Reflections on culture

I'm still working on updating more often! Sorry about that! I just wanted to address some things I noticed about Japan that I like and some things that I don't. First off, I think it's great that people here have a great amount of patience (which is great for me because I'm pretty slow). They are also kind (at least they appear that way) and show a lot of respect towards others. However, they tend to be a little too focused on order and have views on honor that seem a little scary being a Westerner. For example, the service is great wherever you go, but they are unwilling to adjust to changes that happen which are contrary to protocols.

The way companies work are quite different from what I'm used to because they are very formal. Whenever someone needs to tell you something, it goes through all the positions of the company. You can't just give a form to someone to give to someone else. You have to give it to that person, and if you don't they will tell you to. Even if they are sitting right next to that person in the office. Also, say something happened to a English teacher's family overseas (like a family death). The director will ask staff personnel to personally ask the teacher leaving to stay for the duration of the contract. In other words, it is more honorable to work than grieve the death of a family member.

I have also noticed parents acting what we would call brutal to their children. Smacking them on the head and yelling at them is common. Unfortunately, this extends to parents correcting their children for not being able to learn a new language as quickly as they would wish. It is pretty disturbing to me, and hard to accept.

I don't mean to complain or make it sound like I am. I only mean to address a different culture and how it made me think about my own. Living here and seeing what I've seen made me think about what I like and dislike about mine. Thus, it makes my stay here seem more valuable.