i don't know what to do

well peeps, i just mailed out my JET Program application. they will let me know late janurary and hopefully i will get an interview this time, even though i thinking of the interview makes my stomach curl as well. interviews are in feb. and they let you know in april if you will be going to japan or put on a wait list. thanks for you guys help with editing the essay and stuff. i ended up rewriting a good half of it. i wanted to put more about music into it but it seemed really out of place and the conclusion was kind of weak too.

i posted what i sent below if you wanted to see what i changed.

kelly, i'm just as much of a shut in as you are. all i do is work, stay home or go to the gym, or go to the bank and deposit my paycheck. lately been going to the gym like 5 days a week. i've been going to the cycle class. it's pretty intense and i really like it. been doing some core and resistance stuff on the days i don't do the cycle class. maybe if i was interested in cycling before i would have cycled in little 5.
i still don't get very much hours at borders, but i'm guessing that will change soon....maybe? at least the gm doesn't yell at me anymore, she has other things to worry about.
i've also been thinking about taking the postal exam to work at the post office. kind of out there, but it appeals to me. you have to score around 95-100 to really stand a chance. knowing that you are the best of the best seems pleasing to me. i know i shouldn't give up on trying to find something in japan, but i'm getting tired of doing interviews and applying. at times i feel really motivated to go back on a music track, but then i realize how behind and competitive it is for violin. now that i'm done applying to stuff for a little bit, i'm gonna intensely study japanese again.



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Statement of Purpose

One thing that I have always taken for granted while growing up in Hawaii’s mixture of cultures was the Japanese Kiku channel. My family regularly watched the Soko ga Shiritai and Kinpachi Sensei series’ as I grew up, but it wasn’t until I was in high school that my interest piqued as I took Japanese for my language requirement and a Kimono culture class. Six years later after an exchange program with Youth For Understanding and an intensive summer language program, I want to spread my desire for globalization and international understanding by teaching English as a Second Language in Japan.

One experience that I find particularly relevant to the JET Program is my time teaching this past summer at a Japanese language immersion camp associated with Concordia Language Villages. As a counselor, I was responsible for looking after a cabin of campers, planning and run activities for a small language class twice a day, and organizing, leading and helping with daily cultural activity events in the evenings. Through this I gained experience teaching and working with children and learned that enthusiasm, repetition and patience are necessary when teaching a second language. This positive experience has further fueled my desire to participate in the JET program. I have a strong desire to work with and teach children, and to increase my knowledge of Japanese culture in areas that are unfamiliar to me while working in a new setting. By working and living in Japan, I feel that I will gain more confidence teaching and mentoring children while increasing my knowledge of Japanese language and culture. I would like to be able to bring back that knowledge and share it with the communities in the United States.

As a half Chinese and half Filipino student growing up in Hawaii, I have been raised with a mixture of American and Asian values that I feel can bring a wide range of experiences and cultures to Japanese communities. Going away from Hawaii to attend university in Indiana introduced me to Midwestern American culture. Having an Asian population of less than three percent and less than a dozen and a half students from Hawaii on my university campus, I felt compelled to share my experiences and cultural background with the campus through the various multi-cultural organizations. Through A.S.I.A Club (Association of Students Interested in Asia), I planned several opportunities for the university campus to experience cuisines of various Asian cultures, and noted holiday celebrations such as the Chinese Moon Festival and the Lunar New Year. I also performed Yosakoi dances twice a year with Japanese international students at the International Student Association’s International Bazaar, helping to share Japanese culture with the campus.

Also being classically trained in music on the violin, I would hope to bring along that interest and share it with my students and their community. During my undergraduate studies I was never able to tie my musical studies and East Asian studies together even though music is also a universal language. I now see that music is also a way of sharing a connection between different countries and cultures. I would want to show that it doesn’t matter about our differences. East or West, Caucasian or Asian, male or female, United States or Japan, we all can be linked.

As English remains a dominant language in business and international relations, teaching English to Japanese students will ensure that Japan will able to continue communicating with the world and strengthen our mutual bonds. I know that I can help to provide a link in connecting two languages and two countries, but also as a global citizen, mentoring the Japanese youth in a larger pursuit of international understanding.