It’s going to be very sad saying goodbye to our Japanese student ‘M’ who has lived with us for the last eleven months.
She really has been a part of the family and we are all going to miss her terribly. That’s not just my husband, daughter and myself, our other family members including Willow the dog and all of our close friends too.
We initially decided to become a host family because our house has a large spare room that hardly gets used, and we thought it’d be interesting to see how it went.
We started with a short stay student to test the waters and all loved the experience. Now we would probably prefer to have a long-stay student. It’s been an honour to share our lives with ‘M’. We’ve all learnt the importance of sharing, being culturally sensitive and to speak slowly.
It’s been a blast to give her some true Kiwi experiences – she’s stayed in typical kiwi baches, gone fishing, stayed on a farm, been part of a 50th birthday party. She’s learnt about Fish and Chips, and how to cook Hungarian goulash on an open fire. She now knows how to iron a shirt and to cook rice in a pot, not a rice cooker.
She’s learnt how to understand other people’s sense of humour and to laugh at herself. She’s been incredibly helpful and hardworking and has been a great influence on our daughter’s own behaviour and study habits. And ours too.
She’s learnt how to bake bread and taken her role as a family member to the level where she has even made it for us, when we’ve all forgotten. She’s had an incredible memory of what’s in the fridge, and has been very helpful about what is needed when we go shopping.
I love the independent person ‘M’ has become and the confidence she now shows. It has been a delight to hear her use English expressions we have taught her, and a moving experience to see her sharing in our particular routines that make us a family. ‘M’ can say grace in Hungarian – we wonder whether she will be sharing this with her family on her return.
‘M’ can now crochet and knit – she gives anything and everything a go. What a joy and honour it’s been to share our lives together. And very touching to have her spray my perfume on the handmade crocheted and knitted cushion that I made her that she will take on the plane with her when she leaves.
Arigato and sayonara ‘M’.