MS, Basketball, and Japan

Monday morning, before going to Matsuyama for my Japanese course, we rode our bikes to the playground so that Kelsey could run around for a while. While she enjoying herself, I watched a bunch of seniors in full-body sun armor (long sleeve track suits and hats) play croquet. Kelsey got really excited when she found a plastic BB on the ground, so we walked around to search for more. I really enjoy having free time during the Summer; I'm sad that I have to go back to work next week.

Later that day, I took a train out to Matsuyama. While I was waiting on a bench at the train platform, I saw a man in his late thirties or early forties walking slowly toward the platform, being supported by a woman that appeared to be his wife. It was clear that he had some kind of physical illness, so I got up and let them take my spot on the bench. They smiled at me, thanking me for giving up my spot, and then the train came. I rode to Matsuyama and went to class.

On the way home, when I got to the station, I saw the couple again. We smiled at each other and I went to stand in line to wait for the train. The woman came up and stood behind me in line while the man stood off to the side, leaning against a wall. I wanted to strike up a conversation, but I wasn't sure how I should start. Just when I was about to ask the woman where they were from, she asked me, in English, "Where...come from?"

I responded in Japanese, and we then conversed all the way to Imabari. The lady was Korean, but had moved to Japan ten years ago to study at a university in Tokyo. She met the man and they got married, and they moved to Fukuyama, where they live now. We had a really nice conversation about studying Japanese, living in Japan, and visiting Las Vegas.

The man had some clearly visible needle marks lined up on both arms, but I couldn't tell what he's battling. The lady mentioned that they had come to Matsuyama for his treatment. Not trying to be too nosy, I asked if Matsuyama had the best options for treatment. I don't remember what their answer was, but they mentioned that he had multiple sclerosis, and that his condition has been getting worse lately. My heart sunk as I heard that. It must be tough for them to go through that, knowing that there's currently no cure. It gets really hot in Japan in the Summer, and heat has been shown to trigger attacks in MS patients, so they have to live outside of Japan for weeks at a time. I didn't know how to respond in a culturally-appropriate way, so I just thought aloud, "That must be difficult."

Despite the man's condition, they seemed very upbeat. I felt a strong bond with these people, as though I was supposed to run into them on the train. The lady gave me her business card and said that I should visit her pawn shop if I'm ever in Hiroshima. I think that when Ryan and Erin come out, we should drop in to the shop and see how they're doing.

When we were getting off the train, I noticed that the lady had a cross necklace on. I asked her about it, and they said that they were Christian. I mentioned that I was too, and they specified that they are protestant. I told them that I'm Mormon, and they said that they had seen the church in Fukuyama. When we parted ways at the Imabari station, and I felt good that I had left a good impression. Maybe our encounter was coincidental; I just have a strong feeling that it wasn't.

Last night, after I got back from Matsuyama, I went to play basketball with Derry, an ALT from Ireland, and Paul, a brand new ALT from Washington, D.C. Derry plays on the local club team, which competes all over Shikoku. We basically went to the team's practice session, where we ran passing and shooting drills for an hour before scrimmaging for another hour. I felt pretty good for having not played for so long. I felt bad that I missed half of my three-point attempts, until I remembered that making 50% of your shots from behind the arc is actually pretty good.

Derry's a big guy, and he's pretty tough to stop down in the post. He runs like a stallion, and so it's tough to keep up with him. But I feel like I held my own out there. The drills are a bit confusing for me, since I never played organized basketball. I think Paul had fun, though his calves were acting up on him, causing him to have to sit for the last half hour or so. My left calf started to cramp up towards the end, and my right pinky toe lost a nickel-sized piece of skin. Little injuries like that don't really affect me in the way that something like MS would, though, so I feel lucky that I am healthy enough to run.

They also each brought reversible jerseys so that they could switch them from light to dark between games. I had to borrow one, since I had no idea that I was supposed to bring one.

When we were done, we sat in a circle and stiffly evaluated the practice session, as though we were conducting a business meeting. They really take their extra-curricular activities seriously out here.

At this time, I realized that I had not adequately prepared for the night. I was completely drenched in sweat, which was never a problem after playing with Ryan (Bunker) and Jeremy in Utah. But here in Japan, they change out of their clothes and into new ones before they get into their car. They were appalled that I wasn't going to change first. The guy who gave us a ride, who goes by the name "Midnight", told me it would be best if I put on some clean shorts. He gave me a pair of his own shorts to change into.

