Here is Chapter 4! WOOHOO!!! In this video we meet the elderly woman but still don't learn her name ahhhh!!!! (I know what it is and could change the story so that you learn it now but I think there might be a better and possibly more entertaining way of doing that! ;D)

Chapter 4

Now knowing that a bath was out of the question for tonight I decided to look around a bit. As I was walking through one of the hallways I noticed a sign on the door of room 18. It said: CULTURAL ROOM LESSONS: 7-10:30

Lessons, huh? Sounded kind of interesting. I walked through the door and was greeted by the elderly woman from before.

“Nancy-san. Please, sit.” She said.

Naturally I went over and sat across from her. In between us, there was a table with some paper, brushes, and ink.

“It is a pleasure to meet you properly. I am sorry for the way I behaved when you first arrived. It was very impolite. Please, forgive me,” She apologized.

“Of course, don’t worry,” I said, “It’s nice to meet you as well.”

“That is very kind of you to say. But, I must always worry about the guests who stay with us. Especially now.”

“What do you mean, especially now?” I wondered.

“Are you here for a lesson today?” she asked, changing the subject.

A lesson sounded nice, “yes,” I replied.

“Today you will be learning katakana. To the outsider, katakana always looks far more difficult to learn than it is. You just need to be patient, and you need to learn to see more than you are used to seeing. There is a book to help in the chest. Practice until it looks like your name, Nancy – not just some lines,” She told me.

“What do you mean?” I asked, completely confused.

“Although there are many Nancys in the world, your name belongs to only you. It has always been yours. You must try until what you see on the paper is not just a word, it is you,” she explained.

I looked at the piece of paper in front of me and she had already drawn some outlines on it. That was good because I was still kinda confused… In the end it did not look as good as it should have but I was pleased.

“Very well done, Nancy. This is the best I have seen from a new student. I knew you could do this well. Leave this to dry, and I’ll have it brought to your room to remind you of your success,” She said, sounding very pleased.

Well, since the lesson was over, I thought it was time to ask a few questions.

“Have you always offered classes?” I asked.

“No. It is new. We have developed a… reputation. And for many years I’ve wanted to teach our guests,”

“Have you always lived at the ryokan?”

“Since I was born.”

“Have you ever left?”

“I have. But I never found anywhere I wanted to be as much as here.”

“I’ll let you go,” I said, not being able to think of anything else to ask her.

“Come again.” She told me.

I left planning on next exploring the gardens.

Oh btw! (This is Sarah, not Nancy) My favorite symbol is SHI cuz it looks like a smiley face! haha! =D