My youngest brother, MJN, has been visiting me here in Austin over the weekend. He was my only relative to visit me when I lived in Japan eleven years ago. We travelled around Kyushu, spending the night in Miyazaki and visiting Aoshima, an unusual island with strange rock formations.
As we walked along the shore snapping photos, we encountered these schoolkids. The boys yelled "Gaijin-san! Gaijin-san!" When MJN proved to be friendly, the boys insisted on a photo together. The girls, shy as ever, giggled in the background but wouldn't come near.
After the photo, the boys ran off. "Arigatou. Bye-bye, oji-san."
"Hey, you've just been promoted."
"What do you mean?'
"Well, when we first came up, those boys called you 'Mr. Foreigner', but after you talked with them, they called you 'uncle'."
Posted by M Sinclair Stevens
October 22, 2002
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Uncle Matt with schoolchildren at Aoshima Island in Miyazaki-ken. April 1991.