昨日の校長室での歓迎セレモニーと姉妹校提携調印式の際に、記念品の交換が行われ、木製の絵葉書や素敵なショッピングマーケットの写真や美味しいチョコレートに添えて、Stephen Shurtleff 校長先生から心温まる手紙をいただきました。
手紙には、カミヤック高校があるワシントン州のHarbour Pointe Blvd には島があって、毎日フェリーが行き来しして２つの場所を繋ぎ人々を運んでいる、そのフェリーのようにこれからもずっとカミヤック高校と今宮高校の生徒が行き来し、繋がりますように、と書かれてありました。嬉しいですね。
早速、まずはメールで返事を書こうと思っています。時差が16時間あるので、今、Kamiakは11日の夕方になるのかなぁ。Kamiak高校の校長先生、井上先生、生徒の皆さん有難うございます。今日はバディの生徒たちと一緒に授業に参加します。梅雨の最中、雨降りの一日になりますが、体調を崩さないよう楽しんでください。
【おまけ】昨日、体育館で皆に話したタドタドしい挨拶文を掲載しておきます。発音も誤っていて聴き取れなかっただろうと思いますので(^^)/
Hello everyone.
Welcome to Imamiya High School!
I am very glad to meet you, all the students and teachers from Kamiak High School. We have been looking forward to your visit. I am very excited myself now.
Our exchange began in July 1998, so it was more than 25 years ago. Isn't it amazing? The students and teachers from Kamiak High School came to Imamiya High School first at that time, and you kept visiting us the following two years. In 2001, the students from Imamiya High School visited Kamiak High School for the first time. And since then, we have taken turns visiting each other every year to develop our long-term friendship.
However, as you know, we had to stop our exchange program for a while because of COVID-19.
But today, you are here now! Thank you very much for coming to our school and seeing us again! I am very happy that we are able to resume our exchange. We have just signed a sister school partnership agreement in the office. Today is a special day for both schools.
Please make friends with our students and have a wonderful time together for four days until the 14th. And, students at Imamiya, please make the most of this great opportunity! Introduce the students at Kamiak to Japanese culture, nice places to visit in Osaka, delicious food of Osaka..., whatever you like.
I do hope all of you enjoy this special time and the friendship between our two schools will continue forever.
Thank you.