#1
“Dear Eric
Hello, my name is K. How are doing. Thank you for coming to
our graduation ceremony. It was fun for me to play kendo with Eric. I want to
play kendo very hard. After I enfer high school, I’ll try hard by using what you
toght. Best wishes to you and Amanda. I’ll never forget Eric. See you again.
Goog Bey”
This was from the student who nearly hugged me when I showed up to their sports day. I remember the JTE was surprised when she first heard that this student was talking to me. I love the fabric on the corners.
#2
“Dear Mr. Eric,
Hello! Long time no write. How are you? I’m fine. I felt
happy that you come to graduation cerewory. Thanks to you, I like English a
little. How are you doing? I study for test. What do you like now? I have liked
reading books and comics. After I enter high school, I’ll try hard by using
what you tought. If see you again, let’s speak with me.
Have nice days.
I wish for see you again…”
This student was always reading, so I'm not surprised she mentioned it here. I also love it anytime a student says they like English because of me. Plus, she drew this adorable picture.
#3
“Dear, Eric.
Hello. How are you? I’m very happy because I enjoy spending
my school life everyday. I play kicking cans after school It’s fun for me to do
it. I wanted to play kicking cans with Eric…
Thank you for teaching English to me. Thanks to your help, I
got to like English. I can’t speak English well. But, I can speak English a
little.
After I enter high school, I’ll try hard by using what you
tought
If you meet me, please call me!!
See you…”
This student was always a bit precocious, but I liked talking with her a lot. It makes me happy that she still thinks about playing games with me. This letter also had a lot of little flourishes that made it extra special.
#4
“Dear Mr. Eric.
Hello. How are you doing? Are you enjoying your visit to
Japan? Do you play “Pocket monster Brack” or “Pocket monster White”? I play
“Black” and “White”. Will you buy the new game “Pokemon + Nobunaga no yabo”? I
am going to Reimei high school.”
I like this letter because it truly reflects the student's interest and personality. While she does tell me what school she'll be going to, she's much more interested in trying to find out if I'm playing the same games as her. By the way, we totally picked up a copy of "Pokemon + Nobunaga"during our trip and I'm excited to play it. Also, I can't help but feel the inclusion of the Furret at the bottom was not coincidental. It is one of my favorites and was my costume for Halloween week.
#5
“Dear Eric
Hello. Long time no see. How are you doing? It was very fun
for me to play tennis with you. I felt happy to spend the time with you. Thank
you then. We graduate today. I’ll never forget the time we shared!”
Though the letter is undeniably sweet, I'll admit that I included this one largely because of the picture the student drew. It's just too cute.
#6
“Tanks: Mr. Eric
Dear Mr, Eric
Long time no, write. I can graduate Ariake junior high
school at last, finaly. I’m very very happy! Do you remember playing tennis
with us in tennis club. You practiced tennis very hard. You could play tennis
well. I remember chating with you. I enjoyed very much. I’ll never forget to
spend the time with you. I’ll study harder than now. I hope we meet again soon.
Take care.”
As one of the students to give me a farewell speech when I left, I already knew how important our chats were to this girl. I like the line about finally being able to graduate junior high. It comes off as a bit impatient, but I think she was just really excited to start high school.
#7
“Dear Eric
Hello!! Long time no write. How have you been? I’m fine. I
felt happy to spend the time with you. I’m very impressed that Eric did seiza
which is the Japanese activity. Today, I grauated Ariake junior high school.
Thank you for teaching English. See you again.”
Ah, the first (but not last) instance of my sitting in seiza being mentioned. For those who don't know, seiza is basically sitting on your knees and is considered formal or polite in many situations in Japan. I got used to sitting that way a lot. This letter also stands out due to the picture. I'm not sure I ever explained to my students that I had taken on the octopus as an unofficial mascot, but it's great to see a student's interpretation nonetheless.
#8
“Dear Ms. Eric
Today is wondeful day. I have a great time with you. I will
never forget the time we shared. I’m glad to meet you today. You are loved by
everyone. Thank you all very much.”
Though other students may have written longer or more difficult letters, this one has my favorite line "You are loved by everyone". Somewhat surprising coming from this student, who could occasionally be hot-tempered and was one I didn't think I had made that strong of a connection with.
#9
“Dear Eric
Hello!! Long time no write. How are you? I’m very happy
because I have a very good time everyday. For example, I play “kicking cans
with R, T, S, R, K, C, A, N, and K after school. It is very fun. How about
playing kicking cans with your friends?
Now, I have to study hard because I will have an entrance
examination. But I don’t study hard because I want to read comics and listen to
music. My favorite song is “Amenojaku )(天ノ弱) of Gumi. Why don’t you listen to it?
