Last Day at Yoshiko

Friday was my last day at Yoshiwara High School. I didn't have any classes that day, so my main mission was to finish cleaning out my desk, clean my desk, and then do my final wrap-up procedures.

It was a really great day. I received so many wonderful gifts from teachers. Many students brought me cards, cookies, and other things they had made for me. Between every class, I would hear students calling my name to go meet them by the door so they could give me something or take a picture with me or just tell me goodbye. The love and kindness I received was really overwhelming.

The 26 homeroom students (the ones in whose class I was crying last week) invited me to eat lunch with them. I had never been invited by students to eat lunch with them so it was really special. We all sat around in the room eating and talking about various things. It was a lot of fun. I had some leftover omiyage from when we first came to Japan that I had never given to anyone, so I put it in the middle of the room for the students to janken over. (Janken is the extremely sophisticated and complicated Japanese version of rock, paper, scissors.) When lunch was coming to a close, the students all stood up and gathered around. One girl named Mayu, a very smart and sweet girl, read me a letter she had written in English. It was so sweet. Here is an excerpt:

"You are the only ALT who has been teaching us English since we entered this school. So your existence was very great for us. I was surprised and felt very lonely to hear that you were going to go back to America. I wish many times it was a lie...I can't believe you will not be here when we come back from Australia...Lastly what I have been thinking of for a year and a half is that we are really happy to have you as an ALT at Yoshiwara High School. The fact that you were our ALT will never change..."

As you can imagine, this was very hard for me and for her. But we made it through. After she read that, Izumo pulled out his guitar and asked me to sing one verse and chorus of "Change the World" with him one last time. That was fun! I'm glad I remembered the words. Finally I told them to do their best in Australia and left before I turned into a weeping mess again. Many students were waiting to greet me in the hall outside of the classroom. They gave me cards, letters, presents. I gave them each a hug, and then they went on to class and that was the last I saw of any Yoshiwara High School students.

I spent the next hour or so packing up all of the things I had gotten that day and then left school for the last time around 2:00. I did my last rounds in the teachers' room and the school office and Emily walked me out. I got my bike and walked off campus rather than ride. I didn't want to get away too fast. As soon as I started walking down the drive that leads off of the school grounds, I lost it. I'm glad I was alone. Two years of great memories came rushing back, and I knew that even if I return to Japan someday, I will very likely never enter Yoshiwara High School again, and with a few possible exceptions, I will very likely never see those students again. Walking away was one of the hardest things I've ever done.

I turned and took this picture when I got to the street. You can't see much of the school, but I'll never forget this view.


So it's farewell to Yoshiko. But as I said to the students in my farewell speech and they have really taken to, I don't like to say goodbye. So I say "See you later!"

See you later Yoshiko! また合いましょう！

Muscular ALT

Chikako from 36 homeroom drew this very accurate picture of me for my farewell party in their class. Looks just like me doesn't it?



This was also on the board:


Another day another tough goodbye. This is hard.

A Moving Day

In Japan, many people say that they are moved by things, referring to an emotional (or moving) experience. This is of course a normal English expression, but it's not one that I have ever used very often.

Today, though, I had what can only be described as a couple of moving experiences.

First, during third period, a couple of very good students from 25 homeroom came to get me from my desk. I didn't have a class so I was free to go with them. This is a class of students that I taught every other week in the first year but only about once a month since April. They are incredible students though, some of the nicest and smartest in the school.

When we walked up to their classroom, I heard cheering start inside. I turned the corner to find a big circle of students all clapping for me with an empty chair for me. They were throwing me a surprise farewell party! This was what was on the board:



Along with this t-shirt:


We sat in the circle. One girl named Yuki made an opening speech in English. Then one at a time, each student came to me and presented me with a card that they had made themselves with their thoughts about me written on it (in English of course.) They were so sweet! The third girl to come up finally got the nerve to ask me for a hug. I gave her a hug and after that, I gave almost every student, including a few of the boys, hugs. Later, the first two girls who had missed out on the hugging, asked me for one anyway. It was a very special experience.

Here are some of the cards:

Mai


Haruna


Koji


Haruka


Saki (nice Mt. Fuji!)


