ChanomiTalk

Today was my 6th lesson in Japanese. It was a bit more difficult today. We reviewed the last paragraph of my first story and practiced the beginning of my second story in Japanese. We practiced answering various questions verbally and in writing hiragana. We also learned how to count people and children. I learned that in Japan, a person is considered to be a child until the age of 19 years old. In the US, a person in considered a child until the age of 18 years old.

This past week, I spoke with a friend of mine who lives Okinawa, through Skype. At the end of the our question I said, “しつれいします”。She was very surprised and touched by what I said. It was fun to hear her response.

Today, April 27th, is a perfect example of Kona weather. The winds are actually not that strong but they are coming out of the South and at times the south west. If they were coming out of the south east it would be a little cooler. It is fairly humid and there is some vog in the air but not too bad. If the winds were blowing stronger it would be very rough on the south side of the island. Unfortunately this is what the weather will be like for most of the week. I hope everybody saw the beautiful full moon the last few nights!

My nieces are coming next month to visit us. I was hoping to do something special with them, something they don’t always get to do. At first I thought we should go camping, but the more I think about it, the more I would like to take them to see Philadelphia. That city has so much history. It is where the famous Liberty Bell is. Liberty Bell represents American Independence to many Americans. It hung in what is now called Independence Hall where the Declaration of Independence was signed. According to the VisitPhilly.com, the famous crack down the side of Liberty Bell occurred the first time the bell was rung.

ハワイだけに限ったことではないのですが、海外の習慣で素敵だなと思っているものがあります。
それは、カードを送り合う習慣です。

今年２月に結婚したときには、たくさんのカードをもらい、今月の誕生日にも大変綺麗なカードをいただきました。
とても嬉しかったので、それ以来、どこのお店に行っても、カードをチェックするようになりました。
ALOHA、MAHALOなどと書かれたハワイらしいものや、可愛いもの、面白いものまで、見ていて飽きません。

来月は母の日があるということで、ハワイでも至るところで母の日用のカードを目にすることができます。
スーパーにでさえ、そのための特別コーナーが大々的に設けられています。

今日この後、私と主人両方の母親へのカードを選びに行こうと思います。:)

今日、取り上げる四字熟語は、「意気投合」です。辞書には、「お互いに、深く気持ちが通じ合い、一体感を感じること、或いは、お互いの気持ちや考えなどが、ぴったりと合致して心を許し合うこと」と記されています。例えば、「今日、チェイさんとお会いして、色々、話しているうちに、意気投合しました」と言うように使います。

In Japan, there’s a concept called ikitougou. It refers to situations when two people are able to share the same feelings or thoughts. It would not typically be used in reference to close family members, because the assumption is that shared feelings and thoughts are typical in such relationships. On the other hand, one could probably use the word in any situation when the phrase “hit it off” would be appropriate in English.

Although the contexts in which “hit it off” and “ikitougou” can be used are the same, the feeling and meaning behind them is completely different. The English phrase implies that two people enjoyed being in each other’s presence, while the Japanese word implies that two people have been able to truly understand each other. Their level of amusement is irrelevant; in fact, although it would sound a little strange, “ikitougou” could actually be used when one person sympathizes with another.

This superficial similarity belying a fundamental difference is a phenomenon found quite often between Japanese and American cultures, in my view.





Flash back Card 1

On Wednesday, I had a missed call and a text from my brother. The text read, “Call me back as soon as possible.” Usually this means bad news. My brother often confides in me when things aren’t going well. So I called right away. When he answered I said, “What’s up!?” And he replied, “The reason I called is…well, remember why you never turn off your phone?” There are two reasons I never turn off my phone. Emergencies and for the day my brother would call to tell me his wife is pregnant. I was bouncing off the walls. I’m going to be an Uncle. 🙂

This past weekend we went camping with a bunch of friends at Kiholo on the Big Island. We had a lot of fun swimming, diving, fishing, & Stand-Up Paddle boarding. One morning, we caught something big and someone had to go check the line while I held on tight. Unfortunately, the line snapped before we were able to unhook whatever we had caught. The kids fished all day & night. We didn’t catch very much bu it was a beautiful weekend, one I will never forget.

Today was my fifth lesson through Skype. Today we reviewed question words and I practiced answering them with actual facts from my life. I had to practice not only speaking my answers out loud but typing my answers using Hiragana & Katakana. Typing is very different and requires a lot of concentration to sound out each syllable. We also practiced reviewing my self-portrait, numbers, months of the year, and hours 10 times each. I am learning to hear the rhythm of a sentence by learning to pause at the particles. I am increasing my speed and fluency. Mahalo Michiko, for your patience and encouragement.