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  • (2020.5.1) [Message from President] Setting aside your time during this ‘Golden Week’ to enhance your knowledge power

(2020.5.1) [Message from President] Setting aside your time during this ‘Golden Week’ to enhance your knowledge power

While a state of emergency across Japan is in place due to the further spread of the novel coronavirus, Japan has now set in the Golden Week, i.e. a series of four national holidays that take place within one week at the end of April to the beginning of May each year. Unless it is an essential outing, please refrain from any outings including going back to your hometown or travelling around Japan during that time. I do hope that each of the student at HU (Hiroshima University) will take the state of emergency as something that concerns him/her and acts upon it.

Although the catch copy of ‘Stay Home’ is in place across Japan, it would be really a waste of your precious time if you were to be hooked to watching videos on YouTube or online video games day in, day out. It might be a good idea for you to think about how to spend your time during your stay-home period as they often say ‘Good comes out of evil’.

One of the possible suggestions from me is to spend your time on reading books. As Bill Gates, one of the Microsoft Co-Founders, who has received the Grand Cordon of the Order of the Rising Sun in Japan’s 2020 Spring Conferment of Decorations on Foreign Nationals says, ‘But reading is still the main way that I both learn new things and test my understanding.’ A list of recommended books and movies for reading/watching has been put up on HU students’ portal website ‘My Momiji’.

Also, during your stay-home period might be a good opportunity to improve your command of foreign languages such as Japanese or English. As they say, ‘Persistence pays off’.

In order to be of some services to those students who are going to stay in Higashi-Hiroshima city during the Golden Week, the University of Hiroshima Co-op has decided to sell obento (lunchbox) on 4th, 5th, and 6th May (three days) at the University Hall in Higashi-Hiroshima Campus as well as at Yamanaka Kaikan (one of the students’ dormitory in Higashi-Hiroshima city).

The stay-home period including the Golden Week in this May may be a godsent opportunity for each of you to aim at enhancing your intellectual power and sensibility. As has always done, all the HU faculty and administrative members including myself shall intend to give all the students as much support as possible.

1st May 2020 (Reiwa2)
Mitsuo Ochi
President, Hiroshima University


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