This one is from another girl named Yuki who has always been a big Kory fan (as you can maybe tell from the shape of the card.) When she handed it to me she said, "This is my smell. Smell it please." I did and it smelled like perfume. She had sprayed her perfume on it. Very nice perfume might I add.



After the cards were handed out, we took some pictures together:



I talked to them for a few minutes and told them what I would do next. I gave them some final words of encouragement. Finally, a boy named Tomomi gave a farewell speech to me that literally left me in tears. Then they made an arch to lead me out of the room (a common practice at Japanese farewell parties.) I told them thank you again, and I was escorted back to the teachers' room by two of the girls. It was an incredible, moving experience. I was in shock and felt so honored to be cared for that much.

And that was just the beginning. Later in the day, I had my final class with 26 homeroom. These are the 2nd-year International course students who I have had in class at least twice a week since they started at Yoshiwara High School last April. I have gotten to know these students better than any others at the school. They have always been my favorite class ever since they first came. They are leaving on their three-week study abroad trip to Australia on Sunday. So for this class we decided to do an all-out, Jeopardy style Australia review game. I had some leftover $2 coins from our Australia trip this past December, so I offered those as the prize to the winning group.

The game went well. They remembered most of the answers. Then, after the game I gave my Australia pep speech, but I was having a hard time not getting choked up because I knew that when they come back, I'll be gone. They knew too of course, which was making it even more difficult. Emily gave a short pep talk after that, and then it was time for me to close out the class for the last time. This is where I lost it. I told them how proud I am of them and that I've always loved teaching them and how much I would miss them. I was having a horrible time getting through it, and when they started to cry, oh my goodness. It was a mess. I had written individual notes to each of them and handed them out and gave each student a hug. By the time we were done, I was crying, almost all of the girls were crying, some of the boys, even Natsuga-sensei.

I hated to finish the class on such a sad note, but at the same time, I think it was good to get it out. I had to let them know how I feel about them, and it was good for me to see that they feel the same way. That group of students is very special to me and I'll never forget them. I gave them all my e-mail address too, so I'm sure I'll be hearing from some of them. :) I hope so at least.

Before I left the class, they gave me a big card that they made for me with short notes from everyone. Here it is:


So yeah, it was a moving day to say the least.

Three more days of work, 2 more classes for me. And less than 8 days left in Japan. It's hard to believe. It's moving a bit too fast for me.

Final Dinner at Namaskar

One of our favorites places to eat during our two years in Fuji has been a small Indian restaurant near Fuji Station called Namaskar. We've taken quite a few people there including my parents, Kelly's family, and Kerry.

Namaskar has a total of two people who work there. There's the Japanese owner who also doubles as the waiter and the chef who is an Indian man that speaks very little Japanese and a little bit of English. Before we ever went there, we had heard stories about how the owner/waiter was a very grumpy man and not very nice. Our first few times there, we kind of felt the same way, but eventually he started to recognize us and we started to see through his hard exterior. Then last summer when the Haseltines were here, Jeff spoke to him as we were leaving and told him we really love the place. He said we went there a lot and then gave Jeff some keychains to give to Melanie and Claire. That's also when we found out that the chef speaks a little English.

Fast-forward to last Friday night. We decided to make it our last trip to Namaskar and ordered our favorite things. We had a great meal. Kelly had always joked about taking a picture with the owner on our last visit, but she was getting cold feet. So when we left, after we paid, I told him that in a few weeks we would be returning to America so this would be our last time to eat there. He seemed shocked and disappointed and then gave Kelly a really pretty Indian bracelet and me a cool Indian keychain. Then we got him and the chef to take a picture with Kelly. Here it is:

He's even smiling a little! Then after that, he offered to take a picture with me in it. I taught him how to use the iPhone camera and here it is:

It was a great last visit to Namaskar. Before we left I told him, "Oishii tabemono o arigatou gozaimashita." (That you very much for the delicious food.) We'll never forget that place.

The Bicycle

Anyone who's been reading mine and Kelly's blogs the past few weeks has probably been noticing a bit of a depressing tone. So here's a lighthearted story for you all.

