There's a Difference

Just have to get this off my chest really quick:

I had a crappy week last week. I was at my two rough schools (the School That Shall Not Be Named and the uppity one...sorry, I can't think of a clever name for it) and they were running me into the ground with five or six out of six classes a day and new lessons for each every day. On top of that, the kids are over the school year hump and can see light at the end of the tunnel, so their give-a-damns are...no more.

(That one's for you, Elysia.)

As for the teachers, they're all aware now that I'm leaving in March. And generally they've been cool about it. No one's up in arms or shutting down around me. But there are some "lost in translation" ways that they've tried talking about it with me.

At the School That Shall Not Be Named, the head English teacher asked, "If it's okay,...eh to...can I ask...why are you leaving?" I'm not being rude, he paused that much because he was trying to choose his words pragmatically. However, the implication I got was that he wanted to know if I was leaving because of his school.

I assured him I wasn't.

At Uppity Junior High School, one of the English teachers said, "So I hear you're quitting."

Full stop. Maybe he chose the wrong word or maybe he doesn't quite understand that my company only lets us work on one year contracts which we either end or renew each spring. I explained that and he understood. I was just taken aback: the idea of "quitting" has negative connotations! I don't want to be viewed as a quitter in Japan...especially not after the stress of last week!

I don't quit. I just move on to the next thing. There's a difference.