「Volunteering」カテゴリーアーカイブ

James Hildebrand: Smiling Tomato

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My CIP work with にこにこトマト has been extremely rewarding.  I’ve volunteered at a hospital back home, but my work at Kyoto University Hospital has given much greater opportunity to interact one-on-one with young patients.  Everyone involved in the program – a group largely composed of older Kyoto women – is remarkably devoted, spending multiple hours every week preparing and putting on any number of activities.

I’ve noticed that the overall environment is warm and relaxed without sacrificing productivity.  Everyone busily chats about their family, hobbies, and hometowns as they work diligently on things for the next week.  Recently we’ve been working on decorations for the New Year, but in the past we’ve made Halloween treat bags and Christmas-themed treats.

Still, I found myself wondering why these women, who could be doing any number of things with their time, continue to devote themselves so unfalteringly to the program.  As I spoke with them formally for class, listened to their usual conversations, and did research into the program’s history, it became clear to me that the reason many of these women continue to volunteer stems from desire to help the suffering families of the hospitalized children.

In fact, many of these women’s own children were at one time hospitalized at Kyoto University Hospital.  Because of this, I think they are intimately familiar with the pain and worry that a family with a sick child suffers.  Rather than move away from their own painful memories from the hospital, the women return every week to help total strangers.  In a newspaper article I found about the group, the author reprinted a letter sent to にこトマ by a parent whose young daughter had passed away during her hospitalization.  Though she suffered terribly, にこトマwas able to give her a little bit of fun and happiness.  For that, the family expressed deep gratitude.  Seeing those words, I felt like all the afternoons I raced from class on my bike to make it to the hospital on time were totally worth it.

Above all, what I’ve enjoyed most about my time with にこトマ is the fact that nothing marks it as exclusively “Japanese”.  I think many of us have grown up with American films and television shows that, while not necessarily belittling Japan, offer a largely static image of this country.

What I mean is, that when I talk to friends back home about my time here, they often rely on their knowledge of characters like Mister Miyagi from The Character Kid as a crutch in trying to understand Japanese culture.  I would be lying if growing up with these kinds of images hadn’t quietly influenced my own assumptions about what “community involvement” here would look like as well.

In a certain way, I think I allowed these American images of stoic, polite, and ultimately traditionalist characters color what I expected of the people I’d be volunteering alongside.  Given my limited experience with Japan prior to coming to Kyoto, I might have expected terms like 和, 甘え, or 建前 somehow made their way into my day to day volunteer conversations.  After all, cultural products like The Karate Kid teach us that Japanese people, in their alien cultural sagacity, only speak to foreigners in metaphor: the cherry blossom is a human life, a sweet karate kick is a crescent moon.

Of course, these stereotypes didn’t hold true.  The people I met through にこトマ weren’t interested in talking about tea ceremony or how to show your true heart through origiami.  Rather, through volunteering at Kyoto University Hospital I came to realize something that was ultimately far more comforting than one of Mr. Miyagi’s sermons.  That is, it doesn’t matter where you go – five minutes away from Amherst or halfway around the globe – good people are good people.  Despite all of our cultural differences, language difficulties, and painful histories, we can still connect through our basic human desire to help others, to realize our good will through action together.  The extremely foreign becomes remarkably accessible when you realize that in the end, we are all human.

 

Kensai Hughes: Kyodai Ultimate Frisbee Circle Breeze & Klexon-Kyoto Language Exchange Salon

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Before I joined the Kyoto University Frisbee Circle Breeze my friend Tomo warned me that many of the team members would want to practice their English with me, and it might hinder my learning of Japanese. This was not the case at all. The most articulate English-speaker on the team was barely able to manage a, “Can you speak Japanese?” Through our Japanese conversations I discovered what I believe to be the root of this problem, namely that speaking English is not particularly emphasized in the classroom setting. This reminded me of how many American students may study Spanish for years but might only be able to ask, “Where is the library?” Just because language education may be compulsory does not necessarily guarantee results.

Joining Breeze taught me how hard it can be to change from an ‘outsider’ to an ‘insider’ within a group as tightly knit as a sports team. Although it was initially easy enough to join the circle for practices and many of the team members were welcoming and quite friendly, I felt that in the short span of one semester I would not be able to really become a member of that group. The practice schedule of 3 sessions per week with at least four hours at each session quickly became too much to handle along with a full course load. But beyond that, there were also instances when the captain of Breeze informed me that certain drills were for “members only,” and I was made to spend that time on the side throwing with the trainer and members of the women’s team. Perhaps if I were here for a whole year instead of just one semester I would have been able to become a real member of the team, not just some gaijin that the captain felt he was babysitting and would rather not have around.

