The Final Fixed Topic: How was SE? What did I learn/discover during this course?

This SE course, You, was really enjoyable for me. I disliked writing and sharing my thoughts or ideas especially in English. I did not think that I can get profit by sharing with others. I thought I can develop my thought by myself. In ARW or RCA class, it was meaningful to share ideas because I learned academic things. However, in this course, since the topics were really free, I was not able to find out the good aspect of sharing. But writing 3 pieces and some blog articles, and sharing them with classmates, I learned a lot. Some classmates had totally different ideas of mine. Some thought in the almost same way. They gave me questions, suggestions, ideas, advice, and all of them were important to me. I found that I was still on the half way. Therefore, thanks to this course, I learned more about myself.
Also, as I mentioned in the last class, I found out what I do not want to write, nor share. Some of them were just embarrassing, or crazy. But some of them were... I did not want to share because they were too precious to me. I wanted to keep those thing in mind. This is the most important thing of what I learned through this class.
This course told me the importance of sharing and not sharing. Very interesting!
Finally, I would like to say "Thank you" to all of the classmates and Mark.

Week 9(open): Members of "You: Course of Personal Writing"

This is my final open topic, so I would like to write about the members of this course.
Unfortunately, I cannot write about all of them because of some reasons.^^"



Jun, you are always very kind and cheerful. I hope you will be a nice bible teacher.


Kumiko, you seem interested in the middle east countries. Carry on learning, and help people there in some ways!(I hope) Also, your part-time job is very fascinating!


Mariko, I was really happy that I knew that you were a fan of Shinsengumi! I'll look forward to talking with you about Shinsengumi.


Kayano, why did you stop coming to this class?!


Megumi, your story about "aneki" and "onechan" was really fun!


Moro, it was really surprising that you said you did weight lifting! Also, you wrote detail on you blog articles and it was very enjoyable to read you blog! And, thank you for you nice commentes for me.


Nozomi, you seem to think about things very deeply. It was very meaningful for me to talk with you. I respect you!


Risa, you said you like running. And I found out that that is why you are slim!^^


Ryo, I remembered your name very easily,though I am poor at remembering names and faces.


Saaya, how about 文学の世界? I hope you did well on the test.^^ Also, I hope you will always be with you pink ipod.^^


Saya, I was very happy when I knew you liked Susumu Yamazaki, because I like him! His life was a little bit mysterious...let me know if you find some interesting stories about him.^^


Shoto, you said you respect an exchange student from Germany. I hope you will be closer to him.


Tsubasa, you are always funny. You always have questions. I want to look at the inside of your brain.


Yumi, you are punctual as you said. Excellent student! I want to have the punctuality like you.^^


Masaaki, you are the one who talked about Daruma in Gunma, right? But you said you did not have your own daruma. You should get your daruma as a man from Gunma.^^


Mark, you always help me to think and develop my ideas! Thank you so much! I"ll look forward to have a look at you on Halloween next year.^^





In this class, I did develop idea and consider well thanks to the classmates.
Their idea were all interesting and they motivated me a lot.
Thank you.

Week 9 (open): LIBERA, my favorite boys choir

Libera is a boys choir from the south London in the UK.

When I was a junior high school student, I listened to them for the first time.

Their voices were so beautiful and it makes me relaxing.

This is my favorite song.

I really liked his voice.

However, his voice changed. It seems unfortunate. I will never listen to his voice.

But,  I think. boys' voices are not eternal, I mean it will change, and that is why their voice is very beautiful. Things are always changing, and there is nothing beautiful forever.

He left Libera because of his voice change.
But there are little boys in Libera, of course. Their voices are also beautiful.
So, I sometimes listen to their songs still now, when I am on the way to the uni, or home.


Libera's soings make me relaxing, make my heart clean.

It may be surprising that I listen to that kind of songs. Because I am so evil, and my heart is kinda dark. I am surprised, too.

I hope I will have a very beautiful heart one day.
Libera may help me for that.

Week 8 (open): What I like and what I dislike

I like:

taking a nap,
I am always sleepy.

eating tasty foods and sweets,
Rcie cracker, Chocolate, Curry rice, etc.

being bored,
Wasting time is must for me.

watching anime, reading manga,
I spend a lot of time for this.

practicing Japanese sword,
Tennen Rishin Ryu !

drawing pictures,
immitate something or totally imaginary ones

playing video games
RPG is the best for me.

something secret
I cannot write on this blog.



I have a lot to like to do.



I dislike

studying
especially something I'm not interested in

being waited by something or someone
this makes me a little bit angry

being forced to do
I wanna say Leave me alone!

playing sports
I get tired soon

something secret
I cannot write on this blog.




I alos have a lot to dislike.




I hope I will overcome these things I dislike. I mean I can be patient for them.
And, I hope I will carry on doing and being into my favorite things.

Week 8 (open): Cheetah

I like cheetah.
Since I was a elemntary school student, cheetah has been my favorite animal.
I've never think why I like cheetah.

Baby cheetah is very very cute.

Baby animals are cute. But I think baby cheetah is cuter than any other baby animals.
Big round eyes, soft-looking fur, short legs and so on. These things are really fascinating me.



When they grow up, they are really cool.

When they run, they are super cool.
They are the fastest animal when it comes to running.

Why do I like cheetah the most?
Cheetah is much cooler, cute, faster and more wonderful than any other animals.

They have long legs, attractive patterns, beautiful faces.
They are all cool.

One of my dream is to see cheetah running in wild, not in the zoo.

