Coming up on 4 months… and Japan is feeling like home :)

A colleague emailed me asking about my recent work/life transition; when I came to this site to double check the website address, I realized it’s been a month since I’ve written! I’m taking it as a good sign because I am living life to the fullest and things are slowly but surely becoming more normal to me, however I’m sure my followers would enjoy an update.

In terms of work, everything is really good! Each day I am more comfortable with my students as well as the fact that I am a teacher. For some schools I’ve been a regular scheduled teacher for 3 months now, so I am really building relationships and even nicknames with certain students/classes. At one school, I have two preschoolers who consistently ask for me if I am not teaching [at that school] that week. When I found this out, naturally, my heart melted because they are two of my favorite preschool students to work with— the little girl always addresses me: “Sense…” then tells me literal stories in Japanese. I now know how to say “Really?” in Japanese, so that’s pretty much all I say back unless I start speaking to her in English. An elementary class has coined the nickname “PJD sense,” after I explained/wrote my full name out on the whiteboard. This class has also had me teach them some yoga (in English, of course!), which we have now made a part of our opening warm-up to the class. Not only am I bonding with the students, but the Japanese teachers I work with as well. This could be the most stressful part, but I am fortunate with the teachers I regularly work with because they all, in their own way, respect the team-teaching method. Communication is key, always.

Over the past month, I have transferred money (into my US bank account) as well as sent a package to my nephews in Florida. Each experience took at least 30-45 minutes. One thing that is evident: Japan requires a ridiculous amount of paperwork! This being said, I am continually blown away by the courtesy and helpfulness of those “behind the counter.” Between my broken Japanese and their broken English, each of these tasks were completed and I was even able to smile afterwards.

Lastly, socially, I’ve been adjusting. I am finally starting to make friends and hang out with people outside of my workplace. Don’t get me wrong, some of my closest friends here are people I met via my school, however I’ve made some friends outside of that circle and it’s been refreshing. Just a few weeks ago I went salsa dancing and had an amazing time! I met some Latinos living in Nagoya area, so I’m excited to have the ability to practice my Spanish and Portuguese speaking skills. I’m doing a lot of growing these months; some days are hard and other days fly by… ultimately, I am thankful for my life and enjoying the ride! Until next time 🙂