Japan Meme Day 03 - Most interesting person you met.
This entry was difficult to write for a variety of reasons, which is why it is coming so long after the last one. Number one was I met so many interesting people while I lived overseas, so who to write about? Number two was once I had decided, how much should I write? How much do I want to invade this person’s privacy on the internet? I am going to tell you about my friend K, but leave out her name so that I delve more into why she is so interesting.
K was in one of my advanced english classes. When I first met her, she had just spent a month in hospital and her English abilities had dropped a lot. She was very shy and unsure of herself at first, but as she regained vocabulary and ability, she became more confident. One day after class, she requested my phone number and invited me over to her place for lunch. We were allowed to socialize with students, so I agreed to go. She made a lovely, large meal and we chatted and watched a movie, and after that we started hanging out regularly. She became one of my closest friends in Atsugi.
K had led a very interesting life. She did motorcross when she was young, she had left an abusive husband, and she began to study english on a whim. She told me that she didn’t care about it in school. She never went to college, but was very smart and a hard worker in my classes. She beat breast cancer (it’s why she was in the hospital) and had a long-term boyfriend whom she loved, but had no desire to marry because of her awful first marriage. She is a kind and generous person.
One time, we went to the onsen together. For those reading this journal, the “onsen” is going to take a bath in hot springs, basically. It’s a big public bath, and when you get there you get naked and shower, getting as clean as you can, and then you go sit in a giant pool of hot water with your friends. Everyone is naked. It’s a big public naked experience. I had done it before, but only with other foreigners. I was very nervous because who wants their students to see them naked? Not me. But it was fine. It ended up being a really fun bonding experience between myself, K, and our other friend Aya.
Okay, this is a little rushed, but I want to get it up and published. For some reason this entry was very hard to write, which is why it has taken so long. Hopefully the next one will be easier!
K was in one of my advanced english classes. When I first met her, she had just spent a month in hospital and her English abilities had dropped a lot. She was very shy and unsure of herself at first, but as she regained vocabulary and ability, she became more confident. One day after class, she requested my phone number and invited me over to her place for lunch. We were allowed to socialize with students, so I agreed to go. She made a lovely, large meal and we chatted and watched a movie, and after that we started hanging out regularly. She became one of my closest friends in Atsugi.
K had led a very interesting life. She did motorcross when she was young, she had left an abusive husband, and she began to study english on a whim. She told me that she didn’t care about it in school. She never went to college, but was very smart and a hard worker in my classes. She beat breast cancer (it’s why she was in the hospital) and had a long-term boyfriend whom she loved, but had no desire to marry because of her awful first marriage. She is a kind and generous person.
One time, we went to the onsen together. For those reading this journal, the “onsen” is going to take a bath in hot springs, basically. It’s a big public bath, and when you get there you get naked and shower, getting as clean as you can, and then you go sit in a giant pool of hot water with your friends. Everyone is naked. It’s a big public naked experience. I had done it before, but only with other foreigners. I was very nervous because who wants their students to see them naked? Not me. But it was fine. It ended up being a really fun bonding experience between myself, K, and our other friend Aya.
Okay, this is a little rushed, but I want to get it up and published. For some reason this entry was very hard to write, which is why it has taken so long. Hopefully the next one will be easier!