Goodbye speeches

Today marked the official closing ceremony for the school year. Everyone gathered in the gym, and the principal gave some closing remarks on the year. The main event, however, was the goodbye speeches of the departing teachers.

Of the eight teachers leaving, I'd never really talked to the first three who spoke. The second one, Yasanori, had been in charge of cleaning supplies for at least the past two years. That meant he had to dish out the assignments for cleaning areas, as well as keep track of all the supplies and tools throughout the year. I'm sure he didn't enjoy it--who would?--and his goodbye speech seemed to revolve around cleaning. It didn't incorporate cleaning in an OCD kind of way, nor did it seem to use any metaphors for purity or hard work. He just seemed to drone on about cleaning. Granted I didn't understand most of what he said, and so admittedly I'm just imagining what I would say if I'd been stuck with that responsibility for two years.

Satomi went fourth. She made it halfway into her speech before breaking down. The second half was given in tears, with stops to wipe her eyes and apologize. She had been here for six years, making her among the most senior teachers at the school. She spoke of how much she loves Tsushima, and how happy she has been spending so much time with everyone.

Kurokawa went next. In his speech, he recalled his fondest memories of Tsushima. As he went on, he began taking occasional pauses. The pauses grew increasingly longer, as he was fighting back tears. He made it through without breaking down, but only barely.

Kamito went after Kurokawa, and got through her speech without doing more than choking up. Last was the vice principal. His speech seemed more like a lecture than a farewell. I get the feeling that not many people like him, as he seems to be a bit uptight. It seems I had him figured right: I've had him pegged as typical middle management since I got here. By middle management I mean that he's had to follow orders from his superiors--which often include being a stickler for rules with the teachers--while trying not to be a complete jerk to his subordinates. Having been there, having learned the hard way what happens when you nag at people about tiny things without knowing when to lay off, I understand where he's coming from.

However, that didn't make it any less amusing to see nobody tear up during his speech, or to hear his "thank you" met with only the sparsest of applause.

After some closing remarks from the principal, everyone sang the school song. We then lined up along either side of the exit, and applauded as those eight teachers left.