Week 8: My Obituary

Ryoko Miyake passed away at the age of 39. She was in her house in Japan.

Ryoko was born on April 22nd in 1992 with her twin sister.
Since she was a little bit crazy, she believed that she would go to anime world one day.
Her "dream husband" was Shanks (from One Piece), her "dream big brother" was Itachi (from Naruto), her "dream little brother" was Luffy (from One piece), her "dream Japanese sword teacher" was Mihawk (from One Piece) and Kenshin (from Rurou ni Kenshin), her "dream pet" was Happy (from Fairy Tail), her "dream respecting teacher" was Kakashi and Minato (both from Naruto), and her "dream boyfriend" was Ace (from One Piece).
She had no real husband, nor real child, but she really enjoyed her life alone. It was full of imagination and dreams.
Because she lived in the dream world, her heart was so tired. She was always thinking about "dream things". Thus, her heart was not able to stand too much ドキドキ (throb) and she died.

There is nobody who understand Ryoko anymore. Ayako, her 7 minutes younger twin sister, understood her well, but she dies 7 minutes after Ryoko died.

Did Ryoko really die?
The answer is NO.
As she believed, we should believe she is in anime world now.  She is still alive somewhere.
So, her funeral was not needed.

If you read manga or watch anime, you may find Ryoko.

Week 7: What is my view about religion?

Here, I would like to think about whether I need religion or not through the death.


I've never thought about religion so much. But when I hear the word, religion, I often think about death.
I've never learned religions so much. But I think the reason of existence of religion is to release the fear for death.
I really do not know whether I am afraid of death.
I am sure that it will be very sad to meet nobody, to talk with nobody, and so on. But this does not mean I am afraid of death. I can say that I am afraid of the loneliness more than death.
Some religions may teach that people can live in somewhere but this world after death.
Some religions may teach that people can be born again and again after death.
But no one knows the truth.
Who can tell about the world after death?
It is very fearful for many people to expect nothing in the future, maybe.
But it is also exciting not to know what happens next.
I don't mean I am excited with my death or somebody's death.
For me, it doesn't seem meaningful to believe one types of the world after death.
Unexpected things often happen in my life. And it is the life.
And the death is.
So, I do not need religion at least for now.

Week 6 (open): Cocktail

1. Bacardi Superior ＋ Pineapple juice (1:3)

very easy to make


2. Bacardi Superior ＋ Coconut milk ＋ Pineapple juice (35:45:80)

pineapple juice should be 100% pineapple juice.
I recommend that you use nice one. Or if you use less expensive pineapple juice, add sugar a little. That will make cocktail sweeter.
And I have to say, this is very difficult to make actually. I often fail to make. And it does not taste good.--


3.　KAHLUA ＋ Milk (1:3)

When you have a time, I really recommend that you should shake it with a shaker.
It doesn't make you drunk at all, so you can drink it instead of a cup of coffee in the morning.

4. Vodka ＋ Orange juice = Screwdriver

Vodka has no taste and no smell. So you can pout it as much as you like.
Screwdriver is called "lady killer". It's because it has no taste and people do not notice it was a strong cocktail. 





I do not know how to make this, but I liked "紫式部のめまい".
It was nice taste and did not contain much alcohol.
Try that, if you find it.^^


Cocktail is very enjoyable to drink and make.
I can add something I like freely, I can try my original ones(almost failed, though).

Week 6: What does "love" mean to me?

I really don't know how  to answer this question.

So, first, I'll list up what I love.

my sister, mother, father
eating sweets, meat dishes, Chinese food, Italian food,etc
drinking sake, cocktail, beer
watching anime
reading manga
my favorite characters, Shanks, Ace, Law, Marco, Itachi, Minato, Gray, Mihawk, and so on.
Japanese sword
Heisuke Todo
Shinsengumi
Travel
Sleeping
Drawing pictures
Being alone
my friends
Music, rock music, classical music...


I have a lot to love as you can see.

Here, I found one important thing.

What I love, What I should love is probably myself.
I mean, I have to love myself because I can love these precious things thanks to me.
I love Ryoko, who can love these things, these people.

But I may be a narcissist.

Week 5: What is happiness to me?

These days, I am very happy when I am watching anime while drinking. I like spending time alone. So, that makes me happy.

But I don't think it is the happiest thing.
It is not that I want to feel happy. I do not look for happiness.
I think searching for happiness is kinda meaningless.
What I take for granted, when I think nothing, those who are with me, where I want to stay,...these things make me happy, I guess.
When I am happy, I may not think "oh, I am happy!" or something like that.
So, I may not realize what happiness is unless I lose it.

Going back to my favorite time....
I am happy when I am doing that. But it doesn't mean I feel happy when I am watching anime and drinking. I have to say that when I am doing homework or something, I notice I was happy when I was doing that. I really want to go back watching anime and drinking while writing essay or something.

I can watch anime and drinking whenever I want (almost).
But there is something I cannot get back if I lose it.
I have to be careful to lose nothing.


So, to tell the truth, I cannot answer the question, "what is happiness to me?". Sorry.--

Week 4 (open): My New Favorite Shop

I went to Mugiwara Store in Shibuya. There are a lot of One Piece stuff.
This is a picture of some of things that I bought.

Why do I like the store?
The reason is so simple. I can enjoy a lot there. I can be dreaming there.
I'm so happy just watching the goods. There are a lot of Shanks, Ace, Law (my favorite characters). I was like a little kid, I was no longer 20 years old.

