Today was a big day for our third year students – they could finally get out of our school and go to college. In Japan, college is a comparatively easy ride compared to high school, so it’s nothing but smooth sailing until they hit the job market.
I spent the morning decorating the ESS room and getting it ready for the farewell party for our graduates. I blew up some balloons and hung some streamers, and the result was quite festive if I don’t say so myself.
The ceremony was pretty much the same as last year. The antics had calmed down quite a bit, and the crowd was unusually solemn. Luckily I remembered to dress warm, because it was freezing in the gym. The ceremony lasted about an hour and a half, and I was able to understand a lot more this year than last. Still, lots of parts left me baffled.
After the ceremony we had a nice bento lunch waiting for us, and it was full of really good stuff this time. Fresh sashimi, lots of fried things, and some of my favorite sides were in there – it was really good.
I met up with the first year students after lunch and we put the finishing touches on the party room, and soon the third year ESS students showed up. We had plenty of cookies, snacks, and drinks to keep everyone happy. We chatted about all kinds of things, mostly in Japanese, unfortunately. Still it was good to see them again – it had been a long time since I’ve seen some of the students. The party was a hit, and Ms. Tsutsumi, the third year teacher who I will be teaching with next year came by to take lots of pictures, too.
All day I was posing for pictures, mostly with the ESS club, but later on students that I haven’t even taught were asking for pictures and a message in their yearbook.
I was leafing through the yearbook with a couple of ESS students towards the end of the day, and they were trying to get me to tell them which one of the girls was “my type”. I knew better to fall into this trap – as soon as I point at a picture that girl’s cellphone will be ringing with the news. I just gave some non-commital answers and tried to change the subject.
Soon after the party ended I was on my way home for the day. Around six o’clock Kuniko dropped by. She was in town to stay with her folks, but she had forgotten to give me some stuff. She’s feeling much better. We ate some soup that she brought, and looked through the yearbook. She had taught a lot of the students that had graduated this year, so it was a good chance for her to look at all the pictures.
It was a great day, especially for the graduates. They are spreading out to colleges all over western Japan, so I hope they get some good opportunities to use their English!
