Dinner with the O family

Tonight I had dinner with one of my recent graduates & her family. She has 2 older sisters, an adorable 84-year-old grandfather (Grandma couldn't make it due to a cold), fantastic parents, 2 cute dogs (Smiley & Hana), and a fun boyfriend (also one of my students).Before going to their house, we girls stopped at purikura--a photo booth that is so Japanese--you cram into a small booth, choose backgrounds & poses, then decorate them with words, hearts, stars, & all sorts of funny additions.

We ate oden (the dad's own recipe),

a really tasty rice dish I can't remember the name of, miso soup, Pizza-la pizza (with mayonnaise & seaweed of course!),

and chocolate cake, with a candle & cookie-card bought specially for me that read: "We love Sharh" ;)

We also played Bingo (with prizes!) & just hung out for hours. I looked at the older girls' "coming of age" photos (in January every year there's a national holiday celebrating everyone who turns 20 that year). We talked about culture, music, language, food, travels...so many things...in a fun mixture of Japanese & English. The evening passed quickly & I didn't leave until nearly 11pm!

They invited me back -- sometime when Grandma is feeling better since she's a kimono expert & wants to dress me up -- and sent me home with leftover rice & repeated kiwotsukete (take care).

Tonight was one of those times I felt really comfortable in this foreign land. I felt like I was just chillin' with my family, with my sisters, with my good friends. I didn't feel like a foreigner, I felt like a regular guest, one who maybe has different color skin & whose mother language is English, but the focus wasn't on our differences of being American & Japanese, but on our similarities as people. And that was refreshing!!

Thanks Otsuka family!