My university life is busy.
Of course, I enjoy studying some of subjects. But I have to study what I don't want actually.
I don't think I study hard. I am a lazy student, maybe. But I do what I have to do at least.
And that makes me tired.

I have to have some rest.
I guess I am childish, so I need time to be like 10 year-old kid.
But I can't be childish at ICU. I may be childish to some people. But at least, I try to be 20 years old, a university student.
The store gives me the time, which is nice.








And, the store is in Parco.
And one of my favorite character is Marco.
Parco sounds like Marco.
I was very happy when I found our this.^^

Week 4: What are my greatest strengths and weaknesses?

One of my greatest strengths is that I am not so influenced by others, or the majority. I think I can hold my ideas, opinions, or thoughts. And I will believe those things till I find better things.

On the other hand, my weaknesses are clear. The greatest weakness is that I am poor at getting along with people around me. There are some reasons for this. First, I am not friendly at all. I cannot be friendly to people unless I get used to talking with them. Secondly, I am stubborn. I really do not want to do something I don't want to do, even if many people do that. Thirdly, I am so selfish. I get angry soon, and I express my anger through my facial expressions easily. I have to admit that it is bothering so many people around me.

Publishing 1 (not finished yet)

Author's Note

Oneof the people I respect the most is Heisuke Todo. I really like him. I even wish he was in this current world. He is not so famous as other people from Shinsengumi. I want many people to know him. 

He died when he was about 23. His life was very short. But he did what he wanted to do. 

He is known as a "Sakigake-sensi", which means people who never hesitate to go somewhere. As this shows, he was so brave.

Thanks to Jun, Shoto and Mark, I developed this piece.

The Death of Heisuke Todo 

-----------------------------------

Heisuke Todo was amember of SHinsengumi. But he left and became a member of Goryoeji. Gryoeji had some troubles with Shinsengumi. And Shinsengumi tried to kill them.
----------------------

“I will go there!”

“No, you don’t!”


Heisuke knew that some members of Shinsengumi were there, but he was not able to stop going there.


“Leave me alone, I’ll go!”

The veins on his face stood out.

Heisuke heard that Ito was killed and he tried to carry him somewhere safe.
Ito was his boss and he respected him. They were from the same dojo, and they had been practicing Japanese swords together. Now Ito was Heisuke’s boss and was respected by Heisuke.
There was no way to stop Heisuke.

------------

“It is a pity that Heisuke, such a nice swordsman will be killed.”

Isami Kondo said in a low voice.

Isami Kondo did not want to kill Heisuke because he was a good swordsman, he was like his child or something to Isami. So, Isami told some members of Shinsengumi not to kill Heisuke. 

No one said anything.

The sound of the wind echoed.

“Alright, I will not kill him. I will try to let him escape.”

Shinpachi broke the silence.
Shinpachi Nagakura, who was a friend with Heisuke got how Isami felt and knew what he should do.

------------------

Heisuke went with some members of Goryoeji.


“Hey, they finally came.”
“Yeah, so now we go and kill them.”

Some members of Shinsengumi wainting there saw Heisuke and other were there.




“Let’s go...”


They went to kill Goryoeji.



Heisuke and others drew their swords.
The number of members from Shinsengumi was much larger.
Some members of Goryoeji were dying and some already died.
Heisuke was injured but still alive.


Heisuke found Shinpachi Nagakura in the battle.


Shinpachi had made a path for escape, and he told it to Heisuke through the eye contact.


‘Ah, I know what Shinpachi is trying to do.Thanks for your kindness, but I won’t escape.’


Heisuke got it, but he ignored it. He continued to fight. 

The battle was to be end.

A lot of blood on Heisuke's face. It was contrast to his fair skin.

One enemy cut Heisuke down slantwise from his shoulder.

A sharp pain struck his back.

Vivid red blood spread out.

He turn around. He had his sword at the ready.

Blood was dribbling down from the wound.

He looked at the man vacantly.

He tried to make a pass.

His body lurched.

One of the Shinsengumi members found the chance and cut down Heisuke from the top of the head to the nose.

The blood spouted out. It stained the sky and rain of the blood fell.

It dropped onto the red camellia.

Which red is his blood? Which red is the camellia?

Like the camellia which has unstudied beauty, Heisuke lived.

Heisuke's life was short.

He was looking for the way that he had to go.

He was never misled by anyone. He went the way he believed.

Week 3 (open): My Memorable + Favorite Song

One of my favorite songs is "Scream" from "Tokio Hotel".

Here's a video and lyrics.

You get up and somebody tells you where to go to

When you get there everybody's telling you what to doThank you, it's been another bloody MondayAnd no one is asking what you wanted anyway

Scream, 'til you feel itScream, 'til you believe itScream, and when it hurts youScream it out loud
Scream, 'til you feel itScream, 'til you believe itScream, and when it hurts youScream it out loud

Watch out, stay awake, they're lookinObsess you, they are always workin'Promisin', everything you never asked forAnd one day it'll be too late and you beg for more

Back to zero, your time's about to comeLet them know you're not just anyoneYour time's about to come

Shut upNo, can't you feel itNo, don't you believe itNo, and when it hurts youScream it out loud
No, no, no, no, no, noScream it out loud, scream



This is Tokio Hotel's song that I listened to for the first time. When I was a high school student, I was using Youtube a lot. And it was happened that I found them. At first, I thought "ah, it's a V-kei band" and I wasn't interested in it. And I skipped watching it, but again I found them. Finally, I watched it and became a fan. So this is my memorable song.


