Tiptoeing Away From Owada-Sensei...

After lunch time, we get about an hour for our lunch break. I like to use this time to bond with some of my students. Sometimes, I go outside and play volley ball, but it's too cold for that these days. So, I walk into random classrooms and play cards or talk to students. These days I try to spend more time with the sannensei (third year) students because they are graduating soon.

I am bad... I have my favorites... Class 3-5 and 3-2 are just too adorable. I have my favorite students in those classes. But I tried to be good one day, and walked into class 3-1. (I love them, too :P) The students were seated very quietly in their seats, and they were all studying. They weren't all seated facing front, but this was a very different kind of yasumi (break) that I was seeing. And then I saw Owada-sensei, the homeroom teacher sitting at his desk! (gasp) He is the PE teacher and he is also in charge of student discipline at Ichu. Everyone is scared of him, including me.

After I saw him in the middle of trying to engage in conversation with some students. I suddenly got scared, and whispered, "Sensei is here..." The students responded, "Hai...(yes)". And then I smiled an awkward smile and tiptoed out of class... Smiling and tiptoeing... Owada-sensei stared at me doing this.... tiptoeing out of his classroom...

And now, he has a sad face when I see him sometimes. He no longer says. "Ohayo---" and "Otsukare----" in his tough/scary Japanese ways... He seems sadder and... gentler(?!)...

Sumimasendeshita... Mata asobini ikimasune...