I will be a high school student maybe. So, I want to study
hard, make many friends and play many sports.
I want to do my best.
I hope you have a good time. See you…”
This girl also mentions kicking cans. It must have been something they did just before writing these letters. This is the student who got me started reading "The World God Only Knows", tough I believe she only read the light novels and not the manga. The singer she mentions is a Vocaloid, something I'll no doubt talk about later, that is very popular at the moment. This girl is very bright, so I'm sure she got into a good high school despite her seeming lack of focus.
#10
“Dear Eric
I am happy because you came all the way our graduation
ceremony. Thank you very much. I remember that you cheered at our tennis games
before you went back to your country. I remember that I spoke English poorly
with you. It was very fun for me. I’ll send e-mail soon. Thank you for
everything.”
This was one of the two girls who played at the all Kumamoto tennis tournament, the last event I went to before returning to America. She spoke English fairly well despite her pessimism, but she was always a better writer than a speaker. Sadly, I'm still waiting for that email.
#11
“Dear Eric
Long time no write. I passed the entrance examination of
Reimei high school. Eric was very kind to everyone. I’m very impressed that
Eric did seiza which is the Japanese standard while we were playing volleyball.
I felt happy to spend the time with you. Thank you.”
Here's the other seiza letter I wanted to share. I think the wording on this one is very interesting. Again, this is a student I really didn't think I had affected that much, but it would seem I still made a good impression on her.
#12
“Dear Mr. Eric
Long time no write, Mr. Eric. How are you? Do you remember
me? I’m N. Thank you for your coming our graduation ceremony, today. We’re glad
to see you.
My best memory is playing catch ball together. It was very
fun. And you?
By the way. I’m interested in Rock music. My favorite group
is “GREEN DAY” and “New found glory” and “Mr. BIG” and “Oasis” and more. Have
you ever heard of it?
And, I will send e-mail later.
Thank you very much today. I want to meet you again. Take
care.”
You can tell a lot of the boys' letters because theirs tend to be a lot simpler, not that I'm complaining. This boy is amazing at English, something I wish I would have picked up on sooner. We occasionally talk on Skype and recently he's been encouraging me to contact some of his other friends. He's always willing to speak English and it's really fun to talk about music with him.
#13
“Dear Eric,
Hello. My name is K. Do you remember me? Your class was very
fun. When you left my school, we were very sad and we thought “Why do you go to
America?” But you came back to Japan. I’m very happy that you came our
gradnation ceremony. I’m going to go to Amakusa high school. I’ll study hard
and I’ll play a lot. I’ll never forget you. I wish your happiness. Thank you.”
I included this one because of the line about how the students felt when I left. People often say kids have a sense about what is going on around them and I'm sure I didn't hide my displeasure about leaving as well as I should have. It is bitter sweet to know the kids didn't want me to leave either.
#14
“Dear Mr. Eric
Thanks for your teaching English, I like English very much.
It is difficult for me to understand English. But English became my favorite
subject the best of all. Your classes were very great and playing tennis with
you was enjoynable, too. Thank you all very much.”
Alright, I saved my favorite two for last. This one is not only the most intricately decorated, but has a bit of a story with it too. You see, I knew this girl didn't like English at all at one point. I remember at the beginning of her 8th grade year glancing in her notebook to see all she had written down for an answer to a simple question was "I don't no." However, she always had a fondness for cursive. When I first joined the tennis club, she would write words in cursive in the dirt. Over time, I noticed she was getting better and better with English and would take time to talk with me during practice. The thing of it was is that I never wanted to oversell my role in this development. However, this letter seems to suggest I had a hand in changing her mind about English and that is one of the greatest feelings I think I've ever experienced.
#15
“Dear Eric,
Long time no write. How are you doing? Are you enjoying your
American life with Amanda? Thanks for coming to our graduation ceremony today!
I had very fun times in Ariake jonior high school. I learned a lot of things.
But I have to leave this school. I am going to Amakusa high school. And I am
going to be a member of the photography club. Thank you for e-maile to me. I am
glad when you sent e-mails to me. I am going to send e-mails to you. I hope to
hear from you soon.”
Almost certainly the best written of the bunch, I've really enjoyed being able to keep in touch with this student. I'd usually email her anytime I did any cooking because I knew she enjoyed making food as well. Sadly, it would seem her email has changed merely a month after she sent it to me. I'm hoping she contacts me again soon. I will always remember her brilliant smile.
Hope you enjoyed this brief look at the letters I received. I have another 50 or so along with a yearbook and DVD of the culture festival I missed. They made great gifts and reminded me of how lucky I was to be a part of these kids' lives.
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