Also, I really like the lyrics. It says that we have to scream to find real ourselves. 
It's something that teenagers like. I got older and I hope I am not so childish as I was. But still I like the song. 
I used to a really really big fan of them. Of course, I still love them, but not so much.
My interest went somewhere else. I found out what I'm interested in, what I should do, what I really want to do.  And this is thanks to the song, "Scream".

Week 3: What is the most precious thing in my life?

The most precious in my life is freedom.

There will be no meaning in my life if I don't have freedom.
It is not a life if others decide what I do or something.

I have freedom to decide what to do, where to go, what to eat, what to drink, what to study, what to love, what to hate, and so on.

However, there are rules in the world.
There are many things that I must not do. For example, don't kill others, don't break something.....
So, there is a limit of the freedom. And it is very interesting.
I have to live on within it. If I can do whatever I want, my life will be boring. My life is fun, interesting, exciting and enjoyable because I have limited freedom.

Also, as I respect my freedom, I have to respect others' freedom. This also limits my freedom. But that's fine.

Freedom is the most precious in my life.
Thanks to the freedom, I will enjoy my life.

Week 2 (open): If I Traveled to Edo period...

If I traveled to Edo period, and met my favorite swordsman, Heisuke Todo(when he was around 20), what would I do?

sample picture of Heisuke Todo(from one anime)

Heisuke Todo

He belonged to Shinsengumi, but he left it for some reasons.　He became a member of "Goryoeji". At the age of 23 or 24, he was killed by one swordsman of Shinsengumi.

3 Things I Want to Do


1
First, I'd like to talk with him. I want to talk about simple things, like favorite foods, favorite color, crazy experiences and so on.
He was 20 or so, and I am 20 years old now. So it should be interesting to compare our thoughts or something like that.




2
Secondly, I want to take pictures with him!(if I had a camera). It is said that Heisuke Todo was a handsome guy. Unfortunately, (maybe fortunately?), there is no picture. If I got the picture, I would never let anyone look at it. I guess I would keep it because that would be my treasure. No sharing!



3
Thirdly, I really want to see his sword. It is said that his sword was "kazusanosukekaneshige", and it was a really nice Japanese sword. I want have a look. And if it is possible, I want to see Heisuke Todo using the sword, the real samurai's sword.

☆Would I tell him that he was sure to be killed?

I think I would tell.

Probably, many people say "You should not, because it will change the history.".

I really like/respect him. 

He was very young when he was killed. And I actually wish he lived longer. 

Also, how he was killed is really terrible. His head was cut. The length was 21cm, and depth was 6cm. I even cannot imagine how it hurt. 

I really really wish he lived longer, and I really don't want him to get in such a pain.

I know changing history is not good.

But I don't think the history would be changed by my telling. 

I am sure that Heisuke Todo would not escape.

He was not a man who escaped just because something looked scary. He was brave enough to fight against what looked terrible. He was brave enough to accept the reality and the future.

So, I think I would tell. 

If I would not tell him, I think I will regret it.

I tell him and he is killed... this is better than that I do not tell and he is killed. 

I'm sure that this never happen, but if Heisuke Todo change his behavior because he does not want to die, he is not my favorite swordsman anymore. 

--------------------------------------------

Heisuke Todo is not so famous as Toshizo Hijikata, or Soji Okita. And there is not so many article about him. So 50% of what kind of person Heisuke Todo is my imagination and guess. Maybe more. 

But that's fine. Everything will be clear when I die. I believe that I will meet him somewhere but this world. 

Week 2 (open): The Hardest Summer I've Ever Experienced

My summer vacation when I was a high school student was really hard.

I went to a high school in Fukuoka, and we had a very grand sports festival.

I belonged to "oendan". And I had to practice a lot for it.

oendan at a sport festival.

Why I belonged to oendan

To tell the truth, I really did not want to join it. It looked strange, hard, crazy....but about 10 students had to join it because it was a traditional club at my high school. Unfortunately, I was the one of them.


The extremely hard practice in summer

As you can see, our costume was "gakuran".

Male students wear it in WINTTER. But, I wore it in SUMMER. How crazy it was!

Some people say that gakuran is cool, or something. I'm sure that they only know the handsome boys in gakuran. (like the picture below) For me, gakurain is one of the terrible clothes.

i don't know who he is...

What I did for practice was....yelling, making very loud voice, some performance.　The video below is one of it.

I did that kind of things for 5hours or so almost every day under the sun.

What happened when I did that in gakuran?

Of course, it was really uncomfortable, smelled of sweat, extremely hot...

Fortunately, I never lost my consciousness. But I often felt bad.

And, what I really hated was that we must not wear shoes. 

We were always on asphalt. Have you ever touched asphalt in the summer? It is really really hot.

I had to stand on that. I was like a bacon on a ｆrying pan. 

After the sports festival

I was not lazy student, I guess(hope). So I joined almost all of the practice. 

I was really nerves on the performance on the sports festival. But what I had to do was what I did on practice. With my friends, I enjoyed it every year.

Since the practice was really hard, I cried a little every year after the sports festival. When I was 1st and 2nd grade student, I felt like "ah, I made it", and cried a little. But at 3rd grade, I cried because I knew I would never have this great experience, including the practice. I actually really hated the practice, though. 

What I think now 

As I said, I really didn't like the practice because it was really hard and I lacked physical strength (still now). But now, I have to admit that I really missed the practice in the summer.

Some friends who were better at sports than me often worried about me. I worried about some friends who were not so strong physically. We all helped each other. 

I often say "I don't wanna practice anymore." or "I wanna go home." with my friends. But I was there because my friends were there.

