Easy Like Sunday Morning

Yesterday after work was quite interesting. The period at the end of the day was adjusted so that one of the grade 3 junior high classes could stay for a moral lesson. Apparently this is something integral throughout elementary and junior high schools in Japan. Each week the teachers give their homeroom classes a moral lesson, sort of like a separate subject area. Then at certain times during the school year one teacher conducts a special moral lesson, this one was focused on marriage.
In Japan both boys and girls can marry, with the consent of their parents, when they turn 18 and 16 respectively. If under the age of 20 parental consent is required by law, however if over 20 parental consent is not required.
The lesson started with the students saying what they look for in their ideal mates. The next topic of discussion dealt with a scenario in which the students find their ideal mates, but because of social status, background or the area in which this person lives their parents object to the marriage. This scenario was put forth and the students were asked to give their opinions. Some said they would keep asking, some said they would wait until they were of age and another said they would run away, I as well as the other students found that funny, but after thinking about it, it is not funny at all (btw I had a great translator). I found it so interesting that this type of lesson is mandatory throughout these grade levels, but what I found even more intriguing was the fact that every last teacher was in attendance for this lesson including the principal and vice principal. They listened intently on what the students had to say, wrote down opinions and afterward had a meeting where they(the teachers) discussed what they felt about the lesson, how it influenced them and how they should or would go about teaching their next moral lessons. My school is so community oriented it makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside lol.

I left the school and rode to the board of education office to make a copy of my insurance card. Rokudai-sensei was going to take it over to the dental office. I wasn't there for too long, we discussed some things, I asked some questions and before leaving Rokudai gave me a copy of the "2008-2009 JET Programme Re-contracting Procedures". This man was not playing. The first day he met me he said he would like me to stay for 3 years and started laughing, but he wasn't joking at all....mind you this is the time of year that contracting organizations are supposed to give their employees this information, but he gave it to me before he is required to! I read it over today when I got home. I'm not even thinking about what I'm going to do yet, my mind isn't there and I have until February 8, 2008 to decide. For now I'm just taking it "eaaaaaaaassyyyyyy, easy like Sunday morning"