Member-only story
Becoming Myself in Tokyo
What living in Tokyo taught me about independence, identity, and finding strength in the quietest parts of ourselves.
Some places don’t just live in your memories — they live in who you become. For me, that place is Tokyo.
I moved there as a quiet, unsure girl entering seventh grade, living in the Indian Embassy compound. My English was hesitant. Making friends in an international school where everyone seemed fluent, expressive, and sure of themselves felt like an impossible task. I often found myself sitting silently in class, rehearsing sentences in my head, afraid to speak them out loud.
A City That Moves, and Teaches You to Move With It
Tokyo doesn’t slow down for anyone. Especially not at Shibuya Station, where people seem to flow like water — confident, fast, precise. The Tokyo Metro map looked like a chaotic web at first, and I dreaded getting lost in it. But eventually, I did get lost — and in doing so, I learned how to find my way.
The once overwhelming became familiar. I grew to love the quiet walk from Hiroo Station after school, the routine of my green-and-blue school uniform skirt swaying as I walked to the local mall with an Oreo ice cream in hand. On winter evenings, I’d walk…