After leaving the Frisbee circle I began my CIP anew at Klexon, or the Kyoto Language Exchange Salon. As a language exchange circle people of all nationalities are encouraged to join, though the focus is mainly on improving the English speaking skills of Japanese people. Because most of the members are Japanese it has been and continues to be a great opportunity to practice my Japanese conversational skills while allowing me the satisfaction of helping those who really want to learn English to do so. Though in some cases, letting certain people know I could speak Japanese made them abandon their effort to speak English and stick to the comfort of their native language. Through this group I learned that despite the fact that Japan’s English education system seems to me to be severely flawed, with the desire to learn and a strong individual effort this obstacle can be overcome.

At Klexon it has been much easier to make close friends that I could spend time with outside of the usual meetings. Because the English ability of most of the Klexon members is higher than that of Breeze we are able to converse using both Japanese and English and communication is significantly easier. The Klexon members also seem infinitely more interested in foreign cultures and people and are invariably more welcoming and friendly. I suppose this difference can be attributed to the different initial goals of each group: Breeze’s being to play frisbee and Klexon’s as a language and culture exchange circle. Though I have not seen or heard from any member’s of Breeze since I left, I have forged friendships at Klexon with people that I believe I will remain in contact with even after I return to America. And above all the sights and activities I did not have time to see or do during this short semester, the friends I’ve made in Kyoto are one of the reasons I will surely return to this wonderful city in the future.

Emily Harper: Bazaar Cafe

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For my CIP this semester I’ve been working at the Bazaar Café, a mere 5-minute walk from the Doshisha Campus. The cafe’s main goal is internationalism and the food they serve changes depending on the day and who is cooking. I often go on Saturdays where the main dish is Thai. My job mainly consists of working in the back of the restaurant with the rest of the staff, preparing meals for customers as the orders come in, bringing customers their food when it’s ready, making coffee and other beverages, and washing dishes. While not your typical CIP experience, working at the café has taught me many things including what it’s like to work in Japan, the importance of customer service, how to follow directions quickly and efficiently, and perhaps most importantly, understanding the “rhythm” of the kitchen well enough to make it run smoothly. There was no more satisfying feeling than finishing a lunch service where every order has gone from the kitchen to the customer swiftly and without a hitch (although this is often rarely the case).

Having worked in food service before, I started my CIP with the expectation that the experience would be similar to back at home. What I’ve realized is that working in a kitchen in Japan can be seen as a microcosm of the country itself. It’s amazing how from only working in a café once a week for three months I’ve learned most of the stock phrases of the formal language that anyone working a part-time job in Japan must use. I’ve learned how to cook some traditional Japanese as well as Thai dishes (all of which we volunteers get for free. Definitely a perk!). I’ve learned that especially when it comes to food, aesthetics as just as important as the taste itself.

The people who work at Bazaar Café have so much pride in what they’re doing, and that feeling is contagious. Food and drink are truly cross-cultural. And by the end of a service, no matter what language we speak (English, Brazilian, Thai, Japanese) after all the stress and group work, mix ups in the kitchen and good food, we all seem to understand each other that much more for having gotten through it together.

Ha Min Kim: English Volunteer

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Volunteering for helping with English education at Kamigyo Middle School has been good. This volunteer position requires me to help two pupils who are preparing for the English speaking contest. Mostly, my task is to correct them on pronunciations and evaluate the way they give their speech. I decided to give this volunteer a try, because I wanted to place myself in a position where I get to see non-native speakers of English working hard to polish their English. From this experience, it is clear how difficult English language is for the Japanese students. When a student struggles to pronounce the simple word such as “born,” it reminds me how I struggle with using simple words in Japanese. In the same sense, KCJS students also find learning Japanese difficult as well. Foreign language study is a huge challenge that a student takes, and ever since I started learning my first foreign language, I always wondered how to successfully learn a language.

One thing I have learned from the CIP experience is that speaking in foreign language is an uncomfortable task that is usually not approached through the students’ interest. Mimicry is my hobby; thus by doing so, I try to keep my foreign language study to be as amusing as possible. However, I feel that the students I am in charge of at the Kamigyo Middle School practice their speech for the mere speech contest. One of my students said that he does not like one of his stories he has to recite by memory. I feel that foreign language must be accompanied with the students’ interest that serves as the incentive for the study of that language.

