Exchange Student Program Soka University is presently engaged in academic exchange agreement with
96 universities throughout the world. In the Philippines, U.P . had entered
into such an agreement with Soka University in 1988, and De La Salle in
1996. Every year, two exchange students from each university are being
dispatched for the said program.
Aside from that, because this is the only English speaking country in Asia,
many Soka University students come here to study at their own expense.
Furthermore, short term language training program is also launched in Kalayaan
College where Dr. Abueva, a close friend of SGI President Ikeda, serves
as its principal.
File 039: April 2010
Kumi Ishizaki (Ateneo de Manila University)
Hello! I am Kumi Ishizaki, a senior student majoring in English Literature
from Soka University.
I arrived in the Philippines at the end of March 2009 where I stayed in
Cebu for a couple of months to study English at a language school. After
that, I moved to Manila to learn Developmental Study and English at the
Ateneo de Manila University.
How I Found My Way to the Philippines
with SGI members in Cebu
In 2006, when I was still a freshman, I got a chance to go to India through
the English Intensive Program in my university. India had a very exotic
and rich culture on its own but I was surprised at the same time when I
faced the fact that there was a wide gap between the rich and poor. Because
there was a time when I entered a restaurant and saw a lot of well-fed
people happily enjoying their dinner. But when I left the place, however,
there were not a few malnourished people lying on the road, begging for
money. Among those people, there was a little boy, barefooted and dressed
with a shabby pair of pants, playing with his friends.
All of a sudden I wondered to myself, “What will he do in the future when he grows up?” At that moment, I strongly wished to do something especially for the children.
The following year, I participated in a volunteer work at an orphanage in Cebu. My stay then was only for eight days, but it made a big difference in me for after the volunteer activity, I wanted to live in the country to experience firsthand the reality that once struck a chord in me. After going back to Japan, I had kept in touch with one of the children in the orphanage through letters. As such, my desire and eagerness to go back to the Philippines increased day by day.
My Life in the Philippines
A Gift from my friends in Cebu
with my friend
with my roommates
At the end of March 2009, I arrived in Cebu full of hope. There were many
wonderful encounters with friends from various countries, local SGI members,
and with children. On weekdays, I spent my time studying and hanging out
with my friends. On weekends, I attended Ikeda Kayokai meetings. There
were only less than 10 SGI members at these meetings, but they were always
genial to me. I was impressed with their attitude in thinking about their
fellow members and learn things about Ikeda-Sensei earnestly. Aside from
those meetings, I also visited the orphanage and had a wonderful time with
the children each time.
After two months, I moved to Manila. Upon my arrival at the airport, I suddenly felt extreme loneliness like I had never experienced before. This sense of loneliness was so powerful it felt like I am being tortured – for I had no friends to talk with, no relatives to count on, and no familiar places to go to. The totally opposite environment – as against to the environment that I had gotten used to very well – made me sick altogether. So it isn’t an exaggeration at all when I felt that I was thrown into a totally unknown and alien place. Suffice it to say, my stay in Manila was harder than I expected. But then again, my cell phone rang everyday with calls and text messages from both my friends and former teachers in Cebu. They would ask me things like: “Kumaaaa!!! What are you doing?” (Everyone called me “Kuma”, meaning a bear in Japanese, because of my chubby appearance) “Are the people in Manila kind?” Through such correspondences with them made my loneliness milder somehow. At the same time, however, I noticed that I was stuck in the past and had not moved on toward the future. Within a few days, one of the SGI members who learned that I had arrived in Manila came to my dorm despite the heavy downpour of rain just to encourage me. Thanks to his lively talk, I was able to open my eyes on various things.
Then I remembered a particular guidance from Ikeda-Sensei that goes something like: “It is this time and place that matters — not some other time and place. What matters most is the here and now — the people here and now”. Through this guidance, I realized that I had to enjoy my life right now with the people around me, instead of just missing my time in the past. On that day, I determined to myself, “now is my second start in the Philippines!” In this way, I certainly could take a small but steady step ahead.
While I was enrolling at the university, I encountered a long and mountainous process. Although it was not as effortless as I expected it, I nevertheless went ahead preparing vivaciously and built steadfast new relationships along the way with both university staffs and students alike little by little.
In retrospect, I can say that in Cebu, it was relatively easy to make friends because of the fact that everyone there gathered together from various countries for the same purpose: “to learn English.” And unlike such kind of environment in Cebu, being in Manila was extremely hard for me at the beginning since I was a foreigner with poor English communication skills in the classroom. Under such circumstances, I was tortured all the more by my inferiority complex in this aspect. So much so that I was hesitant to go to school and found myself keeping distance from my friends. As a result, my school life was all too simple and mechanical: I just attended class, and then go back to my dorm after. I knew inside me that I had to overcome this weakness and cowardice of mine. As Ikeda-Sensei once mentioned: “the important thing is to defeat any cowardice or weakness in your own mind.”
Thus I started chanting daimoku harder than ever and read a lot of Sensei’s speech many times over. As I kept on doing this, my way of thinking started to shift and gradually I became more positive. Although everyday and every moment I still conflicted with myself and struggled each time, I noticed I had the strength to overcome it, and at the same time my environment was changing little by little. I could understand and cope up with what was going on and participate in the classroom discussions. In addition, I was blessed to have a lot of friends, not just friends, but “best friends” like a true family. “Friendship is the most beautiful, most powerful, and most valuable treasure in life. It is your treasure.” In accord with this Sensei’s guidance, my friends made my life brighter and more colorful. I will never forget them for the rest of my life.
My Determination
with my younger brother and sister
Now I am able to share my experiences with a lot of people. This is possible
precisely because of the tremendous support and encouragement I received
from my parents, SGI members, friends, and most especially, from Sensei.
I would like to give my appreciation to all those who had supported me
both in explicit and unseen ways. I will never forget everything that they
had done for me and I would like to return my debt of gratitude to them
throughout my life.
Sensei is now focusing even more attention on the youth. As such, I will devote myself to the happiness of people in my own small way. No matter what will happen, I will challenge, polish, and strengthen myself through chanting abundant daimoku.
