♥ It’s Valentine’s Day! ♥

You know, I thought I would be miserable and sad today, all alone and with Noah on the other side of the world. But, I discovered something. Teachers have it best on Valentine’s Day. Especially here in Japan where the gift of choice is chocolate, homemade if you’ve got it. (Can you tell I’m on a bit of a sugar high?)

I managed quite the haul too: four bundles of homemade sweets, one chocolate square, three random tastings of other treats in the halls and 12 Valentine’s Day cards.

Here’s what the students wrote to me:

- HAPPY VALENTINE!! Thank you for your English lesson. Buy the way, Do you like chocolate? I love chocolate and like cooking sweets. I made chocolate for Valentine’s day yesterday. It is very delicious!! So I’m very happy now.

- Happy Valentine’s Day – Your secret Admirer

- Happy Valentine’s Day! I love you ♥ Let’s have tea time again! Bye

- Happy Valentine’s Day! You are very funny. Please remember Japanese! I study English, too!

- Happy Valentine’s Day! Give me chocolate!

- Happy Valentine’s Day! My walth is meeting you. My feel to you is between like and love.

- Roses are red, and violets are blue. chocolate is sweet but not as sweet as you ♥

- Happy Valentine’s Day!! You are special teacher for me! I want to know more about you.

- Happy Valentine’s Day! I like your English class very much. I’m enjoying them. I hope to see more of you.

- Happy Valentine’s Day! I’m very pleasure to meet you. I respect you. I hope to see more of you.

- Happy Valentine’s Day! You are special to me because you are great teacher. I want to talk in English with you. But I can’t speak English well. So, I will study hard two grade. and I will talk happily with you.

- Happy Valentine’s Day! B.T.F. you are special to me because your’s English class is fun. Class on Feburuary 12 is very fun.

(B.T.F. stands for “Best Teacher Forever.” I taught them B.F.F. for their cards.)

To be fair, my card count is probably partly due to the fact that the cards were all made in my classes, as part of a lesson on the holiday. Valentines aren’t popular here. (For some reason, I got it into my head that it would be fun – fun? – to collect and redistribute hundreds of cards from first and second year students. I seem to recall this being a project the entire student council used to organize when I was a kid. Yeah, I’m a little crazy.)

But still, I enjoyed it. And, it’s so nice to be loved!