It is easy to balance work and family duties, and I really want to continue in this job.

My previous job was at a company that created web content for horse racing, where I wrote articles, conducted interviews, and so on. It was a very busy job, and I left when I had a baby. When my daughter was about one year old, I started going through the possible job openings at the public employment security office and was told, “There is a job opening with a nursery attached,” and with that I was introduced to the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan.

At first, I worked in the TMT (Thirty Meter Telescope) administrative office with a short-term contract of less than a year. Then, I moved to Subaru Telescope and worked there on a contract renewed for five years. After that, there was an advertisement for an Administrative Support Staff member at Subaru Telescope again, so I applied. All combined, as of February 2025, I have worked here for 8 years.

My daughter was one-and-half-years old when I started working here, and I would leave her at NAOJ’s nursery until she was 3 years old. It was hard to bring her by bus and train in rush hour, but I could go back home on time mostly; so the environment was good for me to raise a child. Part way through, I said, “I want to change from working five days a week to four, while keeping the same number of hours,” and the request was granted. It is easy for me to balance work and family duties, and I feel that is really want to “continue working.”

I want to protect this environment where people help each other and can speak freely.

The administrative office is called the “Subaru Telescope Mitaka Office” and now the office is responsible for administrating both Subaru Telescope and the TMT Project. In the office, I am in charge of business trip procedures for both NAOJ staff and outside guests; handle employee management for our staff; support research meetings; and so on. Unlike private companies, there are many restrictions. For example, it was very difficult to buy replacement chairs for the conference rooms. Especially when dealing with external funds such as KAKENHI (Grands-in Aid for Scientific Research), I have to be very careful because they have their own execution rules.

There are seven staff members in the Subaru Telescope Mitaka Office now, and it feels like we work together supporting each other. Even if someone has a problem, others will help right away if that person speaks up, so I think it is very nice to work here. I am a little nervous because one veteran staff will retire this March, but I want to maintain this environment. Even though assignments are divided among us, we want to maintain an environment where we help each other so that the work isn’t concentrated on one person and we can speak freely.

My goal is to study English. Some problems need to be handled in English.

I am struggling with English. Email is fine because the translation software works for me, but conversations are ....... When I receive a phone call in English, I have to get help from the staff around me. Recently, there was a research meeting, and I had to man the reception desk, and I was very nervous. So now, I am trying various things at my own initiative: taking online English conversation lessons, studying for TOEIC, etc.

I am mainly in charge of travel expense procedures, and I have to check travel itineraries very carefully in advance because the rules for travel expenses are very strict. A little while back, there was a problem where we could not pay part of the travel expenses because a researcher from another university stayed in Honolulu for a private trip on his way back. Normally, I would have spotted the problem when I saw the itinerary in advance, but around that time the amount of work increased dramatically and I was putting in overtime every day. Moreover, the person was a foreigner, so it was very difficult for me to work in English. Later, when there was a research meeting in NAOJ, the person came to me to say, “I was sorry to have caused problems for you,” which made me feel relieved.

In the choir club, we value an atmosphere of easy participation.

NAOJ’s choir club was created in 2018, and I have been a member and the head of the club since then. It started with 3 or 4 people, and we found someone in NAOJ to teach us, and then we quickly grew to about 20 people. In January of this year, there was a mini-concert at NAOJ, and the choir club also performed there. Our goal is for anyone to feel free to join us during their lunch break and have fun singing ....... If we work too hard for a recital, the atmosphere will change, so we aim to be a club where people who cannot make it to a recital can still feel free to participate in practice. I would also like to increase the number of members.

On holidays, my daughter and I go to museums and zoos. It is not that she wants to go, but I want to go, both to the museums and the zoos. When I ask my daughter, “Will you come with me?” she says, “sure.” We also watch cartoons together at home. Now that my current work schedule is four days a week, I can have time to do house work, play with my daughter, and have time for myself, and I feel that I can make good conditions for myself physically and mentally.