Well, I still need to do a post about Kyoto's food, but keeping you up to date takes precedence (and I've been given some very strong hints about my ten day delay). We've already passed my first two Sundays in Hikari, my trip to Yanai, and even the first week of English classes. So this post is going to be busy, busy, busy. Lets get going!
(A letter from a friend brightens a rainy Saturday)
Sunday starts with breakfast. Then the house goes under a transformation as we turn a home into a church. Almost as soon as we are done praying for the service people start arriving. We take seats and wait as one of the ladies leads us in worship and prayer. I stumble along in the singing, my hirigana isn't good enough for me to keep up. Pastor (Mr. Toothy) gives us his message, and I can sort of follow it because Misty ( Mrs. Toothy) took the time to explain it to us before hand. After service we have tea and lots of talk. Sometimes we have a curry lunch instead of the mugicha and mochi. Mmm, things taste so good here. Oishii! That first Sunday afternoon we went with the Toothys to the church in Hirao, but this week they went by themselves. They want to keep the foreigner level down.
English classes started last week. Technically they were kengaku (trial classes). We have classes in Hirao on Tuesday; they're held in the church there, which doubles as an apartment for the youngest member of the team, Mr. Cove. For the past year Mr. Cove has been away on different internships, but that doesn't mean the place goes unused. We have three classes there in the morning, one in the afternoon, and, at the moment, one at night. On Wednesdays we stay in Nijigaoka for our classes. We also have our Japanese lessons that day. If the schedule doesn't change then I'll only be teaching one night class on Wednesday, but there other classes going on all day. Last Thursday was a real treat, we went to Shunan and taught a group of women at the church there. Instead of dividing them up into small, level classes we kept them in one group and just talked and played games. Because people were at different levels we'd often have the more adapt English users translating our instructions, or helping someone form sentences. It won't stay like that, because we want English class not English club, but it was a fun way to meet everybody.
As to the actual teaching, it is like nothing else in the world. When I teach, it is as if someone has switched on the autopilot. Or as if someone Greater has reached down and taken the controls out of my hand. It isn't at all like public speaking, which makes you more aware then ever of yourself. It's more like dreaming, or breathing. An inexplicable instinct; an automated response. But that was the first week, when I was running on nerves. Maybe today will be different.
Nice boot.
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