It's What I Do

The Final Three

Children are such adorable little creatures. Sometimes that creature is an angel, sometimes a demon. Regardless of their current form, I can't help but laugh when I am with them. They exist only to play, without a care for appearances or wealth or a career. A child just wants to have fun.

Making sure that a kid is having fun is not difficult. In fact it requires no effort on my part whatsoever; a child will make fun where there is none. I had a class just the other day, certainly not one of my best, where many of the kids had grown tired of the game that I had prepared for the last couple of minutes. The kids that weren't paying any mind to the activity had started some of their own. Four of the girls were playing a clapping game, some of the boys were teasing and hitting each other, and one had found a book and began reading.

I recognized the division of activities and social groups, and saw two options. The first option was the dictator's approach: "Everyone will play this! We will enjoy it, and we will like it. And afterward we shall all drink tea!" The other option, which I took, was to do nothing. It didn't seem ethical at the time for me to force unity upon the children. They were playing. Did it matter if they were all playing together? Not one group was being overly disruptive, and I couldn't see any single child who wasn't doing something, so I just continued on my merry way with the children who were still enjoying the game at hand. For how it appeared, it might as well have been an in-class recess.

I have exhausted two of my three months here in Japan. There are only three more weeks of classes left for the students, and it won't be much longer after that until I return to Utah. In these final weeks, I have started to examine what this entire trip has meant to me. Things I've learned, great experiences I've had, etc.

First thing I've learned is that I'm not a very good teacher. I'm a much better friend. When I'm with the students here, I feel myself wanting to join them rather than instruct them. This leads to a lot more play time than study time in my classes. If the children do poorly on their English tests, that will be my fault.

As a bit of validation for my actions, almost every school I have been to has at one point or another called into my work's office to tell my bosses about how much fun the kids had while I was there. I've received numerous praises by the school's principles that I'm doing a fantastic job.

Am I doing the right job? I am supposed to be teaching English, but more and more I end up only teaching new games. The games are all centered around one English grammar point or another, but it's a very thin veil.

"Yes, Chase. Of course you're doing the right job. The kids are having fun, and that's what matters most."

You know something, I think you may be right.

The Current Situation

I went to a Junior High this week that had only 12 students. The staff and faculty to accompany those dozen students consisted of about 10 teachers, a nurse, a gardener, two lunch ladies, and maybe three or so other miscellaneous people. Nothing wrong with the students, just that the school was scheduled to be closed down in the near future. It was kind of odd roaming the empty halls of a Junior High that easily could have supported a few hundred students. Kind of sad that the school was even closing, considering how old some of Japan's schools can get (I went to one school that had its 80 year anniversary last month, if that gives you an idea).

Been spending more and more time inside my apartment with Japan's "rainy season" on the prowl. Should be called the "sticky and unpleasant mist-water in a hot furnace season." You walk outside, and you're blasted in a layer of heat and water. A few seconds of that and you're dripping as if you had just gotten out of the shower (even though it's not raining). Needless to say, a large pile of my clothes is quickly collecting by the washer.

I normally visit some place new on the weekend, see a different part of Japan. This weekend, though, I'm resting. After standing in front of kids all week and running this way and that on my 70 minutes of daily commute, I'm just plum tired.

On a lighter note, I visited a few bookstores last weekend. I found it quite amusing that the "Foreign Books" section was all English novels. I bought three books while I was there. Been running out of things I can read.

Shibuya-Shinjuku-Square

Shibuya and Shinjuku:

Square Enix shop:

A Bit Longer This Time

Been a week of many interesting events. First event was an eye appointment. Ever since I arrived in Japan, my left eye has been bugging me. In the mirror every morning there was this giant red sun residing within my skull; my eye completely bloodshot and sore. I figured I had an infection. With a translator handy, I went to an optometrist. Not infected, the doctor said, just inflamed. Gave me some eye drops that cleared me up right as rain.

The day after my visit to the optometrist I went to an orthopedic specialist to get my back looked at. My back problem I've had since before Japan, but lately it has really started to poke and stab at me. After two x-rays, the doctor said my spine looked superb, but that I likely had a sprained ligament that would need time to heal. He prescribed some icy-hot patches for me to wear to help soothe the muscles. No bending or stretching in the meantime.

Lo and behold, that weekend I had plans to go to an Aikido seminar, with the intention of doing a great deal of bending and stretching. The timing of my back pains and spasms couldn't have been worse! I did attempt to join in on the seminar on the second day, but much movement beyond normal walking and talking was doing bad things to my back. I ended up watching for the majority of the time, which wasn't very ideal. Still, I saw plenty of interesting things from my perch at the back of the dojo, and I still got to join in on the partying after the seminar. These are the photos I took from that weekend trip, and some from a few days before when I was in Ikebukuro:

Come Monday afternoon, I felt the beginnings of a cold/flu combo. Sure enough, I spent the majority of Tuesday and Wednesday sneezing, coughing, catching my runny nose, and being just plain miserable. No doubt something the children passed on to me. They may look cute, but their hygiene isn't so pretty.

My symptoms have mostly cleared up now, and just in time. This weekend a friend of mine here in Japan is coming down to Tokyo, and we're going to spend Saturday strolling around town and buying things like good little foreigners. The plan is to visit Shibuya and Shinjuku, which should last us the day. If not, there are always plenty of other places to visit.

In Short

Went to Aikido seminar. Couldn't participate; sprained back. Eye inflamed. Saw drunk Japanese people.

More headlines tonight at 9.

Posting Problems

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