Tomorrow is the last day of the school year at Hello!s. I hope everyone has had a good year full of studying, speaking, and sharing! I have laughed a lot and had so many good experiences over the course of this past year, both in and outside of class.

As some of you may know, next school year, Sam will be taking my place at GRAN branch. I am sad to say goodbye to all of my students there, but I am excited for all of them to get to know Sam better. She is a very fun and energetic teacher, and I’m confident that everyone can learn lots of new things with her and Koya! RESPECT Nagara branch will also get some new American teachers, so I hope my students there will make them feel really welcome.

As for me, I won’t be leaving the Gifu area. I’m still going to be teaching high school students and advanced elementary school students in Ogaki, so I hope I will see some of you in the future. Keep brushing up on your English and talk as much as possible! Thank you so much for all of the amazing memories at GRAN, RESPECT Nagara, and all of the great parties and events we’ve had together at Hello!s.  

Ryan

気付けば三月も終盤に差し掛かってますね。

小学校ではそろそろ卒業式がある頃ではないでしょうか。

友だちや先生との別れもあれば、

新しい友達だちや先生との出会える季節でもありますね。

いま大垣本部校にいる中学３年生の子たちは、進学とともにハローズのレッスンを

大垣駅南口にあるスイトテラス校で受けることになります。

小学生のときからずっと会っていた子たちと話す機会が少なくなるのは

毎年とてもさみしいですが、いろんな刺激を受けて成長していってくれると

信じています！

A little while ago I received a special present from my niece.  It’s a drawing of me that’s so good I wanted to share it with everyone!  Usually she draws pictures of happy people but I made a special request for a portrait of angry Michael and this is what I got.  My hair is a little thin and I seem to have a mustache, but other than that I thinks it’s a really good portrayal of what I feel like when I’m angry.  She’s only 9 years old but I think she has a lot of potential as an artist!

This will be my final blog post.  After two, excellent years in Japan, it is time for me to head home.  Four years ago, I taught English at Hello!s but had to leave quickly due to a surprise diagnosis.  While I went through treatment, my students and coworkers were very kind to me and I knew that I wanted to come back to Japan—at least for a little while—and finish the adventure I had started.  Boy, am I glad I did that.  The past two years have been incredible and I have loved working with the students and staff here at Hello!s.  Know that you will all be missed and have made a permanent mark on my heart.  I hope that our paths will cross again someday and we can look back fondly on our time together.  With that hope in mind, I won’t say “goodbye” but will—instead—say, “see you later!”

(Michigan!  Can you find Holland?)