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Colder than water

by J. C. Greenway
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The Teas That Bind
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A short extract of a post that features in my book about the Great East Japan Earthquake, The Teas That Bind:

I arrived in Japan with so little experience of teaching children that I sometimes wonder if they can tell that I am learning almost as much in class as they are. Many of my students are 11 and 12 years old and, while it may be a clich̩, I have found them to be by turns funny, rude, cheeky and occasionally aggravating. They are never dull. Full of curiosity, each with their own obsessions Рfrom collecting animation cards to drawing comics, as well as the ubiquitous baseball and football Рit is mostly a pleasure to be around them.

In recent weeks, our experience of aftershocks in class has made me realise how well they are coping with everything. It must be especially difficult to be in that ‘tween’ age group, expected to be a little bit braver than younger siblings, but still enough of a kid to worry about the concern shown on the faces of previously dependable parents and teachers. If they are, they seem to be containing it well. The games are just as boisterous, the groans for homework still loud and the laughter at sensei when she does some clowning around remains genuine enough to be one of the perks of my day.

To read more of this post, please download a copy of The Teas That Bind, the story of my experiences in Japan after the Great East Japan Earthquake of 2011, available now from Amazon and Lulu.


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