Rain Rain, Go Away

Japan has a grim history of suicide, so much so that ALTs are highly discouraged from ever playing the spelling game "hangman", for fear that some students may be reminded of a former friend or family member or worse, take the idea to take their own life. Any references to death and killing, even jokes, are discouraged in either Japanese or English. Once more, especially around high school entrance examination time, we are particularly cautious to give praise instead of criticism as this period of high stress and important test taking (and sometimes failing) can leave students feeling as if they have let everyone down, have no other opportunity if they miss the high school their were hoping for, or if they can't deal with the pressure to even go through with the future.

For this reason, I was at first shocked and overly cautious when I found this doll dangling across from the principal's door.

Look at how happy this little guy is!

Obviously a little doll of a person (possibly a ghost) was HANGING in plain sight! How was this okay?? Did one of the students put it there? Did it represent someone? It is some kind of message against the principal? Why wasn't it taken down by now??? How are we all not in an uproar about this???? *heavy breathing*

I almost didn't ask someone about it, thinking that pretty soon it would be removed before too many students were exposed to the suicide image. But, at the end of the day, there he hung, proud and smiling with only myself raising an eyebrow. Unable to read the scribbles on his little skirt, and unable to stand the curiosity anymore, I asked around the teachers room.

Turns out, this little doll isn't of anyone in particular, but of a monk. He is call Teru Teru Bozu (照る照る坊主) or "Shine Shine Monk". Oriental monks have shaved heads, so the sunshine (teru is the sound of sunshine, ya'll) reflects off of their hairless scalps. There may have been a rhyme that was released in the 1900s about the specific sunshiny monk, but my teachers weren't sure about that (Wiki it up if you'd like to learn the rhyme). During the rainy period, of which there are a TONS in Japan, makes kids just as eager for sunshine on certain days as it does Western children. But instead of singing Little Jimmy who wants to play, they make these monks and hang them in the window or a common spot to wish for good weather.

I ended up spotting quite a few of these little guys at other schools before sports tournaments and again this weekend before the Ise Giant Shrimp Festival. So, no worries, friends! This is a good thing.  No need for the panic, just some sun screen for the good weather that is hopefully on the way.