Doing New Things, Developing One's self

Posted on June 28, 2007 by Nene

Since I arrived in Japan, I tried to think of things that I could do to make myself busy and forget about my homesickness. At first, I requested my husband to order an instructional book for making beads accessories. When the book, DeAgustini, was delivered I realized the instructions were written in Japanese so what I did was to follow the photo instructions instead. I have made beads from simple to a little bit complicated designs. Sometimes, I study Nihongo lessons from Minna No Nihongo book and attend Nihongo class twice a week. I browse the internet once a day to look for a job postings and news from my country. I also use the internet to keep in touch with my family, relatives, friends and co-workers in the Philippines through Yahoo e-mail, Yahoo messenger and Skype. What I really love to do during my free time is drawing/sketching and charcoal painting.

One day, while I was reading the announcements on the bulletin board at the school I am attending, I happened to read about a Chinese Ink Painting class held in the same building were I am attending Nihongo class. Because I am interested in learning it, I grabbed the opportunity and asked my teacher how I could join the class. The next day, I attended the class and I realized my classmates were all in old age, about the same age as my parents, who were just spending their time for leisure just as all retired people do. However, I did not give up on my intension to learn the art of Chinese Ink Painting. The teacher told me that I could learn to paint bamboo, orchid, chrysanthemum, and plum as basic lessons. My classmates were very kind to me. Despite the age gap, I managed to relate to them. I have already painted bamboos by tints of black ink and stroke of brush. In fact, I have showed my two paintings to the public at the exhibit held last May. Now, I am learning to paint orchids and preparing for the next exhibit which will be held on October.

English in the Philippines is always used in any field such as medicine, business, education, etc. The method of teaching is almost in English from preschool to university. That is why I became confident to teach English in Japan as my new career. Because only native English speakers are accepted in teaching the language, I didn’t succeed to be part of any English schools. However, I have been contacted by students for private lessons when I signed up to www.gaijinpot.com. Aside from the joy of teaching, I am also gaining friendship from my students.

Life,indeed, has many things to offer. Take advantage of every good thing that life is offering because life is too short. When you have the chance to learn new things, don't hesitate to grab it. There are always new things that will make us grow in mind and spirit.