What I thought was crazy is now one of my good memories.

What I learned and what I will do

I learned that I have to keep learning, studying, practicing....even if it seems meaningless.

I have many things that I don' like. Or there are many things that look meaningless to me.

For example, I don't like studying English, or using English. This is just because I am poor at it. My current life is kinda satisfied. I am really into anime/manga or video games, and I do not need to use English for them. Probably I don't know why I study English now.

But, now I learned important things from my hard summer. 

What I don't want to do is not what I don't need to do.

I have to keep studying English, studying other things, practicing Japanese sword(one of my hobby), the piano.

Maybe, I will not be good at English, nor the piano...but I'm sure I will get something important, like perseverance or patience or self-confidence. 

(But I'm not a superman or anyone, so I have to choose what I have to do first.)

(And I am very permissive on myself, so it will be difficult for me to do what I actually don't want to and to stop playing video games or watching anime too much for it.)

---------------------------------
Now, the experience in the summer is one of my best memories.

Week 2: Who am I? How would I answer that question?

Who am I? I'd like to answer this question by talking about 8 people who I like, who I respect, or who influenced me a lot.


Mesut Oezil

He is a German soccer player. He is originally from Turkey and his family was very poor. But he overcame the difficulty and became a famous soccer player. This doesn't mean that he made efforts only for soccer. Actually, he did his best for studying at school, too.

I hope that I will never give up my dream just because of the difficulty surrounding me.

Bill Kaulitz

He is a German singer from Tokio Hotel. I really like him not only because he is handsome but also he is a cool man. He looks very unique. He wears make-up, and his hair style looks crazy sometimes. But it is his style. He is not afraid of being different from other people.

Sometimes, it is uncomfortable to be different from the majority. But I want to find and accept my characteristic and my unique points.

Freddie Mercury

He was a great singer from the UK. Unfortunately, he passed away already, but his music is still famous and popular. His characteristic was very unique and it was not accepted by the society sometimes. But he did what he wanted to do.

I have many things that I would like to do, but I sometimes hesitate to do some of them because I am afraid of others's criticize. I will try to do all I want to do before my death.

Heisuke Todo

He was a samurai who belonged to Shinsengumi,. He passed away at the age of 23 or 24. He went to the enemy first when Shinsengumi had to fight. He left Shinsengumi because of his belief, and killed in Abura Koji no Hen by Shinsengumi. At this event, he never ran away.

He was almost same age as me when he died. I'm now 20 year old, but have no belief or have no thing to risk my life on. I don't think I have to find it soon, but I'd like to find it. When I find it in the future, I hope I will keep it. I also hope I will never run away from the difficulty.

there is no image. so, this is a picture of Heisuke Todo's sword, Kazusanosukekaneshige.

Toshizo Hijikata

He was a samurai who was belonged to Shinsengumi. He was a farmer originally, but he wanted to be a samurai. It was a very hard dream in Edo period. But he never gave up.

I don't have a dream, such as a dream that I wanna be a doctor. When I find a dream, I would like  not to give up it. Sometimes, it is really hard to make the dream come true. But what I have to do then is to trust/believe in myself and to keep holding the dream.

Kenshin Himura

He is a character from Rurou ni Kenshin. He is a samurai. He is strong and he beats evil enemies. But he doesn't think that winners are always justice, or right. He is that critical to himself.

He is very critical. People around him says "You are a hero, you are justice" or something like that. But he denies it and says that I just did what I think I have to do and it is accepted by chance or thanks to the society. I respect him as a ICU student.

Shanks 

He is a character from One Piece. He is a great pirate. !0 years ago, he saved one boy and he lost one of his arms. But he didn't regret it. He didn't care. He forgive any rudeness to himself, but he never forgive those who hurt his friends.

I think I can risk my life or arms to save my family. But I am not sure that I will do that when it comes to my friends. It doesn't mean I don't like my friends, though. And, I get angry soon....I don't like that my friends are teased by someone, but to tell the truth, I prefer it to that I am teased. I have to have the magnanimity like him.

Portgas D Ace

He is a character from One Piece. He is a very strong pirate, but he died unfortunately. He is not afraid of the enemy, even when they are very strong. He tries not to regret anything in his life. So he is not afraid anything and keeps going his way.

He is really brave. He is really man enough. I am female, but I'd like to be brave like him. I don't want to regret anything in my life, but I sometimes run away from what I'm afraid of, or what I don't like, and I regret it later. I hope I will do what I think I have to do, or what I want to do.

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I really like all of them, respect them, and they influenced me a lot. I am not kind, brave, or critical enough like them. But I'd like to be. 

I think I am a person who want to be myself. I mean I am a person who searching for the answer for the question "Who am I ?".  So, this topic was kinda impossible for me to answer. Sorry.--

But I found out that I want to be brave, kind, critical, and that I want to have self-confidence to do what I want to do. 

(I may be a better person than I expect.)

Week 1 (open): My favorite episode of "One Piece"

I like anime and manga. 

Today, I write about my favorite episode from the anime called One Piece.

My favorite episode of One Piece is "答えを探して　火拳のエース戦場に死す".

Summary of the episode

Luffy, who is the main character of One Piece tries to save Ace, his older brother. He beats a lot of enemies and reaches him. But while they are escaping from the enemies, Ace dies to save Luffy from one enemy. Ace understand that he will soon die and says what he want to tell to Luffy. 

(Luffy's parents are different from Ace's parents.)

