For many years, Japan was an island secluded from the rest of the world. For three centuries, no foreigners were allowed to come to the island and it was almost as hard for Japanese people to leave their own country. It was only a century ago that Japan decided to open its borders to other nations. Today, the country has modernized itself in a western fashion by letting in infuences from North American and European cultures. However, Japan has never lost its strong traditions, and conservative values and has one of the strongest traditional cultures in the world. This is one of the main reasons why I became so interested in coming to live in Japan. I wanted to see how it would be like to live in a culture so different from my own. However, because of this, Japan has many advantages and disadvantages, for me and for many other foreigners.

Let me explain...

Japan can either open up your mind or shut it down. It has been hard for me to be on the same page of many of my Japanese friends because of their attitudes on the world and general social issues. I don't think they are non-interested, I just dont think that they have a slight idea about what goes on in the world around them or have a strong social stand-point. I have always been very interested in world's social problems, I'm always interested to know what i can do to make a difference either in my environment on a day to day basis or within myself. Japan is so extremly rooted in tradition, that the world around them hardly exists. The rest of the world is like a big blur that most of them has never seen or heard of. They cannot even compare their culture to another, because they have hardly ever been in contact with other nations. Therefore, how can they become involved on a global stage if they do not even ackowledge the rest of the world they live in? I am not making this up. My students have admitted this to me a few times. For example, have you ever noticed how the Japanese travel? They are always signed up in these ridiculous organized tours that travel through 5 major big cities in 3 days. They dont even get off the bus to take pictures, how can they grasp anything from another country or another culture in their whirlwind tours of the world? Even the education system avoids any classes about world cultures, social or political issues, and even art... because they are not considered important enough in the educational development of a child.

I know this must seem as though I am criticizing the japanese and their culture. Ive had many people telling me before I leave, that Japan has a culture that might be frustrating at times because it is so hard to understand and so different from my own. Their strong ties to their customs are in a way very admirable. But... there is just one thing... many of them are ignorant of the world they live in, of the atrocities that happen day by day in the country next door, of the Aids victims in Africa, or of the poverty situation in the world, or of the aftermath of war and so on. Its been said to me that younger generations are more aware of these situations, but do they do anything to solve these social realities or even educate others about them? Maybe my town is too small to really see if something is getting done, so I dont want to jump to conclusions right away. But I can assume that a country like Japan that has a strong economy and a seemingly stable society, can have an important impact on the rest of the world, if only they knew what the real matters were and how to fix them. Unfortunately, at this time their only international involvement is in the Iraq war and you can be sure that it will take a while before you hear about a Japanese missionary group in Africa helping Aids victims.

When I started working here, it didn't take me a long time to realize the closed-mindedness of my students. So right away I had the idea to not only teach them a foreign language, but to also incorporate interesting discussion topics and maybe slowly make them aware of social situations of the world they live in. Well my friends, I have tried and I have tested the waters and I think that maybe my efforts here were useless. I dont know if here, the saying "Ignorance is bliss" is a moto that many Japanese unconsciously live by, but I can confidently say that it will take more than one socially conscious foreign teacher to make them aware of what the world today is really like.

I am not saying that all Japanese are oblivious, in fact just their strong interest in acquiring a new foreign language is a big step in the scheme of things. Learning a new language opens many doors to different cultures and different attitudes from around the world. Especially, if the language is English, the most commonly spoken language in the world, you can be sure that they will be in contact with people and ways of thinking that they never faced before. Other people believe that the Japanese only learn English because their company asks them to or that they see learning another language like some sort of hobby, like knitting!

I also made friends with many Japanese people who agree that their society is closed up from the rest of the world. A few of my Japanese friends are frustrated that since in Japan it is wrong to show emotions, public displays of affection or to debate or have strong opinions, they are forced to do the same even if they feel differently.

With that being said, I guess I should take one step at a time: introduce them to a new language first and then maybe slowly take them into the harsh reality of our world.

I am writing this entry because today at school I received a phone call from a student that told me that the topics I bring up in class are too difficult for them to discuss. I assumed that since it was a class of women students it would be easier for me to bring up interesting topics about Japanese culture with a twist of Women issues; like divorce or even fashion. It really seemed as though they enjoyed my class and that they were interested in my topics. I always ended this class with a good feeling; with the thought that maybe this time I got through them. Their English is not perfect, but I am certain that they are well aware of what goes on in class. There is nothing too complicated in my lessons, but I do like to put in a little social reality twist to all of my discussions, and I guess they are just not ready for that yet. But listen to this: they would prefer talking about food and colours! Colours? Is it even possible to talk about colours for a whole hour? "what about you? what is the colour of your bathroom mats?" give me a break...

I hate the idea of having to dumb down my lessons because they don't want to discuss worthy topics, but it is true that my purpose here is not to change the world, but to teach a language, and hopefully that will lead to something positive.