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The Predecessor from Hell
Nancy Szeles, ALT
Taneichi Town, 1994-97
By now, you've probably received a letter or maybe even a phone call from your predecessor. Though some of you may never even meet this person, your predecessor will undoubtedly have some influence on your early days in Japan. For the most part, this influence will be positive -- your predecessor can provide you with valuable information about your new community, introduce you to co-workers and neighbours, calm your fears, soothe your panic and generally show you who's who and what's what. They will have given your town a (hopefully good!) glimpse of foreign life and cultures, and in turn will probably have established certain expectations of what you, too (as a fellow foreigner), will be like.
In a few rare instances, however (and let me stress here that I do mean rare; most JETs really are decent people) your predecessor, and the legacy he or she leaves behind, may prove to be a less than welcome addition to your new life in Japan. What follows here is a bit of advice and a few cautionary words that I hope will save some of you from unnecessary frustration, stress and expense should you encounter "the predecessor from hell". Here goes:
Rule
#1: You are not now, nor should you ever try to be, your predecessor.
My predecessor ("X-san",
for short) was, to his credit I'm sure (but unfortunately for me) apparently
a Superman of sorts. When I first arrived, I was constantly reminded of
his amazing athletic/linguistic/you-name-it prowess. I couldn't mention
a single sport or activity without hearing gleeful exclamations of "Oh,
X-san was the best (fill in the blank) in Taneichi!" Being somewhat
athletically challenged myself, my self-confidence quickly began to plummet.
Of course, X-san was also "fluent" in Japanese (never mind that
he, like me, spoke not a word upon his arrival three years earlier). Everyone
seemed somewhat surprised that I could only mumble a few mangled phrases.
The final blow to my already fragile ego was the "shrine" to X-san that had been erected at one of my schools. I kid you not, you'd have thought he'd gone to heaven instead of back to America. A wooden plaque outside the door proudly proclaimed "X-san Hall", and inside, every available inch of wall space was covered with memorabilia from the X-san years. The piece de résistance was the huge bulletin board, reverently titled "In Memory of X-San", that was plastered with photos of this ubiquitous eigo-no-sensei. Worse still, every single English class at this particular school was held in "X-San Hall"; this meant I got hear his name and see his increasingly irritating face no less than 10 times, twice a week.
My sanity was further assaulted by the fact that X-san, keener that he was, had somehow managed to increase his class load to double the normal JET schedule. I inherited 23 classes per week, plus eikaiwa (English conversation class), plus eigo dojo (English discussion group). Not only that, he'd apparently taken it upon himself to acquire several "solo" classes, as well. All of this I was expected to pick up effortlessly, while at the same time learning to adjust to a new country, job, language, etc.
The point to be taken from this is that I not only survived, but eventually managed to carve my own, very comfortable, niche. My schools, my office and my town have come to realize that I'm not X-san, and they like and respect me. Show them that you're unique, be yourself and don't try to change to meet their expectations. You're coming to Japan because you are an interesting person, with something special to offer -- try not to let yourself get overwhelmed by what one ALT calls "the ghost of your predecessor".
Rule
#2: Buyer Beware
Before you come to Japan, your
predecessor will probably contact you to see if you're interested in purchasing
any of his or her stuff. When buying used goods here, exercise the same
caution you would at home. Trusting soul that I am, I mistakenly assumed
that the common bond of the JET Programme would ensure honesty, and as
a result, I was severely ripped off.
As I soon discovered from looking at flyers and browsing local stores, X-san had charged me ridiculously high prices (even for Japan!) -- his discounted "used good" price was often more than what I would have paid for the same item brand new! Most of his stuff was old, damaged (if not outright broken) and of the chintziest possible quality. He even charged me for the miscellaneous pieces of airline cutlery he had hanging around! Coincidentally, X-san's asking price was, almost to the yen, the exact amount of my moving-in allowance.
I could have avoided a lot of cost and anguish if I'd: (a) asked for photos, brand names and maybe even flyers showing the major appliances, etc., that I was buying; and (b) checked with others who'd lived in Japan (you'll meet some at orientation) to verify prices.
Rule
#3: Don't be shy -- ask your predecessor lots of questions
You're about to embark on what
may be one of the biggest changes in your life -- your predecessor is
in a prime position to help you out. They are almost certain to offer
you loads of help, but...if you think they're not providing you with enough
info, or there's something you want to know -- ASK! This goes for everything
from home appliances to teaching ideas.
X-san actually threw away all of his teaching materials prior to my arrival -- he told me he'd considered passing them on, but decided it would be better for me to "stand on my own two feet" (his words) and start from scratch. Apparently, he also thought it would be character-building for me to stand on my own two feet in my house -- he neglected to give me any written instructions on how to operate the various overpriced appliances I'd recently acquired. I also had no idea if, where, when, or how my toilet would need to be emptied; a situation which eventually led to a most interesting "conversation" between me and my supervisor (who speaks no English) as I tried to explain my growing suspicion that something was amiss in my bathroom.
All of that said, let me say once again that my case was both extreme and unusual. I am (reasonably!) certain that none of you will suffer similar experiences. And remember -- one, two or even three years down the road, you too will inevitably become a "predecessor". When the time comes, please treat your successor kindly!