We drove to a convenience store afterwards, where sat around while we chatted and all the guys smoked and had a drink. Paul asked one of the guys how he could run so well if he smoked. It was an honest question, but the guy promptly threw away his cigarette as though Paul had implied that he shouldn't be smoking. It was, to me, a clear instance of Japanese communication being distinct from our own.

Recently, I met a nice Aussie named Andrew Strange. He's very sensitive to cultural differences in Japan, since he's engaged to a Japanese girl. The other day, he thought he had offended me, because I didn't respond to a joke that he made. The funny thing is, I didn't hear the joke, so I had no idea what he was talking about. He seemed to adopt a very Japanese perspective, reading deep into a situation that never even occurred. I need to make it a point to say hi to him today and let him know that everything's all right.

Today, I'm headed back to Matsuyama for class. I'll be coming home a bit later than usual, since I'm going to go get some fabric for my mom after class. Hopefully I'll be able to find what she wants.
From now on, I'm going to try to write in both English and Japanese. It'll be good practice for me.

今までずっと英語で書いてたが、これから、日本語でも書きたい。今、時間はないけど、チャンスがあれば、この日記を翻訳したいと思う。

Easter

So, it's Easter Sunday. We had Em and the Simmons over for dinner and Easter eggs. Stef made a delicious pot roast and angel food cake, and the Simmons brought salad. Kelsey had a good time searching for eggs in the grass. I'll post some pictures somewhere.

We had our tournament game for intramural basketball. I use the singular as we obviously lost. We played them just fine until we got tired. With only five of us to their nine or ten, we couldn't keep up. No substitutions at all. We got pounded, and they weren't even good. My 18 or 20 points were little consolation.

I think I'm gonna play basketball tomorrow morning at 6 AM. Time to hang out with Stef.

good.

Tonight we had our final regular season intramural basketball game. As we sat and waited for the previous game to end, our opponents walked in. It was a group of kids that we had played one weeknight at the church building a month or so ago. When we saw them, we knew it'd be a win for us. They're a good bunch of kids, but they were severely lacking height. When we played them at the chapel, we beat them 21-2. Scott Gale and I played post, and it worked beautifully. The floor was open for people to cut to the hoop, and nobody could really stop us from scoring.

That's not entirely true. I got fouled almost every time I tried to score from closed, but there wasn't a single call. On one shot, I had a guy hanging on my arm to the point that I couldn't even get the shot off right, and there was no call. On another one, I actually got hit so hard in the head that I bled for a little. Still no call. I realize that I shouldn't be frustrated when we're winning by 20 points, but when the other team is saying sorry for fouling you and telling the refs that they were wrong, something's wrong with the refs. It was great to see everyone have fun. Everybody played pretty well; Tony even hit a 3.

The final score was 60-49, which seems a lot closer than it really was. Before that, we had built and maintained a 20-plus point lead for the whole game. Gale scored quite a bit but went down with an injury halfway through the second half. Ryan distributed the ball pretty well, and Lance cut to the hoop a few times. I got a bit frustrated with the no-calls and took a couple shots that I shouldn't have taken. In the end I had a good game: 22 points, 5ish assists, probably over 10 rebounds, and 4-5 blocks. I was probably about 4-8 from the arc (I didn't keep track of the misses; maybe I was 4-9), and 5-12 from the rest of the floor. I didn't turn the ball over once, which is the stat I'm most proud of. Oh, and Ryan and I ran the "set play" twice, where he dribbles to the top of the key while I run around him and he pops the ball out while setting a screen. I made it both times, and the second one was a high, deep three (it felt like 30 feet or so).

I enjoyed making more passes tonight. It would've been a perfect game if I had just spent a little less time complaining about the lack of calls. I seriously think the refs didn't call them because I was piping up the whole time. Playoffs start soon. I think we'll have a game every couple nights until we lose.

Kelsey was being really cute tonight, too. For some reason, she really wanted to hold my hand. I walked with her as she held my finger until we had gotten about halfway down the hall. Then Stef picked her up, but she got really fussy and held her hand out towards me. I gave her my finger and she held on, instantly cheering up. Stef and I walked to the car, Stef holding Kelsey and Kelsey holding my finger. When we got to the car, Stef strapped her in and she got fussy. So, I drove home from the game with one hand on the steering wheel and the other hand in Kelsey's hand, keeping her happy.

It's heart-warming to have her be so attached to me. She's not normally like that. Ooh, it's late--time for bed.