 

Denton Williams: Assistant English Teacher

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Before I came to Japan, I knew that I wanted to teach English for my CIP activity.  When I finally arrived in Japan and started the CIP process, I encountered no difficulty in deciding where I was going to teach; everything was easier than I could have hoped for and KCJS already had well-established connections with schools.  I started to hit a few bumps in the e-mailing stage, but only with respect to waiting for responses.  So, after practicing my written 敬語 for the first time in Japan, I finally started my dream CIP of teaching at Kaisei Middle School (開晴中学), located near Kiyomizu-dera.

As I explained in my first, Japanese blog post, teaching on my first day at Kaisei did not start out so smoothly.  The seventh graders, contrary to my ideal expectations of Japanese middle school students, were incredibly raucous and disrespectful to their teacher.  Throughout the entire fifty minutes some of the students did not stop talking, and others were running around the classroom or sleeping.  To my greatest surprise, however, was that the teacher did absolutely nothing about the chaos.  I stood in the crowded classroom, jaw-dropped, and waited for her to explode in a disciplinary rage at any second.  I myself considered telling one or two boys to sit down and be quiet, but before I knew it the clock struck 3:20pm and the students were free.  When I returned home after my first day, I thought to myself, Do I really want to teach here?  Can I actually make a difference in this kind of hopeless environment?  Luckily, I decided to do my best and be patient, and I am extremely glad to write that I am thankful I hung in there.

As the weeks of my study abroad experience passed by and I commuted every Monday to Kaisei Middle School, the classroom setting seemed less and less harsh.  I acquired a second class to teach as well, meaning I could practice my week’s teaching with better-behaved eighth graders before facing the rowdy pupils of room 7-2.  So, each week I asked individuals questions in English, helped answer students’ questions about worksheets etc, and tried extremely hard to encourage students to participate.  Eventually I started practicing my Japanese as well by trying to better explain things to students who were not as skilled at English.  Meanwhile, little by little I was becoming more familiarized with who the students were and the dynamic of their relationship with the teachers.

This leads me to what I gained the most from my CIP.  Contrary to my original dream back in the United States, I did not learn how to fluently speak Japanese and teach angelic, diligent middle schoolers how to speak English.  What I did learn, which falls in line with my personal theme of studying abroad with KCJS, is that there is way more than meets the eye during first encounters.  The Japanese students were incredibly unruly the first time I met them, and they proved to change very little week after week.  However, every time I spoke 「英語アシスタントでございます」through the gate’s doorbell and stepped foot into my slippers at Kaisei Middle School, I was about to witness the students surprise me in some way.  I started to see that some of the most misbehaved students were actually the ones who were participating the most, albeit in decibels higher than what is safe for human ears.  Furthermore, I saw that many of the students truly cared about learning English, and even more so about learning in general.  They were excited to start class with personal questions for me in English, and they always asked their teachers to chat with me in English so they could observe.  I quickly came to realize that I misjudged my students on week one, but I was happy that this was so.

The CIP component of KCJS may seem like another task on a checklist of “things to do,” but it actually was a crucial part in making the theme of my time abroad become whole.  Teaching English at Kaisei Middle School helped me learn even more not to judge people based on first impressions, stereotypes, and preconceived notions.  It taught me that everyone needs an extra chance or dose of attention in order to see his or her true personality and potential.  Upon realizing this, I was able to conclude that while Japan’s culture and language are very different from that of the U.S. in many ways, the people of each country are at the core very much the same.  I truly hope that I was able to teach many students at Kaisei Middle School, or maybe even just one or two.  However, I can say with conviction that I entered the building as “Denton-sensei” determined to teach English, but I will be flying back to America as a student who was taught the universal language of life.

Romana Perez: Niconico Tomato

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For the past few months I have been volunteering at Niconico Tomato, which is a program that tries to bring smiles to the children at Kyoto University Hospital. We do things like prepare events, organize parties, make gifts, and generally have fun.

For Halloween, and now for Christmas, we make cards for the children. I really enjoy trying my best as I make the cards, since I know the child who receives it will appreciate it. I also enjoy the creativity the volunteers put into making the designs. For the Halloween cards, we embroidered a spider web into the card, attached a ghost, and created a foggy spooky background. I think they look really cool. The Christmas cards are going to be just as well thought out.

