Yesterday was my first Fourth of July spent outside the United States.

For most of my life, July 4th has been synonymous with backyard barbecues, fireworks, flags hanging from front porches, that unmistakable feeling that summer had finally arrived, and my grandmother. This would have been her 95th birthday. 

While I’m unhappy with the state of my country, and its current administration, traditions have a funny way of becoming part of who we are without us ever realizing it.

This year was different.

Instead of fireworks echoing over my Hollywood apartment, it was a quiet night in Nakano. I went to work, I came home, life went on as normal.  Here, the 4th of July is just another square on the calendar.

I can’t say I’m homesick, but I do miss my family – especially my grandmother.

Luckily, Hasbro had something that helped. The new Jem and the Holograms: Music Is Magic EP arrives at exactly the right moment to make my weekend truly outrageous. Music has always had this incredible ability to collapse distance. For a little while, it didn’t matter that I was thousands of miles from home. Those songs transported me right back to sitting in front of the television as a kid, convinced that glitter, synthesizers, and pink hair really could solve anything.

Sometimes home isn’t a place. Sometimes it’s a melody.

And music definitely helped shape this week. I got to see We’re timelesz LIVE TOUR 2026 episode 2 MOMENTUM, and the concert that transformed me from a casual listener into someone eagerly waiting to see what comes next from the group. I also binged the second season of Netflix’s Avatar: The Last Airbender Season Two—and it was brilliant.

While not everything this week has been spectacular, moving to Japan has been an adventure full of incredible highs, but moments like yesterday remind me that starting over also means redefining what “home” feels like. Maybe that’s why this little corner of the internet has become so important to me. It’s a place where I can carry those pieces of home with me—whether they’re memories, music, movies, or simply the excitement of sharing something that made me smile.

My outlook on the day depends on the mood I’m in – and today, I’m grateful. 

There will be more soon so… 

Stay Tuned!