Reuniting Across Time: Asuka’s Path and a Family from Mongolia
There’s no greater joy than having former students remember me and come to visit me. Asuka is one such student who holds a special place in my heart. I taught her English in both her first year of junior high and her final year of high school. I also had the privilege of taking her on a homestay trip to Seattle during her summer break in the third year of junior high. I recall her host family being vegetarian, which must have been quite a challenge for a meat-lover like her. Despite that, she now cherishes those memories of her time in Seattle. Twenty-eight years have passed since then.
Today, at the request of an acquaintance, Asuka brought a Mongolian family (currently residing in Australia) to experience the tea ceremony.
Uuganaa works as a mining engineer and moved with his family from Mongolia to Australia two years ago. He has a beautiful wife and two adorable daughters.
He and his wife are very affectionate towards each other, and it’s heartwarming to see them together. Whenever he’s talking to us, she always smiles and nods in agreement.
When I asked his eldest daughter, “What do you want to be when you grow up?”, she replied with a big smile, “I want to work at Disneyland! I love Disney!” However, when her father whispered, “Really?”, she answered truthfully, “A violinist.” She’s quite talented at the violin and I’m sure she’ll become a world-renowned violinist one day. I asked the same question to his second daughter. She eagerly raised her hand and said, “I want to be a doctor!” When they first came to Australia, the children couldn’t understand the language at all, but according to Uuganaa, they were able to converse without difficulty after only half a year. It’s amazing how quickly children can learn languages.
The tea ceremony experience seemed to fly by. I hope they gained a small glimpse into Japanese culture through it. I hear they’re off to the bamboo grove next. I hope they have a wonderful time in Japan. Both Naoko and I would love to visit Western Australia someday and see them again.
Asuka, you did a fantastic job as a tour guide!
I’m so proud of you!
See you soon!
Aki & Naoko
