Rikki Kitsune's Pokémon Memories
We are delighted to share the Pokémon memories of Rikki Kitsune, who tells us about a Pokémon-themed birthday party, his love for the franchise, and about the time when he met a Pokémon superstar!
We love to hear memories of individuals who grew up with Pokémon! For this feature, we are highlighting the memories of a fan called Rikki, who tells us about an early birthday party, his involvement in an online Pokémon community, and meeting a famous face from Pokémon!
Hi! You can call me Rikki and I'll talk a little about my Pokémon memories.
This is my 7-year-old birthday party circa 1998. I was very obsessed with Pokémon as a kid and I asked my parents for it. I can't remember it quite well but I remember I had lots of fun! The first Pokémon CD was playing and I got some Pokémon related gifts. One that I remember well is a Pikachu plushie that I kept for a very long time. The Pikachu cake was also something I asked my mom because it was important to me, and I think a friend of hers made it.
Pokémon has been a huge part of my life since forever. As a teenager (circa 2005), I was a member of Pokémon fansites in Brazil like Pokémon Village and Poképlus and helped translate the Pokémon Adventures manga to Brazilian Portuguese. That time, I made wonderful friendships that I still maintain today as some of my bestest friends!
I've been playing every main series game since forever and those are always games I look forward to. And I've always watched the anime too. Even though I didn't watch every single episode, I'm always taking a look at the most important arcs and episodes.
One of my greatest feats as a Pokémon fan was getting to meet Rica Matsumoto in 2012. She attended a convention and I could see her concert and even took a picture with her in the meet and greet! Unfortunately we didn't talk much, but she was very adorable and gave me an autograph. The convention was [called] Ressaca Friends in São Paulo, Brazil. It happened in December 2012. Among Pokémon songs, Rica performed Mezase Pokemon Master and Best Wishes! I recorded both at the time but it didn't come out very well hahaha.
Pokémon is so important for me and it even helped make [me] who I am today. I'm very grateful to everything Pokémon did for me. And as one of my favorite [episode] titles say[s]: Memories are pearls, friendship is a diamond!
A huge thank you to Rikki for sharing their memories, photographs and feelings about Pokémon. We hope that passion will continue to hold a special place in his heart.