Second Semester

This afternoon I started my second semester as a part-time university instructor. I have a brand new batch of fresh-faced, affable students from all over Japan. One came from Okinawa! One boy graduated from the high school where my husband teaches and had him as P.E. teacher. Small world, eh? This boy aspires to be a kindergarten teacher, which is cool. It must take a certain amount of individuality for a guy to pursue a career as a kindergarten teacher in this country. As elsewhere, it's stereotypically a woman's job, and I suspect that some parents in my home country would be uncomfortable having grown men around their small children. There was actually a male kindergarten teacher at my son's preschool. He was very popular with the kids and with certain parents who figured a man could control their wild children better than a woman. In my class, I also have some male students majoring in home economics. I bet they'll make good husbands.