Originally published on 13 June 2006. This post is part of a series about my first ever solo trip to Japan!

Yesterday I gave Yumi and Yoko (two of our Japanese English teachers) an English lesson. It was pretty fun because we read “The Legend of John Henry” and “The Legend of Johnny Appleseed.” I grabbed a couple of complimentary almanacs from Cracker Barrel before I left the States, and there’s lots of stuff like that in there. I’ll probably use it for more lessons!

Anyway, I think the lesson went well. Yuri was busy, so she couldn’t make the lesson (actually, that was her excuse for not wanting to come), but the three of us had an interesting conversation about it. I asked what kind of Japanese Folk Tales or Legends they have, and we read the stories, then we talked about words they had trouble with or didn’t know and discussed the stories as a whole. I’m pretty proud of myself for coming up with the lesson. I remembered Mom telling me that she does a whole language arts unit about fairy tales, so when I saw Tall Tales in the Almanac, I thought that’d be a fun way to talk about American culture and open up a discussion.

After that, I worked on a couple of lesson plans for later this week, then rode the bus with the kids. I pretty much just greet the kids when they get on the bus and make sure they’re buckled up. I’m on there from 3:25-7:15, which is pretty long for me to go without eating, so I took some raisins for a snack. Not sure if I’m supposed to, but I didn’t eat when the kids were on there. I was so hungry by the time I got back!

When I got back to school, Yuri was running a fever, and she needed to go home, but she still had two lessons to teach. Yoko took one, but she was supposed to teach her own lesson while Yuri’s other was scheduled. I was the only other one there who could teach (Mami, the receptionist doesn’t speak English well enough, Yumi is only part time so she’d already left, and Anna had the day off). So, Yuri, Yoko, and Mami all gathered around to ask if I’d do it. (Like I could say no even if I wanted to!) So hopefully, I’m back in Yuri’s good graces. I messed up a little bit with the homework, and I’m sure I messed some other stuff up that I’m not aware of, but I did my best with what I had.

I’m hoping Yuri’s sickness is the reason for her recent irritability, and I hope it goes away soon. Since I only had a 15-minute break to eat supper before the lesson, Yuri told me I could leave early. Woo-hoo! So I clocked out at 9:15 and used the internet for a few minutes so I could e-mail my family and let them know I’m ok, then I left. Anna and I fiddled around with the internet stuff and got it working again (thank goodness!).

Please keep me in your prayers, especially about my attitude. I’ve had to consciously hold my tongue and keep some comments to myself in several situations lately, and that’s not how a Christian should act, especially around non-Christians. I’m so thankful for God’s protection and His hand in my life, and I try to keep Him first in my thoughts, but I think I’m getting more comfortable here than I should be. I don’t want complete upheval, of course, but I don’t think I’m relying on Him as much as in the beginning, or as much as I should.

Love you and miss you,
Whit