Everyday Updates

Hi, friends!
(name of an English textbook. I don't talk this way... yet.)

The more I become accustomed to life here, the less I seem to post. Japan has gotten so familiar to me now that it's hard to see the novelty all around. So here's an update on, well, life.

We're in the third term of school. That means my 3rd grade (12th) classes are all cancelled so the students can study hard for their University Entrance Exams. They don't come to school regularly anymore, and are supposed to be using the extra time to study. From what I can see, they are! Every now and then I'll hear a squeal from around the staffroom and see a student come to tell their teacher they passed. It's really sweet to see how much these homeroom teachers care about each student and crow/cry/jump over their success.

A couple students are practicing for another test, the big Eiken exam. This is different from the TOEIC and TOEFL in that there's a big interview part to it, and is only offered in Japan. Each grade level differs in execution, but the Pre-1st we're working on now involves narrating a picture story for two minutes and answering different questions related to the topic.

After school I've been reading a lot, and taking walks every day around the river. Every Wednesday and Saturday I'll walk to the grocery store and say hello to the elderly group that meets to gossip about life. I'm also working on a quilt made of old clothes I brought back from America. I like the patterns and colors, but I tell you, knit fabric is hard to work with. Last night I gave up after the thread took 2-4 tries before catching. Still, it's fun to imagine spreading it whole across a bed in the bright summer air, and let the memories of high school clothes live on.

It's coming up on 3 years since moving to Japan. This is the longest time I've spent at one thing in quite a while. I had 2 years of high school, 2 of community college, and 2 of university. The longer I'm here, the less I think Japan will be part of my future career. Then again, it will probably show itself in subtle ways through the rest of my life. This is my first step into the working world. I won't find out how deep of an impression it's left until I go back and have a different reality to compare it to.

That's all for today! *stand* *bow* *sit*

The Color of Winter

One of the daily park sitters and his dog, Ryoma.

I'm sitting by the river, letting my skin soak up some Vitamin D. Even an hour before sunset, the colors are so muted.The blue river looks overtaken by grey murkiness. A blue sky is dilluted by dull white clouds. Even green grass is taking on the yellowed tans of the dead stalks it's next to. This is a Tokushima winter.

A week ago when Subin and I took a walk along this same river, she told me how much she liked the colors. Instead of seeing the a lackluster landscape, she saw the soft beiges as a kind of comfort. She comes from Korea, where it's blue all day long, and Seattle with its steady greens and overcast greys that occasionally give way to vibrant blue skies. Never has she seen this dead grassland that makes up my childhood.

Looking again, I see tiny white flowers peeping out of the dead grass. A tangled bush of stickers frames its spiky balls against a steel blue backdrop. Across the river I see the sharp royal blue of a fishing boat waiting quietly on the shore. It's a pretty world.

Did you see it?