The bowing of the rice

The season for harvesting rice is coming to a close.  There is a saying here in Japan that translates to, “The heavier the head of rice, the deeper it bows.” Many of my students spent time this past month on an agriculture week where they worked alongside farmers who were harvesting their fall crops.  They were taught that, just like the rice, when they mature, they should bow their heads in humility and gratitude.

More about rice in Japan

School has been interesting as I try to figure out my place in this new society.  Many times, I feel like a wide-eyed doe.  I just open my eyes and ears and try to figure out what is happening around me.  The other day, for example, one teacher cried during her entire morning presentation.  While listening, I had no idea why she was upset.  She is bothered that the sannensei (9th grade) students skip class, speak disrespectfully to teachers and aren’t committed to their classwork.  The response from the teacher may seem extreme but when you realize how much time teachers spend with students here, you see that they play a role that trumps that of the parent in modling a respectuful and humble member of the community.

I, myself, find most of the children to be adorable and tenacious.  We had a prefecture-wide speech contest this last week and I practiced with my students every day after school.  This is on top of the sports and music practice that they have almost daily, as well.  Free time may be a phrase that has no translational equvilant in the Japanese language.  It just doesn’t seem to exisit.

I just finished a book called, ‘The Geography of Time’ and part of it mentioned the outlook of the Japanese. A couple of interesting tidbits from the book that I can confirm from my experience:

1) The workday is long and sometimes unproductive. Japanese teachers work from 7am or so until 6 or even 10pm at night.  But, during the work day, they spend considerable time chatting or even just wandering into another teacher’s classroom to observe.  Many American’s are forced to “cut the fat” by having maximum productivity and will race out the door at the closing of the workday. In Japan, a state of harmony is kept by spending some of the day socializing and not being in too much of a hurry to leave.

2) There is an art to looking busy. I have seen office workers, who spend most of the day writing a detailed itinerary for their weekend, pop up and RUN to the copy machine.  Luckily, I don’t have to bother myself too much about how to look busy because studying Japanese is in my job description and it takes up any down time I may have during the school day.

Well, I’m heading to the mountains tomorrow to make fresh soba noodles and to fill a jar with water that is supposed to make me live longer.  おやすみなさい。 (Good night!)

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Autumn in Japan

Well, the weather finally cooled down. The heat had been pretty intense for the entirety of my time here up until about two weeks ago.  Even when temperatures dropped to the 80’s the forecast would say “feels like 88” because of the humidity. I am personally much more familiar with the term “wind chill.”

Now, I’m waiting for a looming winter.  Some ALTs have gone so far as to say that it’s so cold, “It will break your soul.” I’ve asked around to see if that’s really just a dramatization but the senpai’s here (experienced ALTs) all seem to confirm the statement after a thoughtful pause. My predecessor left behind hundreds of handwarmers. They are basically fascinating little chemical packets that heat when adjetated.  She was, however, from the L.A. area in California so I’m going to assume my Minnesota blood will keep me alive until the spring.

The cold weather is all the more reason to appreciate the Japanese onsen. Since Japan is basically one giant strip of old volcanoes that are jutting up from the ocean, there are many places to take a dip in hot, sulpheric water.  The ettiquette for onsen is different than U.S. hot springs, however. Since the bath is a place for purity and cleanliness, you are supposed to shower and scrub thourougly before jumping into the onsen.  Also, whereas clothing may be optional for U.S. hot springs, Japanese onsen usually have a strict no-clothes rule. Sexes are often seperated though so you only see what you’re bring in…if you catch my drift.

I took an onsen break this weekend when I went to a hippie festival in the Aso Mountain region.  It was the perfect time to see some of the Japanese maple trees dusted with warm autumn colors.  I hear there are some great onsen in my town, but I’m still debating how bold I can be with my nakedness when I have about 1,000 middle school students trying to find something to do in Ueki.

That’s all for now but check out some of the other tabs on my blog.  I added a few photos and updates.  Enjoy the fall wherever you are!

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Conformity and Chong the Three-Legged Cat

For the last two weeks, I have been taking care of a cat.  Her name is Chong and she only has three legs.  In Japan, teachers here will often be transferred every 4 years.  I made friends with a teacher here in my town and he was recently transferred to Kobe.  As a favor to him (and a way to get close with a cute little ball of fur sans long-term commitment) I agreed to take care of Chong for two weeks.

Besides the fact that she consistently talked and walked over me in the middle of the night and her incident of scratching my glasses, she was a little treat to have around.  I did mention the cat at school as I was trying to make small talk in the teachers room.  An office lady overheard and was very bothered that I may be in an apartment that doesn’t allow cats.  She was genuinely worried that the cat or any noises it makes may have been offending my neighbors.  She went so far as to ask which apartment I lived in and what street I live on.  I feigned a need to go to the bathroom and scooted away from her probing interview.

There is a cultural view here that bothering another person should be strictly avoided.  So, people take great pains to avoid doing something that may possibly pester someone else.  At times, it can feel downright oppressive.

One teacher told me, during a teachers party, that he likes to skateboard.  When I asked him about it and if he ever skateboards to school, he said that he actually doesn’t even skateboard in the entire prefecture that we live in.  The reason for this is that he is a sensei, which translates literally to “honorable master.” Pressure is put on teachers in Japan to be role models of the highest degree for their pupils.  The aforementioned teacher will skateboard in different cities than his own because skateboarding is seen as too cutting edge and he would be looked down on if he did it openly in an area that his students could see him.

I’m not talking about heroin here, folks.  This is skateboarding! I have often found myself, in the few months that I have been here , wondering how much to conform for the sake of respect to the culture and how much to just be me because I know I’m a good person (dammit).

In the next few months, I will have to decide wether I want to recontract for another year as a JET participant.  The conformist culture and the many rules make me question how long I should live here.  On the other hand, having a legit job, being close to travel spots throughout Asia and having the chance to learn a new way of life all make me want to stay for longer than a year.  Besides, I’ve been reading up on US news and the job prospects might be a little grim at the moment.

Anyway, I’ve got a lot on my mind these days but, luckily, I finally got internet. I’ll try to be good about posting my thoughts and plans and if you have any insight or suggestions about what I should do with my dang life, let me know.

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