Ace is the son of the most famous pirate, which means he is the son of the criminal. He has been searching for the answer to the question, "Was it good that I was born?". He has been hated by many people just because his father was a pirate. But after he became a pirate, he met a lot of friends who he can trust. And he sees that they try to save him risking their lives.

Ace's last words is "Thank you for loving me."

What I was really moved by

I was really moved by his last words, "Thank you for loving me", of course. I'm sure that he really doesn't like that his father was a famous pirate. He thought no one loved him, or needed him. He had a lot of sad experiences because of his father. But, Luffy, and his pirate friends never care about it. They regard him as a man, a pirate, a friend.

 I've never discriminated, nor discriminated because of my parents. So, I may not understand how sad he is. But, I can understand how happy he is when he sees that his friends tries to save him risking their lives. 

Actually, he didn't want to live on because he think he is not worth to live or something. But his minds is changed by seeing his friends and his little brother. He really wants to live on. I learns how important love is. It can change people's mind, and it can save people mentally.

I guess Ace was a really terrible man who cannot trust people, who cannot love others, and who cannot love himself. 

Thanks to the people around him, he understands that they really love him, and this is very joyful to him.

So, his last words "Thank you for loving me" is really impressive to me. It's really simple words, but it express Ace's gratitude or happiness to his friends, or even to his life.

What I learn from this episode

Firstly, I learn that discrimination which is caused by unfair reasons hurts people. I have never met people whose father or someone is a criminal. But I sometimes see that kind of people in movies or drama. That discrimination really hurts them. People cannot choose their parents, brothers or sisters. So, it is unreasonable that people discriminate others because of their family.

I don't know how to stop their discrimination. What I can do now if I meet that kind of discrimination is not to do that even if all people around me are doing that. 

Secondly, I learn that how important the relation among people is. People cannot live alone, and they need people to live with. To tell the truth, I'm poor at getting along with others. I do not know how people around me feel when they are with me. Am I kind enough? Am I mean? Am I funny? Am I noisy? I don't know. But, I don't think I have to be a good friend to my friends, or I have to be a good daughter to my parents. I believe that I have to be honest to myself, and that I don't need to pretend. Then, I will understand them, and they understand me really. This is what I think is most important about the relation with others. In the episode, I see that Ace's friends love Ace himself. I hope and believe that I will find that kind of people. Maybe, I have one or two that kind of people and not notice it. Then I'd like to notice that wonderful people are with me.

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One Piece is one of my favorite manga/anime. And this episode, I really really like it. I don't know how many time I've watched it. 

When I was a little kid, I just enjoy the story. 

Now I'm a university student, and I guess I have to learn something from it. That will make my life better.

Week 1: Do I like to write? Why or why not?

I don't like writing. That's because I don't like express my feeling, thought, idea or something like that. Also, I don't think people should tell those kind of things to others. I prefer keeping them and developing them in my mind.

Week 1: Why did I decided to take this class?

I chose this class because I would like to know myself more. Of course, I know where I was born, my favorite food, my hobbies and so on. However, I do not know what kind of person I am, or how I feel about something. And, I do not have time to think about it, nor opportunity. So, I decided to to take this class.

13

How was WP?
I enjoyed WP a lot. Some classmates' topics were something I'm interested in. They used a lot of interesting pictures, and gave me many new information. Some of them presented something I am not interested in, or something I did not know. However, it was also enjoyable. It was great opportunities for me to learn new topics. I expected that I would be sleepy, but thanks to their efforts, I was not sleepy at all and I enjoyed. About my own presentation, I think it was not so good. Actually, I really do not like being and speaking in front of people. I was not able to do well, but it does not mean I did not like it. Thanks to the kind classmates, I did better than I had expected.
Now, I know that I have to learn how to speak well in front of many people.

How was ARW?
ARW was always hard and tiring. Now, I finished it and I am satisfied with it. Especially writing essay was so hard, because I am not good at organizing, or citing. Teachers always helped me a lot, they were kind to even my stupid question and silly mistakes. Also, my friends were kind. In class, we worked hard together, and outside of the class, they helped me, like answering my questions, giving me some ideas, and so on. I did not like ARW sometimes, maybe often, but I am happy to finish that.
I learned how to write essay, how to present, and so on. I would like to improve the skills more at ICU.

12

Wager

Summary
According to Wager, the first future will be capitalism. The characteristic is that there will be losers as well as winners. The gap between rich countries and poor countries will be getting bigger. This society will cause much anger of the losers, and this society will cost high. Then, the second future, socialism society will come. In this society, everyone will be equal to each other. There will be one government over the world so that there will be no war. However, everyone will not be equal actually. Some elite people, such as politicians will have power to control the society. Then, people will notice that they do not need the government. The third future, communism society will come. In that society, people will make small communities. They will start doing everything within their communities. People will be self-sufficient and self-governing. There will be no war, no gap between people or community. Also, in the 4th future, people will move to the space. Technology will make people possible to live on somewhere in the space.

Reaction
I really have critical reaction to especially 3rd future. Wager said that people will make small communities in the 3rd future, and they can do whatever they do. I really want to ask "how small is it?". If it is as small as family, they will be not power to do everything by themselves. If it is as small(almost big) as a city or prefecture, it will be almost same as a country because people cannot communicate with every people in the same city, nor people can meet everyone face to face. Wager asked "Am I naive?". I want to answer "Yes, you are naive." He trusts people too much. People cannot be kind to anyone around them especially when they are not friends with each other. For example, some students tease their classmate even if they are in the same class. This does happen among adults. Each person like each the most. People cannot do something for others when they lose benefits. Wager is too naive and he should be critical. Therefore, the 3rd future seems impossible.

