Cheyenne Weaver, Reflections

To say that my experiences at Chubu University in Japan and in OHIO with the Chubu students shaped my trajectory in life is perhaps an understatement. Before I studied abroad, I was very shy and sometimes hesitated to try new things. However, going abroad and studying Japanese completely shattered my shell. Living life in a second language is a challenge. Everything that was easy before, like ordering food or figuring out what snack to buy, suddenly takes time and effort. There were days that I struggled with simple tasks, like trying to mail a box home or ask for directions. But the kindness of the Chubu University faculty, the Chubu students, and the fellow students studying abroad in the same program always helped me make it through. The student group, Chubu University Peer Support (CUPS), welcomed us and helped us with our life on campus from welcoming us to saying goodbye. Living in Kasugai was the most challenging 4 months of my life, mostly because I realized my Japanese skills were much lower than I thought. I would also argue that those 4 months are up there as some of the best out of my time as a student. When I returned from Chubu University back to Ohio University, my world opened up in ways I had never expected. Suddenly, everything felt easy. Things that gave me pause before, like joining new clubs or meeting new people, suddenly felt like a breeze. It was at this point that, while abroad, I realized that I had gained something more intangible than just language skills. I had learned how to communicate better, even in English. As the Chubu students came to Ohio University every year, I found myself volunteering as their buddy and using things like gestures, pictures, and other little cross-cultural communication tools to get my point across–something I had never really done before. I also thought back to how I had struggled at Chubu University to do even the simplest of tasks, and I realized that I wanted to do more to help people. I switched majors, I started volunteering more, and I started working on my TEFL certificate. In my last year on campus, I worked as the OPIE Special Programs Assistant and was able to work directly with the Chubu students as they adjusted to life on campus. It was such a dynamic and rewarding experience. Together, we did all kinds of things–perform soran bushi, grill corn for the International street fair, rehearse speeches for class, pack boxes of canned food at the local food pantry, clean a stream in the Hocking Hills, and visit New York together. The list goes on and on, really. In particular, my experiences with the Chubu students made me realize two things: one, that I wasn’t done with Japan yet. Two, that somewhere along the line, I had realized that I wanted to teach English to English learners. I joined the JET Program and came all the way out to Tohoku and eventually ended up working at a local cram school. I’ve been living here for the last 5 years now, teaching English. Before visiting Chubu University as a study abroad student in 2013, I never would have pictured myself speaking Japanese in my daily life or living abroad. But that plane ticket ten years ago to Aichi was my golden ticket.