Sunday Morning Reflections

I double-checked my calendar; this is my twelfth day in Gotō. All in all I am enjoying a smooth transition. As terrible as this sounds, when I do work, it's pretty simple: I toured my schools, I spend time studying Japanese and talking with the teachers at my base school, Sakiyama Junior High, and in a small way I helped get the new ALTs adjusted to Gotō. Last Wednesday two more ALTs joined me here on the island so we have quite the thriving ALT community (despite the departure of some previous ALTs). When I'm not working or doing other things, I explore, exercise, read, watch Marco Polo, and spend too much time playing Europa Universalis III. I should really use a portion of that time to practice Japanese more. All in good time.

I want to make a conscious effort to go to the beach more. I went yesterday afternoon to Takahama Beach with Luke, Marielle, and Jess, the other first year ALTs, and we had a blast. The beaches here truly are beautiful and I should enjoy the season as much as I can before the season changes. I spent too much of my life indoors and I need to compensate for that. There is an overwhelming amount of beauty to appreciate here. Take the trees for example: there are so many of them and they are so green. Of course Washington possesses its fair share of forests and vegetation. But I recall being able to make out individual trees; each one stands alone. In Japan it all grows together; it is just an explosion of lush life. Perhaps the trees serve as a metaphor for the West and East: in the West we value individuality and singularity; in Asia the individual is a part of the whole community, city, state, and nation.

But I digress. Let me tell you about the reason why I am here: teaching English! Last Monday I toured three of my four schools: Sakiyama Junior High, Sakiyama Elementary, and Midori Elementary School. I won't visit Saganoshima until the end of month when classes are about to start. The teachers I met were all very kind and welcoming. Naturally I will spend more time at my other schools when classes begin but for now I spend my days at Sakiyama Junior High. The teachers are pretty neat though I have only met a few due to summer break. That will all change this Tuesday.

Tuesday is an incredibly important day. It is the anniversary of the dropping of the atomic bomb on Nagasaki and so all the teachers and students will be there. It is also the day I am scheduled to give my self-introduction simply because everyone will be there. The scheduling makes sense but the timing is daunting. In all likelihood I will be the only American in the auditorium giving a short spiel about how I'm from Washington State and I enjoy poker--and then we transition into solemnly remembering the tragedy of WWII. This is a little intimidating for obvious reasons. I wrote my speech a few days ago. It is in Japanese and several of the teachers were kind enough to read it and correct my grammar. I will practice reading it beforehand and hope for a smooth delivery.

The mood should lighten a bit after the memorial. Supposedly the faculty of both Sakiyama Junior High and Elementary will compete against each other in a volleyball tournament. I was invited to play too and while not only I have I not played volleyball since high school, I am also a poorly coordinated human being. With that addendum stated I will likely give it a shot and hope to not make a fool of myself. If I do make a fool of myself, that is fine too. Ridicule is still praise for it is acknowledgment of one's existence!

After a potentially embarrassing round or two of volleyball, the day should get even better as I am invited to a dinner party at a nearby sushi restaurant that evening! This should be pretty fun. I will be able to interact with teachers without the official formalities and rules of work. This is one of several work parties they throughout the year but will be my first. I'm looking forward to experiencing my first "enkai" (party) and getting to know my new co-workers.

That is all I have for now. I think I will go to the beach!