Wow!

It’s now been one year of teaching here in Japan. However, as I am heading home for the holidays (after a brief stop in Hawaii), I will be leaving Big Bow. I have made so many great memories here at Big Bow with the students. It was a struggle at some points, but also very rewarding. I want to thank every student for helping me grow and improve as a teacher, even in the most unexpected ways. In the same vein that I was teaching them about English and American Culture, they were a great help to me with understanding Japanese culture. (Not to mention a lot of information about food!) So all my students were great teachers as well!

Nagoya is a very nice city to live in, and I enjoyed a lot of things about it. I am even thinking of returning to Japan next year to teach again, but I haven’t decided on my plans yet.  Overall, the people I met here were very hospitable and helpful. Although sometimes I felt lost, finding a solution was never hard because it was easy to find someone to help. I definitely will try and ‘pass the kindness forward’.

I think in a couple months I will look back and miss all the students: the shy ones, the loud ones, the silly ones, the serious ones, and even the troublemakers. I also want to thank Mr. and Mrs. Ito for being so helpful with me during my first time in Japan. Also, Lesley is not just a great English teacher, she’s a great teacher for English Teachers like me. I felt like I was an English Robin to her Batman and I gained a lot of confidence and knowledge directly from her and indirectly (learning by observation).

Thank you, everyone! I hope that I will see you all sometime in the future. Don’t be afraid to say, “Hello!”