Return to Table of Contents, "Two Years in Salem (Studying Abroad from the Age of 60)"

National holidays

1. New Year's Day

During my first year in Salem, I went back to Japan for a week during my winter vacation. I wanted to spend New Year's Day in Japan, but I left Japan for Salem on New Year's Eve because I couldn't get a ticket on Delta Airline for January 1 or for some days after. If you leave Narita in the evening of the 31st, you will arrive in Portland at about 10 AM on the 31st due to the 17 hour time difference. Suffering from jet lag because I couldn't sleep on the plane, I got to bed early that day. At midnight, I woke up to the sound of fireworks. Many Americans seem to stay up to see in the New Year while having a party or something. Most Americans seem to spend New Year's Day relaxing by watching football matches or the likes. They start to work again from the 2nd, unlike in Japan. Chemeketa Community College usually starts its winter term on the first Monday in January. Due to the possibility of having a year 2000 problem, the faculty used Monday the 3rd to check the computers, so the start of classes was put off till the next day.

2. Martin Luther King Day

The third Monday in January is a holiday celebrating the birthday of Martin Luther King who was born on January 15, 1929 in Atlanta, Georgia. He was a black civil rights leader, minister, and recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize (1964). This is a relatively new national holiday, which was created about 15 years ago. At one ESL class, we students were lectured about him, and given a test, so I can't forget this holiday.

Here is a passage from the famous speech we were taught then: "I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character." (August 28, 1963)

3. Easter Sunday

This is the day of Christ's resurrection. I didn't recognize this day because the day is a day off anyway due to it being a Sunday, but when I went to buy what I would need on Monday at school, the store was closed due to Easter. I went to other stores I could think of, but all of them were closed, so I remember I was disappointed that day. I'm not sure, but Easter has different dates according to the year, but it is between the latter half of March and April, and concerns the full moon.

4. Memorial Day

This is celebrated on the last Monday in May each year to honor those who died in military service. Often there are military parades with patriotic speeches, but also prayers for peace. It is a usual practice for all family members of the deceased to honor them by placing flowers on graves.

This holiday seems to be the day people in Oregon look forward to as the time summer has come. It makes me think of students in Japan who all simultaneously go to school from June 1 wearing their summer uniforms.

In my apartment, I was watching a military parade on TV, lying down on the sofa, feeling that Americans like frequent parades.

5. Independence Day

On July 4, 1776, the Continental Congress declared that the thirteen colonies were free from British dominance. Since then, July 4 has been the day on which Americans celebrate independence from the control of Britain.

About one week ahead of the day, fireworks were being sold and displayed at storefronts. Some stores were selling fireworks at temporary tents. I felt the day to be very flamboyant with some events, such as a display of fireworks by the city office.

The manager of our apartment buildings delivered leaflets to each door, forbidding the use fireworks in the area because of the danger and noise.

6. Labor Day

The first Monday in September. This is the holiday set aside to honor workers, and to renew the Puritan work ethic. It is generally celebrated as the last holiday of the summer.

People seem to be reluctant to part with summer. Chemeketa Community College begins the fall term on the third Monday of September.

7. Halloween

Halloween is not a national holiday, but it is something like Japanese "o-bon," when people spend time with the spirits of the dead. It is said that during the night of Halloween, demons and ghosts, who are believed to be symbols of the dead, have fun, visiting houses and playing tricks on living people. The fun part has been modified into a joyous festival for children to be allowed to play tricks on adults.

On October 31, after school, children in skeleton costumes or wearing ghost masks visit houses in their neighborhood and tease for candies, saying, "Trick or treat!" People get ready for their visit, setting Jack-o'-lanterns in the window. Pumpkins to make the lantern are on sale at groceries for a few days before Halloween. You can also find big pumpkin sales at farmers' outlets on the side of the road. In an ESL class, I made a Jack-o'-lantern with a partner, which became a very good memory.

