A Written Goodbye
When I woke up on Tuesday, my body felt heavy, and I just wanted to roll over and go back to sleep. Instead, I dragged myself out of bed, and headed to work. Despite what I expected, today would be my last day at one of my schools.
As the new school year draws closer, we received an email updating us about our placement information. Last year, I learned I would be moving from visiting 4 schools each week to just 2. It was sudden, and I felt bad that my last day at one school I didn’t even know had been my last, robbing me of the chance to say goodbye, but I think it was a change for the better.
I had expected that my new school year would be the same as my old one, being at two schools seemed pretty common for the JET programme. I should have known better, because nothing ever quite goes as expected.
Despite the email stating there had been no changes to placements, when I opened the attachment, I saw my name listed under my base school for 5 days a week. I tried to double check I was reading it correctly, checked the name listed for my visit school, and fired off an email to the coordinator. They confirmed that I would indeed be at my main school 5 days a week.
I’d always looked forward to going to my visit school, enjoying the atmosphere and the energy of the students. I got cheerful greetings in the halls, students seemed excited when I showed up for team teaching lessons, it was often very fun. The other teachers seemed to appreciate when we had classes scheduled, and it made me feel useful.
Honestly, it made me feel like a teacher. It gave me the feeling of why I wanted to become an English teacher in the first place. Each week it would lift my spirits, no matter what my mood was when I started the day.
My last two days there felt bittersweet, despite being lots of fun. On my second last day, I got to join an indoor beach volleyball tournament with the first year students. It was a modified beach volleyball, with each person a team of four having to touch the ball before hitting it over the net.
Somehow, the team I was on managed to win 3 out of 4 games, though I’m not quite sure we played correctly. It was just for fun, and no one seemed to be taking the games too seriously, so I figured it was fine. I somehow ripped my shirt at some point during the games, but I felt like it was worth it.
On my last day I mostly played games with each of the classes. When I mentioned it was my last day at that school before starting the game, some of the students seemed genuinely sad I was leaving. It both made me happy that they cared, and sad that I was leaving.
My classes were all in the morning, so it felt slightly anti-climactic that after I finished my last class teaching, I still had to spend a few hours at my desk. Near the end of the day, the other English teachers gathered around my desk, and gave me a present as a little send off.
It was a lovely gift, though slightly embarrassing to have them all standing around watching me open a present that felt like it took an eternity to open. It was a sweet gesture, and it really had been a pleasure working with them this past year.
Along with the gift, I also got a series of notes written by some of my students. This is when I really started to get choked up. Hearing from the students that they enjoyed my classes, that I was helpful in their studies, and that they would miss me really got to me.
I felt myself get misty eyed as I read them share their memories of the classes we had together. A lot of them mentioned my thanksgiving lesson, where I had everyone draw hand turkeys as a particular favorite, a few of the students even drew them on their notes. I remember that day being a lot of fun, and I’m glad they felt the same.
For the rest of my time here in Japan, I’ll be spending each day at just one school. I’ve been feeling a bit pessimistic about that, feeling like the students are more indifferent to my lessons. Though I hope I’ll be able to take my experiences from my other school, and redouble my efforts to make my lessons engaging and welcoming for students.
Some days I really do enjoy this job, and could see myself doing something similar even when I return to Canada. There’s a lot to like about teaching, and despite the fact that I was saying goodbye, it also served as a reminder that what I do can have a positive impact.
I’ll really miss working with the other teachers and students at that school, but I’ve still got a few months of teaching left, and I still plan on making the most of it. I hope that I’ll be able to teach a little more often now that I’m at just one school 5 days a week, but even if my schedule remains the same, I’ll just have to try my best when I get the chance.
It was definitely tough to say goodbye, and when I first got the news I spent the first few days moping about it. I’ll probably still mope about it from time to time, but my energy is much better spent focusing on how I can make the most of each day instead.
Goodbyes are always difficult, especially in the moment. So having this as a sort of written goodbye feels like a good chance to express just how much joy my time spent at that school brought me, and how happy I was to hear students tell me that I was able to do the same for them.
I’ll treasure the memories that I made at that school, and I hope the next English teacher is able to enjoy their time there just as much as I did. If nothing else, I hope the students always remember that if you need to draw a turkey, you can always just trace your hand.
