Tutors

Yesterday while I was at a grocery store a woman talked to me and said that she is the mother of a part-timer at the cram school. Unfortunately, I misunderstood her because I haven’t been studying Japanese. She said “むすめ” and I thought it meant “son” and “土曜日”, which I thought it meant Friday, so I thought I didn’t know her child because I didn’t think I know the Friday tutors (another mistake because I do know the tutors on Friday).

But today one of the tutors, who is a young lady, talked to me and told me that it was her mother I met. I was surprised because I was expecting a boy, and I was also disappointed because I could’ve told her mother that I know her and see her at the school.

There are only a few tutors that I can say I know. There’s Lisa, who I know because her brother was my student before; Hayashi (I’m not sure if that’s his first name), who Inari-san introduced to me; and Moe, the daughter of the woman who talked to me in the grocery store. I know Moe because she always greets me and we’ve talked about the weather once or twice, but I learned her name only today.

There are many other tutors in the school, I think, but I don’t really know them because I find it difficult to talk to people I don’t know. It might be hard to believe because I’m an English teacher, but the first day of a new student is always a stressful time for me. Maybe one day I’ll know all the tutors at the cram school. Before that, maybe I should learn their names first…