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
