I have spent many years in Japan and I fancy myself an adequate teacher of Japanese Language and Lit, but I was born and raised in SoCal, and did not learn to speak Japanese until I was an adult. My first language, my mother tongue is English. But I have worked hard to learn Japanese and depending on who you talk to, my Japanese is considered near native... or not...

I find that the longer I live in the States, the more my linguistic abilities falter. I speak Japanese at home with M, but the topics are usually limited to domestic issues and I have little opportunity to expand my vocab orally, so I read a lot... well, not a lot, but enough. But when I lived in Japan, my speaking was near-native by most accounts. Indeed, when I worked at a think tank in Tokyo, my boss accepted me as another Japanese worker, and occasionally introduced me to others as the American who could speak English.

Anyway, the first time I lived in Japan for an extended period was in 1984. I studied at Waseda for a year under a Mombusho grant and also earned some extra cash teaching English, as many of us foreign students are wont to do. However, jobs were not always easy to get because I did not fit the profile of an English teacher. I did not have blue eyes or blonde hair. Before you rant about the Japanese, remember that the same phenomenon exists here in the US. When I was teaching at UCLA, students who had a white TA would often come to me to confirm what she had taught, because... I looked Japanese, so I guess I would know better. Of course, I didn't. But I digress...

Once, I was going to work at Fujitsu Corp. in Hino City to teach English. I took the train from Waseda--Tozai line--and switched to the Chuo line at Nakano. From there I took the express to Toyoda, a station between Tachikawa and Hachioji. I was standing near a door of a not-so-crowded car staring at the sprawling towns as they pass by: Koenji, Ogikubo, Kichijoji, Mitaka. Next to me, there was an elementary school kid around 9 or 10 years-old, easily identified by his ransel--the leather book bag all elementary school kids carry--staring at the same expanse that is the Tokyo suburbs.

Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed the conductor enter the car to check everyone's ticket to make sure that everyone had the proper fare. Sitting on the bench were two Americans, chatting calmly. They looked like tourists. The conductor asked them for their tickets and he saw them, he tried to explain to them that the fare was insufficient. But the two Americans did not understand. What's wrong? What do we need to do? Do you speak English? The conductor began to get flustered, and resorted to speaking Japanese slower with clear pronunciation, as if this technique would somehow break the language barrier. Of course, the Americans continued to be lost, so I did my civic duty. I walked over and acted as interpretor. I explained the situation, the Americans forked over the money they owed, and the conductor, relieved, thanked me.

I just smiled, bowed my head a little and walked back to where I was standing next to the door. The elementary student was staring at me.

"Wow, your English is really good," he said in awe.

I look down to him and smiled.

"Well, I studied hard. If you study hard, you can do it, too."

He nodded earnestly, and then we resumed gazing at the towns passing by the window. Today, he would be around 30. I wonder if he ever became a Japanese who could speak English?

Wow
I read this and thought it was written by me. Then I got to the end and realised it wasn't. But amazingly similar experiences as me. Thanks for sharing this.
» bzhuo373 on 2006-12-30 10:33:17

Sorry, you do not have permission to comment.

If you are a member, try logging in again or accessing this page here.