lately - さいきん - saikin
As 2016 was ending, I remember writing something along the lines of ... If 2016 was a year of change, than 2017 will be a year of growth.
Lately, I've been feeling those growing pains. These past few weeks have been filled with self-reflection, perspective adjustments, and a lot of honest conversations. I'm feeling myself grow. and I'm seeing myself let go of a lot that I've let hold me back.
It's empowering ... scary ... embarrassing ... disappointing ... wildly rewarding ... and all for the better.
So here's my most recent growing pain ...
Today, I did something I should have done moths ago. I learned how to read and write katakana.
The Japanese writing system consists of three kinds of characters:
ひらがな - hiragana
カタカナ - katakana
漢字 - kanji
When I came to Japan in May of 2016, the only Japanese I knew was basic expressions for greeting people and giving thanks. Basically, I could be very polite and that's about it.
After attending the Japanese Conversation Class for a couple of months, I finally learned to read and write the hiragana (ひらがな) characters. When that happened I felt so proud and so accomplished. What I should have done is kept my momentum and continued to learn the katakana characters. Instead, I relaxed and focused only on my accomplishment. I became complacent.
Well lately, all those growing pains have helped me gain back my momentum. I've been making conscious efforts to make consistent decisions that my future self would be proud of. Excuse the overly used cliche, but it's an accurate description of my current mindset.
So with my momentum gained back, I tackled the katakana characters. I download an app (Kanafree), I opened my textbook, I broke out my notebook, and I got to work.
Today's Japanese class went so well. I got to tell Shoko-san, in Japanese, about my trip to Sasebo; my dinner in Fukuoka; my Japanese junior high school students; and I got to show off my new skill set.
Now that I can read and write hiragana & katakana, I need to work on building my vocabulary.
This time, I'm keeping my momentum and I'm not letting myself become complacent. I've gained too much to let myself regress now.
So here are my pictures from my afternoon in Kurosaki ...
Orio Station > Kurosaki Station
Kurosaki Station COMCITY
Kurosaki Station COMCITY
katakana: グランデ カフエ ラツテ [gurande kafue ratsute]
romaji: grande cafe latte
Japanese Conversation Class, Kurosaki, COM CITY
Japanese Conversation Class, Kurosaki, COM CITY
This is a picture of the Tanabata trees that were displayed in COM CITY.
Tanabata was celebrated on Saturday, July 7th. People write their wishes on colorful sheets of paper and attach them to bamboo trees.
When I was in Sasebo a couple of weekends ago, I wrote a wish on a piece of paper and attached it to a bamboo tree. My wish was for my junior high school students to speak English. I believe it's bad luck to say your wish out loud, but since it already came true, it's alright for me to share it.
This past week my students did an outstanding job speaking English during the International English Event. I was so proud of them! I'm looking forward to hosting more events like that. It's such a great opportunity for them.
If you want to read the story of Tanabata, click the link below.
Kurosaki Station, COM CITY
Kurosaki Station, COM CITY
Orio Station