As most of you know, I ride my bicycle every day to work. It's about a twenty-five minute ride which I do twice a day, once there and once back. The road I ride on is not in the greatest of shape which has taken a severe toll on my tires, brakes, and the overall quality of the ride. When we first got here, I bought a light blue bike. I rode it for a year and the brakes had really deterioriated, almost to the point where they didn't really work anymore. Then one day last August, that bike was parked at Tatebori train station and I lost my bike key. I walked around for a few days without it, but that wouldn't last long because I needed to go to work. So I had two options. The first was to take the bike somewhere and get the lock removed and then buy a new lock. The second was to buy a new bike. The brakes were so bad on that bike that I decided to go with option 2.

After buying a new bike (a much better one might I add) I left the old one at Tatebori for a few weeks until once when I went to the station, I noticed a sticker saying that the bike needed to be removed. Apparently they keep track of which bikes never go anywhere. So I walked it home, not an easy task since the lock keeps the back wheel from turning thereby forcing you to carry the back of the bike. But I got it there. A few weeks later, I decided to go take the lock off of the bike just in case we ever had a guest and needed an extra bike. I got it off and left it outside our apartment by our storage bin. There it sat for three months until...

The day we left to go to Australia for Christmas I was waiting for the cab that would take us to the station and noticed the bike was gone. Someone had stolen it. Oh well. It was of no use to me. If they needed it, then so be it. Good luck stopping.

So that was that. Until today when I got to work one of the English teachers told me that the police had called and said they had recovered my stolen bicycle. (Note: When you purchase a bicycle in Japan, you have to register it with your name, address, phone number and workplace.) At first I was like, "What are you talking about? I rode my bike to school this morning." Then I realized what it was. So the police came to visit me at my school to have my verify if it was my bike. It was.

The main police officer, who spoke decent English, asked me a few questions about the bike including but not limited to: "What day was the bicycle stolen? What time was it stolen? What was the exact date that you last saw the bicycle? What time did you see it?" I obviously didn't know the answer to any of the questions so I just made up some answers that seemed logical. Then I had to go to class, but they needed me to fill out a report. So these two police officers waited for me the entire 50 minutes I was in class. It's kind of comforting to know that Fuji City is so safe that two patrol officers can sit in the conference room of a school for 50 minutes waiting on a foreigner to come write a report about a bike that was stolen 7 months ago.

So I go to the conference room and as soon as I walk in the main guy asks me if I can speak Japanese. I gave the answer I always give to that question. "Sukoshi." (A little bit.) So we sit there for 30 minutes talking in mixed Japanese and English all about this stolen bicycle and the details of where I had it parked and what direction it was facing and how I hadn't put it in our storage room because I had a table in there. Finally we get the details all worked out and I stamp the paper with my hanko to confirm its accuracy. Then the officer gives me a little lecture about how when something is stolen in Japan, it should be reported immediately so they can catch the person. "Sumimasen." I say.

Finally they get up to leave...and here's the best part...they gave me the bicycle back! Seriously?! What do I want with that bicycle? I'm leaving Japan in 20 days and now all of a sudden I have an extra bicycle to deal with. And I can't ride it anywhere because the brakes are broken. So now it's sitting at my school still with no lock. The plan is to take it to a recycle shop where hopefully I can get some money for it. But I can't help but thinking, if the guy who stole it really wanted the bike so bad, why not let him keep it? It's been his for 7 months after all.

Anyway, that's a great example of the crazy things that can happen any day here in Japan.

Winding down

Well we officially have 24 days left until we leave. It's amazing how quickly the time is going by right now. We've got so much to do to get ready to go it's hard to imagine getting it all done. We have a long to-do list and we're slowly knocking things out one at a time. Somehow it'll all get done. I hope.

I started telling my classes in the past couple of weeks that I'm leaving. The reactions have been about what I expected. A large group "Ehhhh??" (which basically is Japanese for "you're kidding, right?) and then a few students who throw in some individual exclamations. In one class, a group of girls who are pretty big fans of mine said "No!!!" and then "I need you!" "I want you!" "I love you!" One boy brought his worksheet up to me after class and asked me to sign it. His reaction when I said I was leaving was, "Unbelievable." It's going to get harder and harder over these next few weeks, but I'm going to do my best to maintain my composure as long as I can.