On my first Halloween evening in the US, I came home around seven after meeting friends. A while later, I heard noisy footsteps coming upstairs, with yelling voices. In my apartment house, two apartments on each floor shared one staircase and the apartment opposite mine was vacant, so I assumed the footsteps were approaching mine. Soon I heard knocks on the door. Opening it, I saw three kids in Halloween costumes standing there. They began shouting, "Trick or treat!" Behind them was their mother, I thought, with a smile on her face. The kids had a basket already full of sweets.

I did know about Halloween, but I did not expect anyone to visit me, because I lived alone. I must confess that I prepared nothing for them, although I had seen so many sweets for Halloween sold at special prices, and I could have bought some. I had thought little about myself being involved in the festival.

Fortunately, I found six packs of instant noodles in my cabinet. As I put two packs in each basket, the three kids said, "Thank you, " and went away pleasantly. Ten minutes later, another group of kids came. It was hard for me to decline because I saw their escort behind them. Fortunately again, I had some cheese in the fridge to eat with beer. I gave all of it to them.

When the group left, I began to worry about what I could do if a third and fourth group came. I hastily searched all over the kitchen for stuff to give to them, only to find sliced ham, eggs, canned fish, canned beer, and boxes of TV dinners. Sliced ham was not appropriate for sanitary reasons. Eggs were fragile. Only beer was abundant, but not good for kids.

As I had expected, the third group came, and I gave them canned food. I gave canned food to the fourth group, too. To the the last and fifth group of four, I offered four TV dinners. It was almost 9 o'clock when the last group left. I was very excited to have had a very unusual experience as if I had been attacked and knocked down by a bunch of kids.

I wrote all about the occurrence in my Journal, one of the routines for the writing class. Ms. Lois Rosen, instructor of the class, first apologized to the students for not having told them to prepare sweets for kids. She then suggested to me that the Journal was so interesting that I should type it out as an essay for next year's students to read before Halloween. I followed her suggestion.

One day in the next year, I was surprised when Mako Mayfield said something about my essay. It was the first time that I knew she was one of Ms. Rosen's friends. Mako-san is also a good friend of Marylin Prothero, my grammar teacher. Her husband, who is a professor at Willamette University, is also one of Mako's friends. She has so many friends that I really admire her for her sociability. Speaking of the sister city committee Mako-san belongs to, Chemeketa professor Arthur Berman is also one of the members of the committee.
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8. Veteran's Day

November 11 is a federal holiday honoring the United States' military personnel. Albany, near Salem, had a parade for celebration.

The year 1999 is Heisei 11 using the Japanese era name, so this day lines up with three elevens: the 11th day, the 11th month, and the 11th year. I remember that on this day I was trying to do some special thing, but I couldn't come up with any ideas. I recall that on the day it was drizzling and I spent the gloomy day being depressed.

I think that in the US, service persons are given favorable treatment. Two among only eight national holidays a year, the other being Memorial Day, belong to the category of honoring service persons. I hear that if you join the army for a certain number of years after graduating from high school, you will go through university free of charge within ten years after leaving the army, or you will have various other privileges. I look at those who retired from the service and see they are living in wonderful residences and in luxury. They must be getting a large pension.

9. Thanksgiving Day

This is the fourth Thursday in November. Originally the Indians and Pilgrims celebrated it as a day of giving thanks to God for recently harvested crops. Americans usually prepare a large meal with traditional turkey and pumpkin pie.

Chemeketa Community College held a special event for all ESL classes. The students gathered bringing their countries' traditional food. While enjoying various countries' food, a group from each country performed on the stage. We, the Japanese group, sang a song together named "Let's walk looking up." This song's title has been changed into "Sukiyaki" song, which was sung by Kyu Sakamoto and was a big hit in the US in those days, selling over one million discs. After finishing every country's performance, dancing began for all people present, going on as long as an hour. Mexicans and Latin Americans were dancing really pleasantly. Teachers also were dancing in high spirits, and not worrying about dignity, age, or the like. I felt miserable because with my shyness I couldn't do as they did.

