午夜剧场

It has been 18 years since I first encountered the Philippines. Here, I am working on a project that aims for co-creation beyond traditional passive support, where those facing adversity take the lead.

The other day, I visited the village where we operate. Looking around, I saw young people absorbed in basketball, fathers drinking rum, and children playing on trash heaps. Nearby, a man set fire to a small pile of garbage, and the smell of burning plastic drifted through the air. In front of me, a teenager was holding a small child. When I asked, "Is that your brother?" he laughed and said, "No, he's not my brother." In Philippine villages, neighborhood children live together like one big family.

This scene feels somewhat nostalgic and enviable. As I walked, I suddenly found myself surrounded by children, and I noticed them tossing snack wrappers on the ground. When I asked, "Why do you throw trash here?" they laughed and replied, "There has been trash here since before we were born, so it's only natural."

I thought, "I see," but at the same time, a feeling welled up inside me: "Is it really okay to leave it like this?" I suppressed that feeling and kept it to myself. I must not judge this place based on my own sense of what is right. This is a place of daily life where they live their precious days. Therefore, I simply start by being with them. Then, someday, the life of this village will surely become a part of my own life.

The next day, I played with fire with the children on the trash heap. The children found pieces of plastic, burned them, and enjoyed watching them melt. It was fun, but my throat soon began to hurt. When we returned, the boy who had been playing with fire was scolded by his mother: "Stop burning plastic; it's bad for your health." He shouted, "I didn't do it!" and ran off. My six-year-old son, who had come along, also ran across the trash heap. There were glass shards scattered on the ground, and I worried that he might fall and get hurt. Looking at the boy's mother worrying beside me, I realized that our feelings for our children are the same.

Simply being together. In that process, you find people you want to be with and people you are glad to have met. Then, the time will surely come when you feel, "I want to try something with this person; I think we can do it." I believe that is the beginning of co-creation. With time on our side, slowly and deliberately, it starts from being together.