As I was walking to the Kokura Port on the evening of Friday, September 8th, I could feel Fall in the air. It was crisp, cool and calm. I'm sure I had a stupid smile spread across my face. I love this time of year. It's finally comfortable to be outdoors. Soon I'll be layering on clothing, wrapping up in scarves, and ditching my iced coffee for anything pumpkin spiced and hot.
I've started back to school and feel busier than ever. Between regular classes, preparing for the English Speech Competition, Sports Day Practice and the end of month course exams, there seems to be even less free time than usual. Even though it's busy and quite hectic, I'm secretly loving every second of it. I like when things are happening. I don't do well with free time.
Since I took the month of August off from Japanese Class, starting back has been a little difficult. Shoko-san is as patient as ever, though. We have a few field trips coming up that I'm looking forward to. And at the end of this month, we'll be celebrating our 1 year of friendship!
It's been about two weeks since I last posted. I'll be honest, I've been distracted. I've let myself indulge in the comforts of home. For a second, I almost settled. As nice as it was to be reminded of the US and the life I used to have, it was only that, just a reminder. Living in Japan and having this experience is something that I want for myself. So I'm being selfish with my time and focusing on me. It's refreshing. It's giving me time to understand myself, find out what's most important to me, and learn my worth. It's wildly rewarding and not something I'm ready to give away to anyone else. It's my time, it's my Neverland.
So in these last two weeks I've ventured from the sea to the mountains. I've seen my city from new perspectives and have gained a greater appreciation for the place I'm currently calling home.
Last weekend, an ALT friend of mine and I went on a Beer Cruise around Kitakyushu. It was the perfect way to Welcome Fall and say Goodbye to Summer. We cruised for two hours, drinking beer and taking in Kitakyushu's night lights. It was spectacular . . .
"All at once I saw,
some things that I had read then,
when I was searching."
some things that I had read then,
when I was searching."
Kitakyushu Beer Cruise, 2017-9-8
This afternoon, I went with another ALT friend to hike Mt. Sarakura. It's 622 meters high and is unlike anything I was expecting. This was the first real hike that I've ever been on. It was challenging to say the least. Last year, I went to the top of Mt. Sarakura by cable car. The view was stunning and getting there was fun. This time however, I was dripping with sweat as I climbed stairs that I thought would never end. Sometimes I was leading and sometimes I was falling behind trying to catch my breath. The hike to the top took us about 2 hours. When we got there, the view was even better than I remembered . . .
"はい、 ありがと。
Overcoming barriers
in language and life."
Mt. Sarakura, 2017-9-8
Take a look at my memories . . .
XOXO,
M
