I wore the mask!

I have been gardening with my principal lately. In the afternoon, when I don't have class and have done all my lesson planning, he is outside planting away and I ask to join him. Japanese schools often have rows and rows of flower boxes and they require a tremendous amount of work. So my principal is outside a lot caring for the plants (this is the case at my other schools too!! Seems to be what you do, when you are the principle). I have been offering to help lately cause the weather is nice and I get bored sitting around. My principal at this school is a really funny character. He is really into traditional Japanese art and culture. He carves No masks as a hobby. No is a form of Japanese theater, where the actors wear masks and the stories it seems often center on the same characters. I mentioned him in one of my previous posts. He also Plays kendo (Japanese sword fighting) He performed in front of the school last month with another kendo expert. They did a routine of sorts, it was amazing! But anyway my principal is really funny. He is always saying to me 'I play Kendo" "You like kendo?" "Very Beautiful" "I make mask" "You like mask" "Very beautiful" "I plant flower" "You like plant flower?" "Very beautiful" And he kind of yells these questions and statements at me. He makes these same statements about 3 times a week. He is obviously a very proud man and very showy. He likes his ego stroked and he always want to hear you say "Yes kendo is very beautiful!!" But the questions never END! No matter what I am doing, he comes over to me all day long and asks. "You eat lunch?" "You eat Japanese food?" "Which you like bread or rice?" "You like konyaku?" "You like natto?" "You like book?" "You like teaching?" "You like Japan?" "You like Kendo?" "I play kendo." "Very beautiful." "Yes, your masks are very beautiful" He wants a certain answer from you. You can tell. He is funny. I hope he does not hit on me!!!

I got to go to a regular class and observe one of the teachers teaching their lessons today. I have many of these scheduled throughout next week. I have really wanted to do this! I wanted to see how the kids are with their home room teachers and how the teachers handle them. The class I sat in on was 1^st grade, music. OH My Goodness these kids where so precious. I love this class in particular. They are a very obedient class but they are also really relaxed and fun to be around, they have a great sense of humor and get all my jokes! They are very genki (a word the Japanese use a lot, there is no good English equivalent, but it kind of means lively or spirited) Anyway I love this class. They sang all there little Japanese songs beautifully. One about Mickey mouse (set to the tune of the Mickey Mouse club theme song!!) One called Zoou San or Mr. Elephant, that one was my favorite, one about a snail, one about a flower and one about shaking hands. During the last song I almost lost it though. I really almost cried when they sang "I believe in myself" It was in Japanese but the chorus was in English and the children had learned how to sign the words in sign language. It sounds really cheesy, but they were so cute!! It makes total sense that the Japanese love karaoke, they spend most of their childhood singing. The kids must have music class 4 times a week!

They were also playing these piano horns (they were weird; don't think I could have figured it out!)

As far as an update; I have just been working during the week and then going into Tokyo on the weekends. Going out in the city shopping and sightseeing with my friends and all that. I got a cold this week and yes, YES, I wore the mask. HAAHHAHAHA I did. I felt like such a jerk the first day I was sick, not wearing a mask and spreading my sickness all around, so the next day I donned the mask. It was weird, they are very hot. But definitely a must. I need to take a pic of me in it! It was a cute mask too, had to be!!! On it was a picture of a donut and a candy bar who are friends. HAHHAAHHAHA

The kids were so sweet about it too. They kept coming up to me and asking if I had a cold "Kaze?" One little 2^nd grader ask "Do you have a cold?" Me: Yes" him: "Is majori sense OK?"

Well I am off to bed, going into Tokyo tomorrow to meet up with friends, I hope we do karaoke!

Oyasuminasai

Marjorie