Letters from Overseas No.6:

By Takako Gibson

The contributor of this letter is a 1987 graduate of the SU English Department. In 1990 she went to America, and in 1995 she earned a bachelor's degree in Jazz Studies from a State University in Florida, Jacksonville. She then worked for a travel agency for five years in Manhattan. At present she is teaching Japanese and studying for two masterﾕs degrees, one in Jazz and one in education, at a State University in Nevada.　

Five years have passed since I started teaching Japanese at a State University in Nevada. It has been a very interesting experience. I have many chances to get to know American students and found out how they understand Japanese culture. It astonishes me, and it makes me think about Japanese culture from many different angles. I feel the students' passion, which is very similar to the one I had for English when I was a student, and it reminds me of my great desire to understand the English language, and to know Western culture.

My vagabond study started 16 years ago. I was disappointed in the first college I picked. The community college in Gadsden, Alabama had the most inexpensive tuition, so Japanese students made up more than 50 percent of the foreign students in the college. In the third quarter I received a scholarship, but I decided to transfer to a college in Washington State for the next fall.

After two years of study in Washington, I received an associate degree in Jazz studies. I was glad that I was able to study in the country which is the birthplace of Jazz. In fact, I am a music nut and I used to belong to the Light Music Club at Sapporo University.

Before I left Japan, I was planning to finish my studies in one year, but I started seeing a lot of possible paths to take. Fortunately, I received scholarship from a state University in Jacksonville, Florida, so I transferred there and received a bachelor of Jazz Studies after two years.

I decided to work after I graduated from the University in Florida since my savings were almost gone. I moved to New York City. My job was a Tour Coordinator, which is what I dreamed to be. During my last two years at this company I took a Japanese language instructors' qualification course through a distance education program. At the time I did not expect that finishing this program would lead to an opportunity to get a position as an instructor in a University. Over all, my life of studying in the United State has been fortunate for me.

Now I am an instructor of Japanese at a University in Nevada. But also, I am still a student who is pursuing a master's degree in Jazz and also one in education. My life as a student in the U.S. is getting longer and longer and my vagabond-like study in the U.S. is still continuing.