Halfway to Coming of Age

Today at H's school they had a ceremony for the half mark to coming of age in Japan. It is hard to believe that the kids that my son has grown up with have all reached that point in their lives all ready! The girls are looking quite pre-teenish while the boys still seem to be more childish but nonetheless, I have known many of them since they were just 3 years old and it is hard to believe what they look like now and how much each of them has accomplished in their short lives. I do see them about once a month since I volunteer to help with the English program at the school but just seeing them all up on the stage performing with everything they have, including my own child, brought tears to my eyes.

It definitely made me think about what I did when I was 10 years old and in a way, it inspired me to try and make new goals for myself as the children I watched today have.

What an inspirational day.