My grandfather believed that the way to teach a child is through stories. He had a favorite story and he would tell me it once a year. The story was about when he came to New York City from Europe. He went into a cafeteria and he sat down at an empty table and waited for someone to take his order. No one came. Eventually, a man sat down opposite him with a tray of food and told him how things worked. The man said, “Just start at the end and pick out whatever you want. At the other end, the cashers will tell you how much you have to pay.” Grampa would say, “Life is a cafeteria in America.” That’s how everything works in the U.S. You can get anything you want as long as you’re willing to pay for it. You can even buy success. But you’ll never get anything if you wait for someone to bring it to you. You have to get up and get it yourself.”

Satoru