Posted abroad

When Mr Okuno (not real name) was a high school student, he used to have daydreams about a tropical country known as Indonesia. He imagined a country of eternal spring (Japanese Toko Natsu no kuni) of coconut trees swaying in the tropical breeze and sandy beaches glittering in the sunlight, of the most friendly people on earth and so on, so much so that Mr Okuno decided to specialize in the Indonesian language after finishing senior high. Imbued by this Indonesian dream, he diligently studied Indonesian for four years at the University of foreign languages.

When the company which imports wood from Indonesia dispatched Mr Okuno to Indonesia, because of his skill of the Indonesian language, it goes without saying that his happiness knew no bounds. Everything went according to plan, or so Mr Okuno thought. However there was one drawback, namely the company's regulations were very strict and his wife was not allowed to accompany him.

In the beginning, Mr Okuno was very moody and morose to be parted from his wife. So severe was his homesickness and lovesickness that he used to phone his wife everyday. His colleague who lived in the same house took pity on the lovelorn young man.

With the purpose of consoling Mr Okuno, his colleague took him to the city karaokes and nightclubs. Bit by bit, Mr Okuno lost his nostalgia for his wife when he became intimate with the pretty girls of the night clubs, so much so that his telephone calls to his wife ceased altogether and his visits to his girlfriends became more frequent.

Due to the high rate of the yen, Mr Okuno had much rupiah to spend. As Mr Okuno had no trouble in conversing -- he spoke Indonesian almost without any foreign accent -- he became more and more attached to this country and he regarded Indonesia as his second homeland. The Japanese expression of living in a country forever, is to bury one's bones in that country. Anyway, this freewheeling lifestyle went on for a while, until his colleague was recalled by the company's head office and another came here to replace him. The successor was apparently an ambitious man who was bent on becoming the chief representative of the company. Apparently, the newcomer wrote to the head office saying that Mr Okuno neglected his work and spent too much time and energy on entertainment, because not long there after, Mr Okuno was instructed to return to Japan. I personally believe that the clique system prevails in every company of the world, and as it so happened in this instance the newcomer was the boss' protege.

A. DJUANA

Jakarta