Wakarimashita!

I understood everything spoken in Japanese in one of my elementary school classes today. Why? Because it was kindergarten. And things said at kindergarten speech- level and speed-level are at my Japanese level. Thanks to Japanese class last night, I understood the following being said about me: "Everyone this is Angie-sensei. She came to Japan in July. Does anyone know where she is from?" A little girl raises her hand, "America!" Teacher replies, "Yes, she is from America. Very good! She will come to our class once a month. We will do things like singing, playing, and looking at cards. She will show us cards of things like fruits, animals, and colors. She will leave at 10:10. What animal will she leave at?" (There is a wall clock with animals at each 5 minutes.) Children yell, "Cat!" Teacher says, "Yes, she will leave when the big hand points to the cat. She will go to the elementary school and teach first and second grade now. How do we tell her goodbye in English?" Children yell variations of "bye" and "see you." Teacher concludes, "Yes, say 'thank you, good bye.' I will go to the school with her now. See you later." Thank you kindergarten-sensei for unintentionally speaking slowly enough for me to understand. This is a great achievement.

This week's mission: somehow hang paper lanterns in my apartment despite not having anything proper to stand on. Pray that I don't break my neck. I will post photos when the mission has been accomplished.