Host Family Number Three

I change families again tomorrow. One of the hardest things about this exchange is how transient everything is. Especially in Japan, where routine is the driving force of life, it's so easy to get used to everyday things and activities. Tomorrow, not just my family changes, but the style of pillow I use, the color and length of my chopsticks, my slippers, my shampoo, my route to school, the amount of space I'll have and where I'll keep everything. It's exciting, but a little bit of a heavy feeling to know I'll never see those people at the busstop again. Easy come easy go. It's silly to be sad about never seeing them. We've never spoken before. We usually come in the exact same order everyday. First is the short man with a big jacket and a briefcase. And then me, the foreigner wearing pants, and then the sullen-looking girl with hunched shoulders and a puppy-ish face. We've waited in the rain together. Doesn't that mean anything? For three months, we've impatiently tapped our watches and hid under jackets while we waited for the bus. What will they think when I'm not there on Monday? That I went on another trip to Hiroshima or Hokkaido? Or that I went home to my country? Or will they not think anything of it. If I got hit by a car and was on the news, would they worry about me? Would they say to their spouces, "Oh, I know that girl. She's the foreigner with the pants."

I'm not worried or anxious at all about this change, like I was a little last time. I'm excited, but not so much. Mostly, I'm just thinking about how in the world I'm going to be able to repack everything for my treck across the city. I think I've just about doubled my luggage. I'm not sure if I'm exaggerating or not - I'll tell you tomorrow after everything's packed.

So yeah, I'm become a master at adaptation. Not just to a whole new culture, but to anything. In just six months, I've successfully adopted the Japanese way of life, catered to two different family's set of rules, standards, pet peeves, and personalities, and you know, learned a language or two. It's a good feeling knowing that I'm going to change and it's going to be fine, but it's a little tolling knowing that tonight will be the last night I'll ever eat dinner made by my host mom and that tomorrow night I'll probably be tossing and turning in a new bed, with different color blankets and different rules as to how to fold them in the morning. I'm probably on the verge of learning a whole new set of vocabularly that my new host family will favor.

Guess I ought to go pack or write thank you cards or something. I'll get back to you as soon as I get internet figured out at my new house. Maybe right away.