Suwako Nagata, Part 2

Seeing English as a window to the world

Suwako Nagata, at around the age of 5, sits on a sheep kept by her family, her father's hands holding her steady.

Suwako Nagata

Born in Nagasaki in 1951. After graduating from the department of education at Nagasaki University, she worked as an English teacher at junior high schools in the city of Kobe for 35 years. While working as a teacher, Ms. Nagata was a member of the Japan Education and Resource Network (JEARN), an NPO that promotes international education. In 2003, the International Education and Resource Network (iEARN), the parent organization of JEARN, organized a conference which led to the founding of the 窶廣MANI Internet Centre窶・in Kaimosi, Kenya in March 2010. Ms. Nagata then retired from teaching and has taught Japanese in Kenya since September 2010.

I was born, the first daughter, in the city of Minamishimabara in Nagasaki Prefecture. My grandfather is a farmer and my father worked at the post office. My family raised chickens, pigs, and sheep. The wool we sheared from the sheep was made into yarn with the help of a local agricultural coop and my mother dyed it and knitted wool sweaters for me. Although we kept livestock, we ate meat only on New Year's Day and during the Bon festival [in August]. On ordinary days, we mainly ate vegetables that we grew in our fields and the fish that my father caught.

I remember my grandmother taking me to a temple once and the vegetarian food they served there was really tasty. My grandmother often used the expression "Mottainai!" ("What a waste!"). I was taught that I shouldn't waste one drop of water from our well and not to leave anything on my plate. At the time, I never dreamed that this attitude would become useful for my life in Kenya!

When I was in elementary school, I was considered a diligent student, and it's true, I did study hard. We had electricity, but when it got cold in the winter, I would wrap up my legs in a blanket and study at my desk until late at night. When I first encountered English in junior high, I became eager to learn the language because I saw it as a window to the world. I submitted an essay that I wrote in English to an NHK radio program, and my essay was selected. I was moved when I heard it read by a native English speaker. In those days I dreamed of pursuing a career where I could use English, particularly the idea of becoming TV correspondent working abroad.

Until I graduated from high school, I did nothing but study, so my days were pretty dull. I had few friends, and few places where I could play, so I just studied with as many reference books as I could find.

After high school, I entered Nagasaki University and I began living on my own in Nagasaki. My world grew bigger and I made many friends and tried a number of part-time jobs. When I was a sophomore, I worked at a candy shop inside a department store. At the same time, there was a man who was working at a tie shop there. That man is now my husband Hirofumi (60). He lives with me in Kenya and teaches agriculture here.

Because I was enrolled in the English program in the Faculty of Education, I went out to local schools to take part in teaching practice when I was a junior. I received a positive response from the students so I decided to become a teacher. Just after I graduated, Hirofumi and I got married. We lived in the city of Amagasaki in Hyogo Prefecture, and I worked at a junior high school in Kobe. Through my English classes, I hoped that the students would develop a wider awareness of the world, and broaden their horizons, so I introduced international issues and foreign affairs. During my summer vacations, I would travel abroad and then share my experiences with my students.

In January 2003, I came across the song called "Our Wish," a song about peace that was created by students at Ozu Junior High School in Hiroshima with the support of their teachers. The lyrics left an impression on me and I was moved to share it with others.

It was at that time I learned that "iEARN" (The International Education and Resource Network), the parent organization of JEARN (The Japan Education and Resource Network), where I had been serving as a volunteer translator, would be holding its global conference on Awaji Island in Hyogo Prefecture in July 2003. I had the idea of singing "Our Wish" with people coming from overseas, so I took steps toward this end. As a result, "Our Wish" became the theme song for the gathering and was sung by people from 12 countries in each of their languages.

I was drawn, in particular, to the words of the third verse:

The way I see it, if only the developed nations are able to enjoy the world's resources, leaving the developing countries to fend for themselves, a happy world cannot be created and sustained. At the same time, I worry that it's difficult to walk alongside others in the world when we face hardships in our own countries. But if this is the case, how will we be able to share our thoughts with one another?