Chapter 27: CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN

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CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN

At the end of October, Fumie held her monthly faculty meeting. There were fewer than fifteen faculty members altogether, most of them female, plus the administrative secretary to take the minutes of the meeting. Brad was not present. Why not? Cheating again?

The meeting was conducted completely in Japanese. After all, I was the only native speaker of English present. The others, I assumed, were teachers of subjects like social studies or science or some other subject required by the Ministry of Education for a junior college. I noticed the two females who ate in the faculty dining room with me, but always at separate tables and dead silence between all of us. I think they noticed me, too, because they kept glancing at me from time to time, particularly the one who brought her own sandwich with her.

Fumie began the meeting with, "Fellow faculty members, I would like to introduce the new English teacher who replaced Alex-sensei at the beginning of this semester. David-sensei, would you please stand and introduce yourself?" she asked, using the formal honorific term reserved for teachers, doctors, lawyers, etc. who deserved special respect.

I rose, bowed slightly and in Japanese, "I am David, and I now teach English here as the President has said. I have taught English to nonnative speakers for almost two years at a direct method school in Osaka. But that was at an English conversation school. This is the first time I have taught at the college level and I must say I'm beginning to greatly enjoy it. How couldn't I when there are so many young and bright students here? Ah, the girls that is. As for the boys . . . well, I'm beginning to tolerate them at least."

That brought some muted laughter from the female faculty members, especially from the female who always brought her sandwich.

"I'm glad to have this opportunity to meet you all and I sincerely hope that we will get to know each other better as time goes by. I would also be very grateful for any advice or assistance you can give me to help me become a better teacher at this college. Thank you very much for listening," and sat down to mild applause.

The meeting went on for more than hour. As it concerned matters that did not apply to me directly, I kept silent. But I was quite interested in the discussion. The problems, comments, complaints, etc. that were discussed were far more diverse and complex than those a mere conversation school had to deal with.

As the meeting ended and the teachers were leaving, the young woman who always brought her sandwich, approached me and in Japanese, "Hello, David. I'm Ruriko. We always seem to eat together at lunch period in the faculty dining room."

"Yes, but at separate tables and never talking with each other. I can understand why you're reluctant to invite me to your table because you don't know me. But why do you and that other woman sit at different tables and never talk to each other, too?"

Ruriko looked around her to make sure everyone else had left the room and no one could hear us. In a hushed voice, "That's Tomoko. She's very standoffish. And she's an associate professor who likes nothing more than to remind me that I'm merely a lecturer like you."

"I am? I didn't know that. I thought I was just a teacher."

"You're full time, aren't you?"

"Yes."

"Then you're a full time lecturer, not a teacher. Ask Fumie. She'll tell you."

"I definitely will. And now that we know each other, could we sit together at lunch? I feel kind of lonely eating by myself."

"Me too. That's what I wanted to ask you since you speak such good Japanese. I'm a Japanese History teacher. But my English is terrible."

And from then on I had a lunch companion. She really brightened up my day, particularly after my class periods with Brad, who was getting louder and louder and adding those 'oh you look lost' again. And I seemed to brighten up hers so far as I could tell. At first I thought she might be trying to come on to me since we were about the same age. But when she told me she had been married for more than a year, I stopped worrying and just enjoyed talking with someone who could keep me informed about the latest school gossip and life here in Japan being a married Japanese woman and still having her own career. And I could tell her about living in America and being a gaijin, living and teaching in Japan.

And in the corridors as I walked by other faculty members between classes, we began nodding greetings to each other. My God, I'm beginning to belong!

At my next meeting with Fumie, she confirmed that, yes, I was a lecturer, not just a teacher. "And if you stay with us long enough, you could be promoted to associate professor and finally to a full professor. So please, David, don't pull another Alex on me."

"With your students and the possibility of promotions? I'd be crazy to! But Fumie, I'm afraid I'm having problems with Brad again."

She frowned. "What's he doing now?"

"He's getting louder and louder with his choral responses, making me have to stop my classes again. And he's adding those 'oh you look lost' and 'you Japanese are so kind and helpful' and other phrases that you and I agreed were either irrelevant or misleading. And in the four classes I've been teaching in the classroom just in front of his, he's been having his students repeat exactly the same choral responses in each class period. Shouldn't he at least be giving his students different responses to drill each class?"

Fumie drummed her fingers on her desk in thought. Finally she tapped her fist on her desk. "That did it! I've even been getting complaints about his classes from his students. Something they never do. So, at the end of this semester, I'm going to let him go!"

My eyes widened. "But I didn't think you could fire a full time faculty member."

"He's not a full time faculty member. He's only a part time teacher even though he teaches as many classes."

"Is that why he wasn't present at the faculty meeting?"

She nodded. "He doesn't have a B.A. in any subject. So I couldn't hire him full time because I couldn't get him a teaching visa."

"So why did you bother hiring him as a part timer in the first place?"

"Because when Alex suddenly told me he was leaving with only three weeks notice, I panicked. Quitting as a full time faculty member with only three weeks notice is something else you don't do here in Japan, especially not in Kyoto. When Brad was the first to answer my ad in the 'Japan Times,' I was so desperate for a native speaker English teacher, I hired him against my better judgment."

"My God. Can you fire me just like that, too?"

"No, I can't. I first tried to hire you as a part timer, too, remember? That's so -- just in case -- I could fire you like Brad. But you insisted on a full time position. With your B.A. in English Literature and teaching experience, I decided to take a chance."

"And I'm really glad you did."

"So David, please don't pull another Alex on me."

I smiled big. "Don't worry about that. The more I teach here the more I'm really getting to like it! I might try to pull a Rachel on you, though. But for a much longer period of time."

The smile returned to Fumie's face. "That would be heavenly!"

The next day was Wednesday, my day off from the college, and John didn't need me to teach, either.

So it was back on my cub for that triangle drive just north of Kyoto city proper. As we drove up the winding road through the mountains, "It's good to be out of the city again, isn't it little buddy?"

Be-Beep!

We parked at our usual place overlooking the town of Shuzan where the two river valleys converge way down below us. "It sure is getting colder up here. I'm beginning to shiver already. My God, what's it going to be like when real winter hits? I'll bet it snows like hell up here. We sure won't be able to putt our way through all that snow."

Beeep!

Submitted: August 20, 2023

Romance romance japan gaijin travel-in-japan japan-1970s

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B Douglas Slack

Looks like David is settling in well at the school. For several months I worked at a Thai orphanage teaching English to boys between the ages of 10 and 13. I didn't get paid, but it was very satisfying. A big plus what it also helped me with my Thai language skills.

I've never been to Kyoto but I hear it's a wonderfully picturesque place.

Bill

Sun, September 24th, 2023 4:16pm

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David will be doing even better in the school in next few chapters.

Yes, parts of Kyoto are very picturesque. Other parts not so much. But their all better than Tokyo. I spent my first three years in Japan in Tokyo where I taught English and got married. But I haven't been back in years now. It's Sloburbia wherever you go. Too damn many people!

Ken

Sun, September 24th, 2023 6:33pm