Week Two
To transition the first week to the second one there is this wonderful time called the weekend. This is the time that teachers are supposed to have some time to themselves, with their families, and catching up from a busy week at school. What I found out was that many of the teachers at Omose do that overworked teacher thing, where they continue to participate in school functions throughout their weekends.
On Friday night, I got a ride home with Yuko sensei. She was gracious enough to wait for me until 7 p.m. when I finished my work for the day. We ended up finding time to catch some dinner in downtown Kesennuma, at one of her favorite restaurants, for some Miso Ramen. It was really a delightful time. Yuko sensei is such a strong English speaker it is so nice to spend time together when she is not so very busy. She teaches me some Japanese as well as Japanese culture.
On Saturday I had plans to head to K-Wave, the city gymnasium. There I planned to watch the children's Aikido class, and then participate in the adult class late in the morning. I was really amazed at what the kids were doing. The thing that put me over the edge was seeing a 3-year old doing Kote gaishi (a pretty sophisticated move that I learned not too long ago). They were working on their forward and backward rolls and learning how to block a strike to the head. It was really fun to sit in. I was wishing that I could have videotaped the class, but got there just after the lesson started. That meant that I could not clear it with the sensei first. Too bad fer sure.
The training was really fun. There were 5 others in class I think, two of whom were more junior than me. With language as a barrier I did a lot to just pay attention to movement, which is really hard stuff. All this is good practice for me to understand what it is like to be a minority. I lack literacy and communication skills but so badly wanting to understand and be understood.
Most people know that after a good, rigorous workout, a fine meal is in order. Massa and Yuki came to pick me up from practice and asked me what I was wanting to eat for lunch. SUSHI, of course. I am in one of the finest places in the world for sushi so that is what I would like to have every chance I get. We left for this fine restaurant which I went to last year, the name of which I cannot pronounce. The owner is behind the sushi bar awaiting orders. There are areas to sit, Japanese style (on tatami mats), in three other areas of the restaurant. The lunch special was to pick eight things off the menu, which changes daily depending on the best catch of the day. I could not believe the choices, let alone the amounts presented. To start, there was green tea, as well as miso soup and some greens. On came the ordered fish. All of it was amazing, as was the fresh wasabi. We ate so much for so long, we were the only 3 remaining in the restaurant in the middle of the day. During this time the restaurant owner gave me different kinds of fish to taste test I had not ordered, as well as a shark-skin wasabi grinder that he had christened in this fine establishment. He overwhelmed us with kindness.
First Week at Omose Comes to a Close
I went home to get ready for my next outing with Keiko sensei and her family. They picked me up and took me to one of their favorite restaurants for dinner. The hometown hospitality continued on and on. At this place we sat at tabletops surrounding a grilling pit, where Master (one of the owners), had fish on skewers cooking at all angles arranged by him. We had plates of different sushi in addition to some of this specially cooked and prepared fish.
When I was dropped off that evening I was full to the tip of my existence (in a great sort of way), with Japanese culture. I was eager to sleep off some of that amazing food and dream about the ocean and the fish that I ate that came from it.
The next day I woke up early and went with Yuko sensei to Omose School. This was the day of the big PTA volleyball tournament at K-Wave. Yuko sensei, Junko sensei and Naoko sensei were the three teachers who were to represent staff at this event. They were the support team of the men's and women's PTA teams. There were teams from all levels of schools, from near and sort of far. It was a single elimination tournament that was so full of spirit and good sportsmanship. The coolest thing was to see these parents eagerly representing their schools and having a great time playing.
Since both the teams ended early we returned to school to unpack gear. The four of us then decided to head to the Rias Arc Art Museum (on the mountain top of the city), to catch the last day of this amazing art exhibit. The artist, Tomihiro Hoshino, was a gym teacher who had a tragic accident and became paralyzed. He started to write poetry and paint and has become quite famous. I was thrilled to walk from piece to piece, since the watercolors were stunning representations of different flowers. But, there was so much I missed, since his poetry was alongside the art. I ended up getting a book with English translation, which helped a lot. Also, Rie sensei bought another book for me, with both English and Japanese, which I love.
Monday, June 30, 2003
The last day of June is now over. I have had an exhausting day, filled with recess participation, playing in the 3rd grade dodgeball tournament, AND a few presentations with parents and kids. The dodgeball scene was a blast. What was most surprising was that the parents were not being wimpy about things and the kids were matching the parents very well. Here I thought parents would ease up and let kids win, but I was pleasantly surprised.Tuesday, July 1, 2003
This day I got to school on the early side since I was to leave with the 5th graders on a trip. We went to the Shizugawa Nature Center, where Dr. Yokohama, an expert on plankton and seaweed, was hosting our large group. The students worked in small groups to explore the rocky seashore at low tide. They looked for life and other cool finds. After lunch we went inside for a presentation by different staff people. Part of the talk included why some seaweeds are different colors, which has a lot to do with the depth they are found at and how much photosynthesis they get. Another fun part of this day was working with the different seaweed samples to make pressed bookmarks and postcards. Each of us (all students and staff) got a chance to do this. It is always fun to see that each person had a different set of crafts using the same materials.
Wednesday, July 2, 2003
Today was a very official day. I met with the Mayor, the Board of Education and the Superintendent of schools. There was even a piece about this meeting that showed up in the newspaper the next day. I gave them all Bucky Badger/Wisconsin pins, which they enjoyed as well. The Mayor was very curious about Madison and what we do environmentally. It was also great to have our project collaboration so well received and supported by all these people.
In the afternoon I joined the third, fourth and fifth graders for their trip to the Children's Theater in town. They go once a year. This year the production was a musical, which was really great. Even though I did not understand the jokes, the acting and singing were wonderful. Plus, the children enjoyed it very much.
Each Wednesday, while in our host communities, we have evening videoconferences with other American teachers. This is a time to check in, share, and see whose technology is working. This week there were 3 of us who stayed after and had a really great, lengthy conversation. That time is special, since my talk during the week is in a different cadence and form than usual, while at school. I am learning more and more Japanese, though, although not enough to understand a full, or even partial, exchange. Expressions commonly used and gestures are sooooo, helpful and are getting easier to interpret. Yay! Now I only need a few more years under my belt to really get it. One of the teachers from our American Group, Cassareen (Catherine) is my idol. She studied lots of Japanese before leaving, and is even able to do some basic teaching in Japanese. How inspiring! I did receive a first grade workbook from Rie sensei, so I could practice writing and learning Hiragana. That is a start for me.
July 25, 2003
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