I realized after we said good-bye in the Uozu hotel parking lot, that I don't have a picture of Kawaguchi-sensei. Or if I do it is lost in the depths of my photo files.
Kawaguchi-sensei was my Japanese tutor for more than two years. We met every Monday at 5pm at the Uozu city hall in a small back room used for storage and Japanese tutoring sessions. We met there as part of their free Japanese tutoring program for new ALTs. At our first meeting I could barely introduce myself. Luckily she was studying to be an English teacher so where my language skills failed, hers stepped in. Our hour long sessions every week were more than tutoring, she became my cultural informant. Every week I would ask her questions about things I didn't understand or tell her stories of new experiences I had had in Japan. She drew me maps to find hair salons or local public baths, she drove me to the dentist, and almost every week she brought me food. Sometimes the food was a snack that she had made or bought for us to share together. Sometimes she brought me diner to take home and eat. And she always brought tea or coffee for us to drink. I tried to reciprocate as much as possible but I couldn't keep up to her kindness and generosity.
In addition, she also helped me with all my CLAIRE language study books and even gave me the answers a few times so I could pass! She helped me study for the Japanese proficiency test (lowest level) and I passed.
We didn't meet my third year because Uozu kicked me out of the program because I was no longer a beginners anymore. And I was studying for my MA and she was teaching full-time at JHS. But last month we met for lunch. She treated me to a beautiful lunch in a fancy hotel. We ate sashimi, tempura, pickels, salad, rice, miso soup, grilled fish, and fruit. It was all very beautifully presented and came one by one over the course of an hour. We chatted and caught up and did so mostly in Japanese. My Japanese isn't at all where it could be or should be after three years, but I get by. And she helped me achieve that!
I'm totally overwhelmed with how to thank someone who has spent hours each week teaching me to communicate and become my friend as well.
Thank you!
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