#2

In Japan they REALLY overreact. I sprained my ankle, so I was sent to the hospital. I was trapped in the hospital for a week, while my ankle healed. Even after the week was up, I had to use crutches to get around inside. However, it was wonderful to be out of that place.

Once a year, the school holds Trash Day. The classes end early, and the students go outside and gather waste that they find on the ground-kind of like a typical Earth Day activity in America. I managed to join the students and teach them the game of I Spy, which they had to name the item they "spied" in English.

I experienced a Japanese New Year and it was really interesting! I joined Mr. C for this year's celebration. First, we went to Mr. C's shrine, a scarlet niche decorated with smooth stalks of bamboo, clipped pine branches, and threads of white rice paper. Mr. C told me to put a coin into the trough and pull the bell to summon the god of the shrine. Then we prayed as a priest shook paper on our heads and a barefoot girl in a silk dress danced silently. After, we drank liquor with Japanese gold flakes in it.

After more prayers and festivities, we went to see the first sunrise, described as the sun goddess. While we waited (it was still dark) we toasted mochi: special balls of rice reserved for the new year.

After struggling to digest the mochi, we discussed what we wished to dream about, because what we dreamed decided our fate for the coming year. A man told me while a snake was bad luck, a fish without scales was even worse. But the absolute best dream was to see Mount Fuji. However, Japanese don't tell others what they see in their dreams.

We awoke to the cry of someone saying, "The sun! The sun!" We scrambled to climb to the mountaintop to witness the first rays coming out from the clouds. We all shouted, "Banzai!" meaning 10,000 years.