Surprised by her daughter’s rapid growth and reaction to her father’s films.
My daughter is almost 3 years old, and I have the impression that she has gone from “baby” to “kid”. The changes and growth over the past year have been tremendous, not just in years, but in extreme cases, I feel she is growing every day. When I drop her off at daycare in the morning and pick her up again in the evening, I am amazed at how much she has absorbed words and information that we have not taught her. I am very surprised. Every day, I am reminded once again that each child is a unique individual in every way, whether it is their speech, vocabulary, motor skills, or sensibilities.
One of the Super Sentai series in which I am currently voicing a character is “Number One Sentai Gojyujah,” and recently, when I found one of the toys or saw it on TV, I would hear him yell out, “It’s Gojyujah! she would loudly tell me. Of course, my daughter doesn’t know what I do yet, but it still makes me happy. I still don’t want her to understand the “voice-over actor” system, though (laughs).
(Laughs.) But, as expected, when she sees me on TV, she knows it’s me. I think they can tell. Nowadays, anyone can easily take and watch videos with a smartphone, so I guess they don’t feel uncomfortable with someone they know appearing on TV.
Adult Power” to be trained in a daughter at the height of her “earliest years”.
My daughter is in the middle of her “yawning” phase. Once the switch is turned on, you have to try to calm her down by distracting her with something else, or by making fun of her. However, if you explain the reason and politely tell her “no” after she calms down, she may understand. When you are in a hurry or busy, if you are put in a bad mood or told that you are being selfish, it is embarrassing to say, but you will inevitably feel annoyed. However, I have learned that such aversion is also a form of self-assertion that “I don’t want to do it now,” so I need to switch off my anger and face it properly.
If I were to say that something has changed since the birth of my child, I would say that I have begun to think about how I should respond to someone who has no use for rules (laughs). (Laughs). This is an experience that I had never had before, and it is a sense that my adult skills are being questioned. However, compared to when I was a baby, it has become much easier. When the baby was a newborn, I was just performing on stage, and it was a physical challenge for me to feed him during the night and deal with his crying at night. My wife and I worked together to get through it. As for my work schedule, I try to adjust it as much as possible so that I can be on time to pick up my child from daycare, and I try to take weekends off so that I can be with my child as much as possible.
Voice-over dad reading to the audience is a lot of fun⁈
In my job, many people tell me, “Reading picture books to children must be so exciting! However, rather than listening to the story, my daughter would immediately turn the page to the next picture, or she would bring another picture book, saying, “Now read this one to me. She seems to enjoy the interaction itself and is not yet aware of how I am reading to her, so I have yet to make use of my voice acting ability (laughs).
(Laughs.) Instead, I sometimes intentionally change my voice tone when I scold. I think the tone of my voice is completely different when I say “no” in everyday conversation, and when I say “no” in dangerous situations or when it might bother the people around me. But I am sure that is what you all do naturally (laughs).
I would like to do my best to read picture books to my daughter using my techniques as a voice actor when she is a little older, here and there!
Housework and childcare are a team effort! We complement each other, learn and grow.
My wife and I do not have any particular rules regarding the division of housework and childcare, and we both do what we need to do when we can. Because my wife is also a voice actor, we cannot take advantage of each other, nor can we complain.
For example, when we have an important dinner party or meeting in the evening, we go home before pick-up time, bathe our daughter, feed her, and brush her teeth before going out.
It is not good for either of us to be overburdened, and in the first place, it is difficult to make time to be with our children unless we do so. Since she is a girl, I think to myself, “Someday she won’t be able to take a bath with her daddy. When I think about that, I think it is important to do what I can now, no matter how hard it is.
I am the type of person who takes action as soon as I have an idea, and I think my instantaneous enthusiasm is quite high. On the other hand, my wife is the type who takes her time to think things through and is good at continuing to do one thing at a time. So I think we have a good balance in that area. Because each of us has our own strengths and weaknesses, likes and dislikes, I think that a team makes the most of its strengths and compensates for its weaknesses. And I believe that this is neither naive nor well-intentioned, but leads to mutual learning and growth.
Don’t create irreparable rifts.
What I try to do in communicating with my partner is to say on the spot as much as possible what I think should be communicated. No one, including myself, is perfect as a parent or as a human being. I believe that “things that they don’t like should be improved,” even if it is something as trivial as leaving a door open or a light on. I sometimes get emotional when choosing words, but basically I try to tell the truth as it is. I think it is important for both parties to know each time that the other was thinking the same way, and I believe that if we hold back even a little, it can accumulate and later become an irreparable rift. This is often the case in movies and dramas. They hold back and hold it in with the intention of being considerate, and then let it all out in the end, only to find that it’s beyond repair. Isn’t that sad? It is better to say what you think when you think it. It is important to communicate in everything.
Happiness felt in a park full of memories from the days of the underdogs.
Recently, I took my family out to a park that I used to go to when I was a lowly actor…it was still very emotional for me. It was a very emotional moment for me to be able to visit the place where I remember spending time when I could hardly even eat, with my wife and daughter, now that I have fulfilled my dream of becoming a voice actor. It was truly a happy moment.
My parents were strict with my father and kind with my mother. Perhaps because I grew up in such an environment, I have an image of my father as someone who corrects me when I do something wrong. So I have been thinking recently that it would be better for my daughter to have a father who is not only a “kind father,” but also someone who is angry with her. Of course, it depends on the family, and my honest feeling is that I want my daughter to like me unconditionally (laughs). I am sure all parents feel the same way, but for me, my daughter is a being whose “love” for me has been constantly renewed since her birth. The “now” is always the cutest. I would like to continue to be able to feel that way, and I would like to provide her with an environment that will help her grow up to be that way.
I don’t have any ideal image. I just want her to be healthy, not to cause trouble for others, and to be able to do what she wants to do and what she is interested in, and that is enough.
Children are cute, but it’s hard work.
Whether it is housework or childcare, each family has its own way of dealing with it and its own style, and I don’t think there is a right answer. I think it is important to be aware of your role as a parent or guardian, and to think first about how you can help your child be happy in a way that is comfortable for them. I think it would be wonderful if we could seek the best for each moment, without making patterns. Children are the cutest. But raising a child is the hardest work of all (laughs). But even so… including the time you spend feeling the hardship, it is still the most loving thing you can do. I am sure those of you who are raising children will understand this. Let’s continue to do our best together!