I’ve also enjoyed talking with the other volunteers. We tend to talk about the differences of American and Japanese culture. Everyone in the program is extremely nice and it’s easy to talk with them as I work. Interacting with the kids is also rewarding. Even though the children are sick, they still have so much energy and are able to have fun. I find it amazing that the little activities we create for them, like collecting a sticker every day they visit the playroom, keeps their spirits up. I really do believe we are doing a good thing at Niconico Tomato.

James Mellody: Klexon English Language Cirlce

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My time volunteering at Klexon English Circle has been a culturally enlightening and entertaining experience.  Through the circle, I have come to meet a lot of interesting Japanese people, mostly students from various universities in Kyoto.  The actual CIP itself consists of speaking in English for two hours each Tuesday with various Japanese people in the circle.  For the first hour, I talk with several people one on one for about 10 minutes each.  For the second hour everyone breaks up into small groups and talks about various topics.  This allows for a more natural conversation to develop.  After the two hours are over, Klexon members often go out in a more natural social setting.  This is where I really get to talk to the members and get to know them.  At Klexon we speak all in English, but when we went out we spoke in a mix of Japanese and English, the goal being to use whichever language best facilitates communication.  To me, learning a language in a classroom setting can often feel forced, but actually using language in a real setting was exhilarating.  More than practicing language, we were trying to have real conversations.  I also noticed that the atmosphere became much more casual and people became more open and willing to talk.

I also went to two parties held by Klexon.  At first I was unsure of how to initiate conversation – whether it should be in English or in Japanese.  After a little while, however, people began to engage me in conversation.  While they spoke to me in English at first, people started to speak to me in Japanese as they became more comfortable.  The structure of the language they used matched the informal setting of the party.  They used more informal speech patterns, which immediately helped to make the environment friendlier.  In this casual environment, I managed to make some friends that I have since seen outside of the circle.

When first talking to a Japanese person, I would informally introduce myself.  We would then proceed to talk about very basic personal information.  This type of introductory conversation is very similar to that used in America.  I did not, nor did the Japanese people around me engage in the formal introductions common in many situations in Japan.  The more informal setting of the party eliminated the need for such formality.

These parties had no music or dancing, but were instead dinner parties in which we sat, ate, and talked together.  Parties at my college in America are usually extremely loud and filled with people dancing rather than talking.  The Klexon party had a completely different atmosphere.  These parties were not just places to have fun; more importantly they were places to get to know each other.  This is different from many American college parties where the objective seems to be having fun, not necessarily getting to know new people.

I have found that it is hard to find opportunities to really sit and have a conversation with a Japanese person, so Klexon has been great in that regard.  Klexon allowed me to experience how Japanese people socialize.  It was also fascinating to see how Japanese people interact with a foreigner in a social setting.  Initially, most people were slightly shy when talking to me, but as we talked they opened up and became much more willing to initiate conversation.

Klexon has been a wonderful experience.  I have had the opportunity to meet and talk in depth with many Japanese people. I am extremely glad that I picked Klexon as my CIP, and I would recommend it to anyone in the future.

Anna Andriychuk: Bazaar Cafe

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Volunteering at the Bazaar Cafe has been a very rewarding experience for me. Even if this were not my CIP, I would enjoy going there to study or have coffee with friends. The atmosphere of the cafe, whether one is experiencing it as a customer, a volunteer, or both, is really what won me over. It is such a warm, friendly place that you cannot help but feel welcome. I’ve noticed a really strong sense of community, both among the staff, and with the customers as well. Week by week, I’ve come to recognize many regulars, some of whom even stop by Fridays or Saturdays as well. There appear to be genuine friendships between those customers and our barista/manager, who I always see sharing personal anecdotes and jokes. One regret of mine is not having put more effort into interacting with the customers, which is something I would highly recommend to future KCJS newcomers.

My conversations with the staff, on the other hand, have been both fun and a great learning opportunity. The staff are some of the nicest people that I’ve met in Japan, and so I never have to feel uneasy if I make mistakes on the job (embarrassed, yes). One thing that I’ve noticed is how some of the staff call the manager “Tsu-ki,” instead of a formal Tsukishita-san. That really shows, in my opinion, not only the warm and casual relationship among the staff, but the humility of the cafe’s owner.

The international character of the café is also a refreshing change of scenery. Although the staff on Thursdays when I work is mostly Japanese, those who work on Fridays and Saturdays hail from various parts of the world and the cuisine reflects that diversity. I’ve also had the opportunity to meet a number of interesting customers, including Doshisha students, professors, and tourists from various countries. Thursdays have become quite an interesting and unpredictable part of my weeks here in Kyoto.

