Postmark: Beppu Sunday September 3, 1989

I went to play tennis with about eight other teachers the day before school started. There is a recreation center in Hiji about 30 minutes drive north of here. It’s like a huge private country club but it’s open to the public. It was just completed in April and it makes me think that the Japanese have begun to equate spaciousness with luxuriousness. This facility could compare with the newest ones at UT.

I learned more about playing tennis in this one afternoon than I have in my entire life. Over the years I’ve played on and off with friends. These experiences have supplied plenty of comic relief but no one ever explained how I might play better. The Japanese are so different! I was part of their group and they felt it was their responsibility to help me learn. They showed me how to hold my racket and swing and they each took turns drilling me while the rest of the gang played a game. No one made any deprecating remarks about how bad I was or got impatient with me or acted liked they’d rather be playing for real than teaching me. In the end, I made some improvements.