On Thanksgiving Day of my first year in Salem, I was invited over along with two other Japanese students by Atsuko-san. A couple of German-Americans in the neighborhood were invited, too. A feast began with drinking sherry around four o'clock. Typical Thanksgiving Day dishes were served one after another, but I ended up eating a small quantity of each dish because I'm a light eater. The feast lasted until about nine, and I felt how magnificent an American family party can be.

The next year Tomiko-san asked me early on to attend her Thanksgiving Day party, but I was also later invited by several other families. While I appreciated their invitations, I felt sorry for declining, especially when one ESl teacher invited only me among all her students. I wished there were two of me.

Most of those present at Tomiko-san's party were Japanese students. The only American was Steve, who was Tomiko's husband. We Japanese spoke to the full in our language to express even complicated matters to each other while drinking. We all frolicked noisily to the extent of not realizing time passing. A gesture game about words which Steve prepared was so interesting that we continued to play until the middle of the night.

10. Christmas Day

Christmas is one of the most celebrated festivals of all American holidays. Most homes have Christmas trees inside, and people put presents under them from about the middle of December. The presents collect to fill the area by Christmas Eve. It seems to be a ritual that on the morning of December 25th, the whole family opens presents one by one.

We can see houses here and there which are decorated beautifully outside with small lights. Types of decorations are outlining the house with the lights, Santa Claus on a sleigh with reindeer, the image of a castle, etc. In some areas, all houses were participating in such decorating, and while driving by I slowed down in my car or stopped in spite of myself because of such a beautiful evening scene.

Downtown is also beautiful. A huge Christmas tree was set up in the Capitol building which was open to the public. There, groups of junior high or high school students were singing Christmas carols every day. I went there with my friend and found myself being soaked up entirely in the Christmas atmosphere.

However, I never will forget the time I accompanied two of my friends to go shopping for Christmas presents on December 24th. We went to Lancaster Mall a little after 4 o'clock and first entered a coffee terrace. While drinking coffee, the Mall began to close at 5 o'clock. Since we hadn't finished shopping yet, we went to Salem Center downtown, but it was just closing at 5:30. Downtown in the evening was usually crowded, but at this time of year, restaurants were closed, as were shops. Since all was quiet there, I realized that we couldn't go out to celebrate Christmas Eve like in Japan.

At the end

I entered the United States on September 1, 1998, and came back to Japan for one week during a winter vacation. During the next year's summer vacation, I went back to Japan again for one week, and returned to the US with my wife. She and I traveled to Yosemite National Park by car for one week. In order to spend a New Year's Day in Japan, I had a third trip to Japan for one week from the end of 1999 to January 1, 2000. In August after finishing two years' of school life, I had my wife come from Japan and we participated in a package tour by bus and plane for 15 days. We visited Los Angeles, Disneyland, Universal Studios, San Diego, Las Vegas, the Grand Canyon, New York, Philadelphia, Washington, D.C., Niagara Falls, Toronto, Montreal, Boston, etc. When I returned to my apartment after the tour, I had several farewell parties. Finally, I left the United States on September 6, 2000.

Looking back, the two years in Salem passed by in an instant, but I gained a lot. However, I was wrong in thinking that I would be able to speak English fluently after two years. I lived in an apartment alone, there were many good Japanese friends around me, and I enjoyed associating with them, so my English ability might not have improved as expected, but I don't regret having done so. If you want to persist in improving your English, I advise you to stay with an American family. You will have a different experience from me, such as associating with a host family. If young students from Japan write about their own experiences, their writings will also be different from mine.

I experienced a lot which I couldn't have done if I stayed in Japan just after retirement. You must read between the lines. I feel my way of thinking has changed a little. I came not to get particular about trifles, and to be less biased. Thinking of how to spend the twenty years a Japanese man is expected to live after retiring from a long salaried worker's life at 60, the two years which I spent in quite a different world at this turning point were a precious step worth doing even if I spent all my retirement allowance.

I probably won't have any more chances to live abroad, but English is getting important more and more as a world common language, as you see it on the Internet, and I'm attached to Salem more strongly than ever, so I'll continue to study English to communicate with people there more smoothly. I'll cap this writing with my favorite phrase, "It's never too late to learn!"