11

Today, I had ELP and JLP exchanges.

First, we talked about Japanese cultures, such as Sosyoku kei danshi, or marriage in Japan. I did not expect that they know about Sosyoku kei danshi or something which is very up-to-date things. I was surprised about that. Most of us agreed with the thought that we do not like Shosyoku kei danshi, or we do not like the idea that women have to quit their job after marriage. However, how to think about that kind of problem seemed different.

Then, we talked about our essay topics, manga and anime(my topic) and biohazard(Miku's topic).

Most of JLP students like anime or manga. What was interesting was that JLP students talked about the parent's control on children. One of them said her parents never let her read manga because of the violent scenes. Also, other guys argued that parents should help their children. On the other hand, Miku and me were not controled by our parents when it came to anime or manga. I thought people are independent in wester cultures more than Japanese culture, so I was surprised and it was interesting.

About Miku's topic, biohazard, we talked about Fukushima or something related to the earthquake. They said they had been shocked by the news in Japan. It was not so clear to me, or Japanese people. But, to western people, it seem that news in Japan is not clear at all. Also, Miku asked "were you scared of the earthquake?" and they answered " we were scared but we really wanted to go to Japan". I do not know why exactly, but I was a little bit happy to hear that.

Today's exchange was so interesting.
What I though about their Japanese is same as what they thought about my Japanese, I guess.
Also, cultural differences were a lot interesting.
I really enjoyed it.

10

Anime/Manga’s Good Influence on Children: How to Maximize it

Outline
1. research question
How can children overcome the negative influence of anime/manga and gain the good influence?
2. thesis statement
Children can learn many important things from anime/manga. They can avoid much violence by watching anime rather than reading manga, and they are not confused by the differences of the reality and the anime/manga by considering them.
3. body
a. The good aspects of anime/manga
b. The difference of manga and anime
c. The negative aspects of anime/manga and the solution

Introduction

When I was really into one shonen anime/manga, I watched it for more than ten hours per day. What made me forget time? There must be special power which attracts people especially in shonen anime/manga. Shonen manga means manga especially for boys. In this essay, I focus on shonen manga which includes violent acts or fighting scenes.

In many shonen anime/manga, children can see a lot of violence. Moreover, many justice heroes do violent acts to punish the bad guys(Masima, Kishimoto). This may make children think that violence is not so bad. However, there are many affirmative comments about shonen anime/manga, for example, “it’s cool!’, or “I really like the anime!”. Many popular anime, like Naruto, One Piece, Fairy Tail, show justice. Many of the heroes try to keep the peace or try to save their friends(Mashima, Kishimoto). Also, Anime/Manga is now very famous and popular not only in Japan but also over the world. According to NAVER, the number of Naruto volume 1 to 57 sold was 113030000 and it was translated in more than 30 countries and sold and the number was 30000000 in the survey in 2009(NAVER). According to Oricon Style, the number of Fairy Tail volume 30 sold in Japan was 196406(Oricon Style). Moreover, in 2006 Naruto, who is the hero of Naruto, was chosen as one of the most respected Japanese.(Newsweek).

Children can get a lot of good influences from anime/manga. When it is too violent, they can avoid them by choosing anime, not manga. Also, they are not confused by the differences between anime/manga and their real life by thinking about them.

1. The good aspects of manga/anime        

Anime/manga has a lot of good influence to children. Many shonen manga/anime  teach the importance of friendship, forgiveness or the importance of never give up mind. Even if children cannot learn them easily in their real life, they can learn them through manga/anime.
Analysis of  Fairy Tail

First example, "Fairy Tail" includes a lot of violent scenes, however in that anime/manga the importance of friendship, the power of friendship or forgiveness are really emphasized. This anime/manga is written and illustrated by Hiro Mashima. The story is fantasy adventures of wizards. This anime/manga includes a lot of violent acts. For example, in volume 28, page 52, one girl beats her enemy by her sword (Fig.1). However, what is impressive around the scene is no the violence, but why she has to beat the enemy, and why she can defeat him. She has to fight  against him because she wants to protect her friends. She can win the enemy thanks to the friendship. Even her enemy thinks “ON THE TIP OF THAT SWORD FLASH, RESTS THE HOPE SHARED BY EVERYONE...” (Mashima 52) This proves how strong their friendship is. As this example shows, Fairy Tail contains much heart touching scenes than violent scenes. According to Amazon Customer Reviews, 25/26 reviews say it is a great anime/manga. On Yahoo Answers, ally, who is a girl in New York, answered  that Fairy Tail is the best manga in the world, the story is based on friendship, and it tells us we can do anything with our friends, to the question, “Is Fairy Tail manga good?”. Here, the point is friendship. Around episode 22, one girl causes a war between one group of wizards and another for some reasons. She almost gives up fighting because she does not want to see her friends suffered. However, all the wizards in Fairy Tail never give up. It is all because she is their friend(Mashima 60). It must be touching, and it is what children cannot learn easily in their real life.

              Fig.1. Eruza killing Azuma. Illustrated by Mashima.
Analysis of Naruto

Second example, "Naruto" also includes much violent acts, but the violents acts which heroes or his friends do are all for justice. “Naruto” is written and illustrated by Masashi Kishimoto. The hero is a boy called Naruto, and he tries to become the leader of his town by overcoming his sad past experiences. Looking at one fan page of Naruto on facebook, 1,106,268 people cliked “like”. What is really touching is that Naruto never tries to revenge to people around him after he gets very strong. On the other hand, one of his friends, Sasuke tries to revenge to the people in the town. All people except for Naruto decide to kill him, but Naruto never thinks about that. He tries to save him and to make him mend his way. Naruto seeks the real peace. One man who tries to get the peace said that the revenge causes another revenge, and the sadness causes another sadness. However, Naruto argues that he stops the revenge not to cause another revenge(Kishimoto).Children can lean how important never-give-up is, and how to deal with people who do not treat them well from Naruto.

