said he had made a desk calendar from photos he had taken of the campus himself. It is wonderfully made. I look forward to enjoying the photos each month, starting from January.
It's already December. This year, classes end in December. After grading, the entrance exam season will finally be upon us. Isn't this the 31st entrance exam for SFC, and also its greatest crisis?
The Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT), the entire Juku, and the faculty are considering various possibilities. There is probably no perfect solution. Universities all over Japan must be struggling with this. But we have no choice but to proceed. Now, as we consider the safety of everyone involved—the prospective students and their families, the faculty and staff and their families—I can no longer bring myself to say, "I'm not busy."
On New Year's Day 2020, I attended the Endo district's New Year's party and on the way back, I prayed at Sengen Shrine that the number of applicants for the entrance exams would not decrease , but next year's New Year's party has been canceled. Since I won't be coming to campus on New Year's Day, I thought I should do it now, and so I prayed for everyone's safety, without worrying about the number of applicants.
To all prospective students, if you are reading this, please come to the examination venue on February 17 (entrance exam day for the Faculty of Policy Management) and 18 (entrance exam day for the Faculty of Environment and Information Studies) in your best physical condition. We are waiting for you to give the exam your all.