July 8th, 2008Doraemon Is Better Than Santa Claus
It’s no secret that I’m a fan of Doraemon. Although I was born just a few days before the first episode of the anime was aired, and was completely oblivious to the futuristic feline’s existence for the next two decades, the ever-resourceful blue cat won a place in my heart that’s sure to stay with me for the rest of my life. Why? Because, for those who are down on their luck, Doraemon is just what the doctor ordered.
This was certainly the case this past weekend as Japan’s Cultural Ambassador traveled to the Nonthaburi Province in central Thailand to bring cheer to underprivileged children at a welfare centre on Sunday. Meeting close to 200 orphans and mentally challenged children, Doraemon shared some of his favourite Dora-yaki snacks and said “Boku, Doraemon” more times than one might think necessary. Nobita was nowhere to be found, but I’m sure Doraemon was better off leaving his clumsy friend in Tokyo.
Japan Needs This Cultural Ambassador
Doraemon was appointed as Japan’s Cultural Ambassador last year at a ceremony by the Foreign Ministry. Since then, the 元気ねこ (energetic cat) has made several appearances around Asia in an attempt to foster better communication with other countries and brought a glimmer of happiness to those who might not enjoy the same luxuries many of us take for granted.
This comes at an opportune time, as Japan has taken a political beating in recent decades for everything from poor leadership to whale hunting to having four distinct writing systems. And this is just the stuff we’ve heard about this week! So, by visiting those in need and bringing just a few minutes of childish joy to a group of young people doomed to a life of poverty, Japan is saying “we haven’t forgotten about you.”
It’s an absolute certainty that we’ll see Doraemon visit more places in the near future and, hopefully, he’ll be given some leave to pull a wad of cash or a carton of textbooks out of his pocket. Just because the people he visits are considered underprivileged doesn’t mean they need to stay that way.
Doraemon is a great ambassador for Japan!
No use comparing him to St. Nick, though; I heard some gun-crazy hillbilly in Idaho blew old Santy Claus away last Christmas Eve when he decided to bypass the chimeny and use the front door because he was in a hurry. The toy companies are trying to keep it hush-hush since it might put a dent in their business this coming winter.
As much as I thought it was a fairly silly idea when I first heard about it, it turns out this might be a pretty good idea and is being successful!