This upcoming week will be my last week with a full slate of classes. The week after will be final exam week and then my last week I'll have just about 5 classes. My last class will be on July 15 with my last day at work being July 16. It's hard to believe there's only 3 weeks of school left.

Farewell party season has officially gotten underway. A bunch of us got together at Ashley's last night for a farewell party for our usual group. We had a Mexican themed party with lots of great Mexican food. Most of us aren't leaving for a few weeks of course, but the next few weeks will be so busy for all of us that it was most convenient to have the party this weekend. It's kind of crazy to think that in less than a month we'll split apart from all of these people that we've gotten to know and go our separate ways. It's very likely that we will never see most of them again. We'll stay in contact of course through Facebook and other random things, but over the years I'm sure the contact will be less and less, and then eventually we may never talk at all. It's funny how life works that way. But it's been great getting to know people from all different walks of life and backgrounds and parts of the world. It's been an interesting two years, and I'm glad that we could spend it with a good group of friends.

As Kelly mentioned on her blog, rainy season has been going full steam for the past couple of weeks. It's been pretty unpleasant outside for the most part. The worst is the morning rain. One of the worst ways to start your day is to put on a hot rain suit, hop on a bike, and ride 25 minutes to work. Then go inside and take off the rain suit only to find that you're soaking wet anyway from sweat. I've spent the majority of the last two weeks sweaty. You kind of just always sweat. It doesn't really stop. The school is still refusing to turn on the air conditioners in the classrooms because it's not July yet. It makes for really uncomfortable classes. None of the students want to do anything because everybody is so hot, and I've even found that I'm having a hard time focusing when I'm teaching. I lose my train of thought mid sentence or forget what part of the lesson I'm in. Rainy season is a strange animal. I'm used to hot and humid weather of course being from Houston, but the weather during this time of year in Japan is so different. It's much worse. It's hard to really describe it. I think you almost have to experience it for yourself to really understand.

So anyway, I was remarking earlier this week that though I'm still sad to leave my job and my students, rainy season is making it a little less painful. All I know is that in three and a half weeks, I will never have to ride my bike to work in the rain again. And that is a very happy thing.

Finally, here are some gems from the student classwork archives. There was a lesson in a book about Turkish cuisine and how it's a fusion of Asian and European culture. So I had them create a new food that was a fusion of foods from different cultures and then draw it on the board. Here are the two best:


An onigiri dog. This is a combination of Japan (onigiri) and America (hot dog). I think the ketchup and mustard is also a nice touch.


Sushi gelato. This one is Japan and Italy (gelato.) Tasty I'm sure. 36HR is always good for a laugh.

Happy anniversary...to us!

Today is our 4 year anniversary! We're celebrating by taking an anniversary weekend trip to Tokyo Disneyland! We're leaving in about an hour to go to Tokyo. We'll wake up tomorrow morning and head to Disneyland for the day. We both have off Friday because of our school festivals last weekend. We'll go to Disney Sea on Saturday which is Japan's extra Disney theme park. Orlando has Epcot Center and Tokyo has Disney Sea. I don't know much about it, so I'll have to let everyone know more about it after we get back. We're excited though. This is one of the things we've been looking forward to since we got here. I haven't been to a Disney theme park since we went to Disney World for Spring Break when I was 9. I'm not trying to hide my excitement.

I told some girls today that it was our anniversary. They didn't know the word anniversary, so I wrote June 10, 2010 on the chalkboard. Under that I wrote June 10, 2006. Then next to that I wrote Kory and Kelly and drew two lines connecting our names. Finally I drew a heart. That's when they finally understood and said "Happy Birthday!" I quickly informed them it was "Happy Anniversary." Then I told them that we're going to Tokyo Disneyland and one girl, Yuka said in perfect English, "Bring me a present please!" I couldn't resist this effort so I said "Okay what do you want?" "Candy." "OK what kind of candy." "The chocolate crunch candy that tastes like strawberry." So apparently Yuka knows her Disneyland candy. I told her I'd do my best. I love my students!

Here we go! Off to a Disney adventure!