Hadley Hauser: HUB

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This quarter I was an intern at HUB Kyoto.  HUB seemed like the perfect creative space for me to debut as a functioning member of Japanese society in a friendly, collaborative setting.  The HUB “Dojo” is a community center nestled not far from the Doshisha campus in a beautifully renovated Kyoto machiya-style building.  I was immediately smitten with its tatami rooms on the second floor and bamboo garden hidden away in the back.

My first move as an intern was attending “HUB Kitchen,” a monthly event that is open to all HUB members.  It is an informal buffet-style dinner and forum where people can bounce laughs and ideas off of each other.  While there, I was able to talk to a variety of Kyoto natives in Japanese and English, and it was amazing to hear stories of how people ended up in Kyoto or kept coming back.  I was able to meet the staff members of Kyoto Journal magazine.  After I expressed my interest in writing, we soon struck up a correspondence about how I could contribute to Kyoto Journal magazine as the focus of my HUB internship.

I started off preparing a summary of a Japanese documentary event that was held at HUB Kyoto.  My next project was to interview HUB Kyoto staff, and then translate the interview into whichever language it wasn’t conducted in.  I prepared my questions and looked forward to getting a personal glimpse of HUB Kyoto’s members and their unique interests. The logistics of this process proved to be quite a challenge.  The last few weeks have been an endless parade of me trying to track down people to interview.  HUB members are busy people!  I scheduled one interview two times, and on the third time when I was sure I would have success, my interviewee simply did not show up.  I really wanted to enjoy working for HUB, and if I were not juggling a schedule of KCJS courses and host family obligations, this would all seem less frustrating.

Though I am not satisfied with my output this quarter at HUB, I still think that it was a good experience for me.  While it has been a challenge coordinating with the individuals at HUB, these situations have provided me with the opportunity to sharpen my Japanese communication skills (phone calls, emails, one-on-one discussions) so that they are clear and effective.  I believe that this very basic correspondence practice will be valuable to me as I continue my Japanese studies.  I look forward to a change of pace next quarter and plan to pursue a traditional and perhaps more rewarding individual class, such as pottery or tea ceremony.

Zalika Corbett: Weightlifting, Klexon (Language Exchange)

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My CIP experience has a been a varied combination of people, venues, and activities.

After much searching, I finally came upon weightlifting. It was kind of a perfect fit, especially considering that I spent the first few weeks in Kyoto searching for some sort of sports-related CIP so that I could stay in shape. Weightlifting provided the perfect outlet to do this and, on top of that, the people there were incredible.

For instance, the first day I went, the main instructor asked me to perform a few basic excercises to check my form. This was not my first time weightlifting, but it was the first time that I had received instructions in such a detailed way. The instructor had video of professional female weightlifters doing the same exercise that I was and even drew diagrams on the board to explain exactly how to execue each lift. As a result, just a few hours into my first session, it became obvious that the main instructor and the student who taught with him were some of the the most knowledgeable trainers that I had ever met.

They were also some of the most patient. For instance, there was one excercise in particular in which I was disheartenly inconsistent. Sometimes I could execute the exercise reletively well, but on others it was as if I had never done the exercise before. Meanwhile, whoever was working with me gave me helpful, encouraging feedback.

Unfortunately, only a few weeks into weightlifting, I managed to injure myself in a way that prevented me from lifting for the rest of the sememster. As a result, I began to go to an international language exchange club, called Klexon. My first impression of the club was how organized it was. All of the English speakers were on one side of the tables, while the Japanese members were on the other. Then, every ten minutes, the Japanese members would rotate and start a conversation with another English speaker. The resulting process seem rather reminiscent of speed dating.

The second point I noticed was the variety of members. Initially, I thought that Klexon was mostly comprised of university students. However, I found that most of them were actually graduates with a wide variety of careers. During my time, there, I met doctors, salesmen, store owners, and that was just to start. In addition to the one-on-one session, we spent the last few minutes in small groups talking about set topics and then about whatever we so chose when there was a lull.

Overall, I think that both experiences, weightlifting and Klexon, were benefitial in their own way. I used Japanese more in the former, but there was not much in the way of conversation. Meanwhile, the latter was all about conversation, but the focus on English allowed for few opportunities to practice my Japanese until the final, group session. In the end, I am glad to have participated in both activities and, while I will miss weightliftng, I look forward to returning to Klexon to finish out the semester.