Monday, November 17, 2008

Nan sai desu ka: How old are you?

At my main junior high school, there is a very special student who is quite fond of me. Before I met him in September, I was warned to always dress very conservatively for his class. My first encounter with him was one of utter shock and disgust. The novelty of his extreme inappropriateness has worn of, and his English is greatly improving.

A fellow English teacher described him to me once as a three-year-old trapped in a sexually frustrated man’s body.

Today I ate lunch with his class. He demanded that I sit next to him, and I reluctantly obliged. I asked him what American movies he likes, and he told me that he loves Mickey Mouse. Our small talk led me to believe that he is sweet and civilized. I thought the English teacher had not given him enough credit. His mental age might be hovering around seven or eight. Three seemed too young.

Suddenly during our peaceful lunch he stood up and began yelling penis and demanding that I tell him my bra size. As the chatter in the room came to a sudden halt, the other teachers looked horrified, yet did nothing to silence him.

Maybe the English teacher was right after all.

3 comments:

Joanie and Bill said...

Another great post. It gives me a feeling of what you experience.

Jane said...

I really don't like to put labels on children, but do these people know what Tourette Syndrom is - how would you say that in Japanese?

Reb said...

So, Did you tell him your bra size, or what?