Therefore, anime/manga tells children friendship and never-give-up mind, so children learn that important things not only from the real life, but from the anime/manga life.

2. The comparison of anime and manga

When some manga is too violent to children at some ages, it is a nice way to enjoy the stories by anime, because the violent acts in anime are not as shocking as in manga in many cases. In Naruto manga, some scenes are very violent. In volume 4 page 62, the scene which one man kills his enemy is so shocking (Fig.2). However, on anime, the same scene is not so shocking (Fig. 3). On manga, the man’s arm goes through the enemy’s body, but it does not happen on anime. This kind of things often happen between manga and anime. In Rave Master manga, one man cuts his arm, but in anime he explodes his arm and it is hard to see what happens to his arm. As these examples shows, the violent scenes in anime is less shocking than those in manga. What children can gain from anime/manga is important, and it is worth watching or reading. Thus, watching anime is the best way to enjoy the story sometimes.

Fig.2. Kakashi killing Haku on manga. Illustrated by Kishimoto.

Fig.3. Kakashi killing Haku on anime. Illustrated by Kishimoto.

3. Anime/manga’s big negative influence and the solution

An anime/manga’s big problem is that it may make children confused in the differences between the anime/manga life and the real life, but it can be overcome by thinking about the differences. According to American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, children are likely to think that everything on TV is true. This must cause children’s behaviors which are unbelivable in the real world(American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry). Moreover, Dowshen, who is a chief medical editor of KidsHealth, says that when children watch heroes do violent acts against their enemies, they respect that. Also, because of this, children can not judge what is wrong and what is right(Dowshen). Also, Kirsh, who is studying psychology said  “Violence in cartoons is an integral part of cartoon content” (Kirsh 548). However, there are some solutions. American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry also says that parents can choose the programs and let children think about the differences between the real world and the TV world(American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry). For example, characters in anime/manga do not die easily(Mashima). When children think about this, they can see that the characters are still alive but it is impossible in the real life, and they learn that they should not do that then. By thinking about that, they must learn what causes humans’ death, what hurt people, or what people should not do.

Conclusion

Children can learn friendship, never-give-up mind or something from anime/manga when they enjoy it in a proper way, considering the difference of anime/manga and themselves and choosing anime not manga in the case where the manga contains too much violences. As I showed in the examples of Fairy Tail and Naruto, anime/manga teaches children that it is important to protect their friends, to believe their friends, and not to give up. Even when children cannot learn them in school, they can do from the anime/manga world. Sometimes, manga contains shocking violent scenes. In that case, children choose anime, because the violent scenes are not so terrible. The big negative influence of anime/manga is that it may make children violent or do some unbelievable things. This is because children are confuse by the differences between the reality and anime/manga. However, they can overcome that by considering them well. It is true that anime/manga has negative impacts on children, but it really help them grow up when children overcome the problems.

Works Cited
         American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. Children and Watching TV.

n.d. Web. 20 Dec. 2011.

Ankou. NAVER. Sekai de NARUTO Ninki Bakuhatsu! Kaigai Ninki no Himitsu [The reasons why NARUTO is so famous in the world]. 12 Sep. 2011. Web. 24 Jan. 2012.

Cartoon Network. The Weapons Known as Shinobi. YouTube. YouTube, n.d. Web. 11 Jan. 2012.

Cartoon Network. The Demon in the Snow. YouTube. YouTube, n.d. Web. 11 Jan. 2012.
           Dowshen, Steven. KidsHealth. How TV Affects Your Child. 2011. Web. 20 Dec. 2011.

Funimation Entertainment. Eruza vs. Azuma. YouTube. YouTube, n.d. Web. 22 Jan. 2012.

Kishimoto, Masashi. NARUTO. Vol. 3. San Francisco: VIZ Media, 2004. Print. 58 vols.

Kishimoto, Masashi. NARUTO. Vol.4. San Francisco: VIZ Media, 2004. Print. 58 vols.

Kishimoto, Masashi. NARUTO. Vol.5. San Francisco: VIZ Media, 2004. Print. 58 vols.

Kirsh, Steven. Cartoon violence and aggression in youth. ScienceDirect. 28 Nov. 2005. Web. 22 Dec. 2011.

Mashima, Hiro. Fairy Tail Vol. 28. New York: Kodansha Comic USA, 2011. Print. 30 vols.

Oricon Style. 26 Dec. 2011. Web. 10 Jan. 2012.

What I want to improve in my essay

・I need better title. My current title is Anime/Manga’s Good Influence on Children: How to Maximize it. However, the first part, Anime/Manga's Good Influence on Children looks a little bit longer. Also, How to Maximize it is a little bit shorter.

・I need more example in "comparison of anime and manga", such as "in this manga violence is terrible but in the anime violence is not so terrible. Or, I have to find some statistic or expert opinion which shows that violence in anime is not as terrible as that in manga.

・I need more specific example in Anime/manga’s big negative influence and the solution, such as "In Fairy Tail, the hero does not die even when he falls from the top of the building, but if that happen to the man in this world, he will die for sure" or something.