Thoughts and reflections from years
as a human rental professional.
At the school gate, I straightened my necktie. The woman beside me whispered asking to confirm her daughter's name. This is the reality of being a rental father on entrance ceremony day.
Sitting on a folding chair in the gymnasium, I could still feel the faint chill. No matter how many times I do this, graduation ceremonies carry their own unique tension.
Would you go to karaoke with me? The voice on the phone was hoarse. Not from coughing, from disuse. Voices go quiet when they have no one to talk to.
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Every Thursday afternoon, I visit an elderly woman living alone. She always has the kettle ready. The sound of it boiling has become our ritual.
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At the first wedding of the new year, I stood as the groom's best friend. The toast echoed through the hall, but the real friend was absent.
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On Christmas Eve, I carried two cakes. One for 5 PM, another for 8 PM. Two different families, two different husbands.
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A client once told me: You are just a stepping stone. She was right. And that is exactly why I continue this work.
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I cheered until my voice was gone. The boy looked back at me before grabbing the baton. That glance has not changed in six years.
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On a still-hot September afternoon, the client gripped the steering wheel and said he cannot apologize alone. My job is to stand beside him while he does.
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During Obon, I visited a family grave as someone's son. The incense smoke rose, and for a moment, even I forgot I was acting.
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The condensation from the barley tea left a ring on the table. Beside a fifth-grader, I looked at his science project plan together.
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Last Saturday, I attended a junior high sports day as a boy's father for the sixth year. In the rain, I wondered: is this a lie?
A fifth-grade girl wanted to buy her mother a Mother's Day gift, but only with Dad. So I became Dad for the afternoon.
April brings a surge of requests. Entrance ceremonies, class observations. The calls always come from single mothers who need a father to be there.
In the gymnasium, Tabidachi no Hi ni played. Three years of being this girl's father were about to end with this graduation.
On Valentine's Day, I receive chocolate as a husband. The wrapper is carefully chosen, the card handwritten. The feelings are real, even if the relationship is not.
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On New Year's morning, I had three messages from three different families. Each one calling me Dad.
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On Christmas Eve, I was the husband in two different homes. Switching ties between visits, making sure the ring on my left hand matched.
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People ask why I continue. The answer is simple: as long as someone needs a father at their entrance ceremony, I will be there.
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At the sports day, I cheered for a child who believes I am his real father. My voice was hoarse by the relay race.
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In autumn, neighbor disputes increase. I was called in to mediate between two families who had not spoken in years.
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Please scold me seriously. The man across the table was 34, an IT manager. He wanted someone to tell him the truth.
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The barley tea was sweating on the table. I sat next to a boy doing his summer homework, pretending to be the father who helps with math.
Read MoreFor his summer research project, the boy needed a father to help measure, record, and encourage. I was that father for a day.
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Every guest at the wedding was a stand-in. The friends, the coworkers, the speech-giver. Nothing was real except the couple's vows.
Read MoreAt a rain-soaked sports day, I watched a boy run through mud. The mother beside me wept. Were those tears real? Was my pounding heart real?
I stopped in front of a flower shop. On Mother's Day, I helped a girl choose a carnation for her mom as her father.
Every week, a young man visits an elderly woman as her grandson. The visits have continued for three years now.
Read MoreAt the school gate, a little girl reached up and said, Daddy, hold my hand. Her palm was small, slightly damp, and warm. This is my job.
Yesterday, I had a first meeting with a new family. The purity in the eyes of a 4-year-old girl gazing up at me reminded me once again of the weight of this work.
When a 6-year-old boy asked me this, I was at a loss for words. I continue to waver between the guilt of lying and the desire to protect this child.
I saw statistics showing that over 30,000 people die alone in Japan each year. Our service is not a fundamental solution. But right now, there are people who need it.
Today, yet another client proposed to me. Watching her cry and say "I truly want to marry you," I felt the difficulty of drawing professional boundaries.
"I put what I feel in the field into words.Yuichi Ishii — The Human Rental Man
If it resonates with someone, that would make me happy."
Articles chronicling the daily life
of a human rental professional are updated regularly.