By Haruka Takeda, Contributing writer
Firstly, I would like to say thank you to all of the members of the Susquehanna University community. We, Senshu students, all twelve of us who joined the 2018 Spring Senshu Program, could enjoy learning many things thanks to you.
Staying here for forty days, I could learn not only about differences of cultures, but also about the history of America, about current social problems and many other things. I feel that the things I learned will make my future brighter and better for sure.
When I came to Susquehanna University’s campus for the first time, I was just astonished by the beautiful scenery of buildings and trees. I rarely see such natural scenery in Japan. It was really fun for us to walk around there even when it was cold because of heavy snow. I was often singing songs while I was walking with my friends on campus– we could never do that in Japan.
Moreover, I could see and experience authentic American university student life because SU students were so friendly and kind to all of us. SU students sometimes invited us to their dorms. Some took us to thrift shops and to the supermarket. Although both their and our ethnic backgrounds differed from each other, SU students and we Senshu students had many things in common – and enjoyed similar things like shopping, foods, hobbies and obsessions. That was so much fun and we appreciated everything SU students did for us while we were staying here.
As far as language study, learning from native speakers is really helpful. One example – for me it was difficult to hear the soft almost silent sound of “T”. American people often don’t pronounce “T” in words, so I was very confused and asked many times, “Could you say that again slowly?” However, after listening and understanding that the T is like a soft D, I started to pronounce words like “todally (totally)”, or “graditude (gratitude)”. It was fun for me to pronounce words like American actors who appear in the Hollywood movies.
In New York City, we visited many places we wanted to go. Neon lights and places crowded with many people are also seen in cities of Japan, like Tokyo, but it was strange because people were speaking in English and sometimes we saw people walking like they were drunk in the middle of the day. A much stranger thing was the subway of New York. It was not like the comfortable public transportation you find in Japan. Maybe I should even say that it was scary. I dare not say what I saw there in this essay. Although we were surprised by some differences, we had good moments there and we bought some souvenirs and took many pictures of famous spots and selfies.
We had great moments in Washington D.C., too. We walked a lot and looked around many kinds of exhibits at the museums. They inspired me so much. The most unforgettable museum was the Holocaust Museum.
I didn’t have the opportunity to learn such details of what happened to the Jewish people in history classes in Japan. After my experience I have decided to make more of an effort to build a better world where there is no discrimination.
When I walked in a room filled with huge number of pictures of the sacrifices people made, I didn’t know why but I started crying. I was not sad. I just wanted to cry. That experience was very touching.
Not only memories of programs, but moments with my host family are also a treasure for me. My family, (Phil, Cassie, Eleanor and Hazel Betz) was so kind. They took me wherever I wanted to and they talked to me even though Phil and Cassie were busy taking care of two little children. I really love them and want to go back to their home again. I was so nervous at first but soon I started to feel relaxed by the atmosphere in their home and their kindness.
I was very happy to go to Gettysburg with my host father. He used to be a history teacher so he taught me many things while we walked around the Battlefield Military Museum. It was also memorable for me to take a tour of Gettysburg National Military Park.
I have one more good experience to report… we Senshu students all gave presentations for high school students in South Williamsport as our service learning project. It was difficult for me to think about how to make the presentation attractive for high school students. However, I was happy that the students laughed a lot during my funny presentation entitled “Phrases Japanese People Tend to Mishear”.
In Selinsgrove everything was brand-new for me because the customs, culture and history are completely different from mine.
I was motivated to communicate with many SU students and those experiences were the best I’ve ever had. I am so happy to have had this opportunity and I thank my parents for allowing me to participate in this program. Now I feel that I want to study harder and be a better English speaker so that I can communicate with many people from all over the world.