10-12-06 Thursday "Lunch: You've Been Served"

10-12-06 Thursday "Lunch: You've Been Served"



A host student came and brought me to 1-1, first grade classroom one.



The first interesting observation is that the students served their classmates –YES- even the first graders. After everyone had food in front of them, a quick minimal word prayer was said indicated to me by everyone folding their hands, with a volunteer saying a few lines. After the blessing, the students began to do a curious thing, they went back to the front of the classroom and started putting the food that they had just served BACK into the serving pots.



I was confused at a moment, thinking maybe this wasn’t lunch, but rather a dress rehearsal as an exercise in serving food. Seemingly no one was eating, so I waited to see what would happen next.

Then, the first few students returned to their seats with smaller portions, reduced by reach student individually and on their own. The first grade elementary students were actually bringing back the excess portions that they felt they would not eat as not to be wasteful.



After the meal was consumed the students broke down their milk cartons for recycling, and prepared the lunch breakdown. Classmates worked together to get the cooking and serving utensils that they had utilized during lunch down the hall and into the kitchen storage facility room.



Signed a MILLION autographs and gave away all the mieshi (business cards) that I had brought with me. I wish I had brought more with me on this day as some sat back in my suitcase at the hotel. They loved my double-sided card with Japanese on one side and English on the other.



Treated like a superstar.

Osagi …Clean up time. The students went right to work. The dichotomy between American students and Japanese from my experience is not just a body of water. Japanese students took ownership and pride in their cleaning of their school, while American kids disgrace and deface the place that they learn.

I watched as the kids swept and scrubbed all the floors by hands, watered flowers, washed countertops, desks and windows and did everything that we pay custodians for in the states FOR FREE. The funny thing about it is that it is so ingrained in their culture that they all had smiles on their faces doing this work and seemed genuinely to be having fun doing it.




STUDENT WORKSHOPS
We moved into the music room next and gave a quick 5-10 minute explanation on the US educational program.



Next, students took over and gave us a taste of things in Arao Elementary School.





Our group of twenty teachers moved throughout the little workshops and participated in calligraphy, origami, how to set a Japanese meal place, how to use chopsticks, a day in the life of an Arao Elementary student and also math skills put to use.



On the way back to the hotel, we stopped at Yotsuyma Shrine on top of Yotsuyma Mountain, a very steep pitch for our bus to climb.



The area was beautiful with a full view off the mountain spanning four different prefectures. Many stone lanterns and various monuments laced the area.



Little did we know at the time, but the people at the last school called ahead and had the priest prepare a little talk for our group.





The Shitno priest informed us on how to correctly address the gods at a Shinto Shrine. He taught us that first you approach the shrine and bow twice 90 degrees. Next you clap your hands twice to awaken spirits and let them know you are there, hold your hands together and then you say your prayer. After this practice, you pull the rope and ring the bell twice.

The Shinto priest explained a lot of basic things about how most Japanese follow both Buddist and Shinto beliefs. Many Japanese homes have both Buddist and Shinto shrines. Buddism concentrates on saving the soul, while Shinto focuses on purification.

TEMPLES: Temple (Tera) are for Buddists, often a place for funeral ceremonies. Before entering, incense is burnt or often there is a smoke pit used for purification. You would find Buddist Monks at a temple.

SHRINES: Shrines (jinja) are for Shinto, often a place for weddings. Shinto believe in a doctrine that states “yaoyorozu no, kami.” In English this term means Countless amounts of gods. Yaoyorozu (countless) no (of) kami(god), 800 million gods reside in 800 objects. Priests for shrine.

It was a good time had by all. My camera stopped working due to a busy day taking its toll on a finally dead battery, so I enlisted Kip to take a couple shots for me up there.

One member of our group, Betsy, did not get on the bus and we didn’t notice her missing until we got to the bottom of the mountain. I sang Tom Jones sons in the bus mic while our guide rushed around outside, frantic looking for her up the stairs, another path down the mountain.

Betsy eventually made her way down via a car following us from the board of education.

As Betsy entered, I said in the mic in a deep and ominous voice, “Betsy – this is God. Stay with your group next time Betsy.”