Integrating into the Imadegawa Community
I believe that I’ve integrated into the Imadegawa community fairly well. I did get lost on my first day here, though—and yeah, that was pretty scary. But after that, I adjusted well. I came to Japan feeling confident in my ability to adapt to the local culture and connect with my community. I also felt good about my Japanese language skills. Perhaps most importantly, I'm not afraid to make mistakes during daily conversation.
Now, don’t get me wrong...I’ve made plenty of mistakes when communicating with locals, and sometimes it’s been tough to understand them. For example, early on, I couldn’t understand konbini cashiers when they asked, “レジ袋はいりますか？” (Do you need a bag?) or “お箸いりますか？” (Do you need chopsticks?). I would just say “大丈夫です” and walk out.
