A few years back, I wrote a piece for Black History Month in which I challenged people of African descent living here in Japan to "be black history." I implored them not to necessarily dwell on the past but to: "Dwell on the now instead. Because everything you do now becomes history and herstory the moment after you've done it, and that deed is potentially historic. Particularly here. The opportunities to be a trailblazer abound in Japan."