President’s Diary #22: An Abrupt Homecoming

February 24, 2026

On a certain day, I headed to Nagoya for a TV program shoot. When you board the Shinkansen at Shin-Yokohama, Nagoya is practically right there. It’s over in a flash.

It's better to tell yourself, "The trip is halfway over," the moment you’re cheering because you saw Mt. Fuji from the window. Otherwise, you’ll end up in a frantic rush when it’s time to get off.

Well, after finishing the recording, I could have just headed back to Tokyo. However, since Sunday and Monday (a public holiday) were off, I thought to myself, "Why not head back to my parents' house for a bit?"

Since it was a last-minute decision, I called home from Shin-Osaka Station.

"Hello? It’s Hiroshi. I’m thinking of taking the Shinkansen from Osaka back to Gifu-Hashima. Can you pick me up?"

My father replied, "Sure thing..." (Ii yo-o).

There’s something so healing about the way my father, Sadayuki, draws out the end of that "...yo-o," so I headed his way.

The car that came to the station was driven by my younger brother, with my mother and father sitting in the back seat. Hahaha! The whole gang showed up!

Apparently, the plan was for everyone to eat together. When they asked what I wanted, I immediately replied "Ramen!". Yet, for some reason, we ended up at a Chanpon restaurant (lol). We had a lively, noisy meal together.

Since this was my first trip home since retiring, I expressed my gratitude for everything so far and declared my enthusiasm for the future.

It's the story of a young man who headed to Tokyo in 1998 with nothing but a single sports bag, returning home as a Company President who can pay for everyone’s ramen... that kind of story.