When we talk about the story of a single father, it is quite rare for us to know or hear about how the way of their life is. But, that is the reality of the life of a single father and former gang leader in Japan, Onodera Mitsuru who raised his two twin children.
Uploaded by ‘Asian Boss’ on Youtube, a video entitled From Gang Leader To Single Father In Japan | THE VOICELESS #21 tells the story of an ex-gang leader that has settled down as a single father now.
When he was in 4th grade, before he was brought in and raised by his father, Onodera Mitsuru was often left at home with his brother when his mother would go on vacation with her boyfriend. She would be gone for sometimes almost a month, leaving the two siblings without money and food. Ever since then, Onodera Mitsuru moved in with his single father.
The 34 years old single father admitted that he used to do all sorts of bad things during his teenage years, mostly because he was rebellious. He hated being controlled so much that he built his own gang and became the leader of the gang. He shared how he used to beat up people who went against him and fight other gangs too.
When Onodera Mitsuru was 20, he was arrested by the police for scamming people and went to juvenile prison. When he was in jail, another person took control of the gang but that person eventually went to jail too resulting at the end of the group.
At the age of 26, he got married to his girlfriend and they had twins together. The marriage did not last long as they filed for divorce only 7 months after the birth of their twins. Afraid that his children would go through the same traumatic childhood as them, Onodera Mitsuru told his ex-wife that he would take care of them where the ex-wife agreed without any hesitation.
Onodera Mitsuru shared that the hardest aspect of being a single father was when his son was diagnosed with leukemia. His son was hospitalized for over a year and it was a heartbreaking time for him. Even so, he wasn’t burdened financially because medical insurance covered the hospital expenses, and his friends from the former gang would send their donations too. He copes with the challenge of being a single father by writing a diary where he would write everything that happened in a day. He wishes to give it to his children when they get married someday.
Onodera Mitsuru’s story shows that he is a good person. Knowing how heartbreaking it is to be raised without parental love, he won’t let his children go through the same as him even though his previous lifestyle was totally different than being a single father.
Sources: Youtube Asian Boss