“Maybe we should just continue walking”, I tell Sajonara. She nods and we walk to the bus just in time. We make it to the bus just in time before it leaves. We sit on the bus near the back and look out the window. We see a few more protests on the bus. I can’t help but wonder what they are about, but I guess I will have to wait to find out. The bus pulls up our school and we walk out. Sajonara and I walk into the school building. Later on in the day we it is second period, I head off to my history class and Mr. Watanabe is the teacher for that class. Mr. Watanabe also happens to be Sajonara and I’s favorite teacher. I walk into history and notice that Sajonara is already there, I sit down next to her and we start taking notes that were written on the board. I keep looking at the clock waiting for this period to end. As soon as the clock hits 10.30, I walk up to Mr. Watanabe’s desk.
“ Hey, Mr. Watanabe, do you have a minute?” I ask him. He looks at me and nods.
“Yeah, what do you need?”
“Well, I have been noticing a bunch of protests recently and they seem to be getting more and more common. My mom doesn’t tell me anything about it, but I want to know what they are about”, I ask him. Mr. Watanabe looks at the clock then at me.
“Oh, well, I am not going to bombard you with information but I let you know the basics. Japan and the US have made a treaty that has to do with the war that happened years ago. The US pretty much said that they would take care of us and protect us from any harm, but they also wanted to have military troops in our country and there are some people scared and angry about it. So they try to handle it by protesting, the people want their voices to be heard. I am not saying that you should go out and protest either. Your still young, so the only things you need to be worried about is homework. So try not to worry about it too much”, he tells me. I nod at his response.
“ Oh. I don’t know what my mom didn’t want me to know about this because it doesn’t sound that bad”, I tell my teacher.
“Well, it is probably because adults look at it differently. She might just want you to stay away from these problem”, he tells me.
“Okay, well thank you for letting me know about this. I will see you tomorrow”, I tell him as we exchange goodbyes. I walk out of the classroom into the hallway thinking about what he told me. It made start to think about the issue. I start to think about all of the people that are affected by this and how a lot of them are protesting because of it. I wonder if there is any way I can help this situation. As I walk through the halls, Sajonara walks up to me.
“Hey, I saw you talking to the teacher. What was that about?” she asks.
“Oh, I asked Mr. Watanabe about the protests going on”, I tell her. I explain the whole situation to her about the treaty that was made and how the people aren’t happy about it and that is why they started protesting.
“Woah. So it must be an actual problem”, she told me. This whole situation could become a problem and I don’t want all of this to get worse. At the end of the day, Sajonara and I were walking home. It was quiet out today and all I could hear was the wind and birds chirping. I got home to an empty house and a note on the table saying “ I will be home later tonight, just got caught up at work - Mom”. I decide since I was alone, I would invite Sajonara over. She gets to my house in a matter of 3 minutes due to the fact she lives in the same neighborhood as me. When she gets to my house, we start working on some homework that was due the next day. As we were working, Sajonara looks at me as she remembers something.
“Hey, I just remembered that there is supposed to be a protest at the park near the school. I was thinking that could see what it is about. You don't have to go if you don't want to ”, she tells me. I think about how we could actually make a difference and help, but I also remembered what Mr. Watanabe told me, that I shouldn't take part in these protests. I am not sure if it is a good idea to go, but if I were to go, I could look out for Sajonara so she won't get hurt or maybe I could try to convince her to not go.
“ Hey, Mr. Watanabe, do you have a minute?” I ask him. He looks at me and nods.
“Yeah, what do you need?”
“Well, I have been noticing a bunch of protests recently and they seem to be getting more and more common. My mom doesn’t tell me anything about it, but I want to know what they are about”, I ask him. Mr. Watanabe looks at the clock then at me.
“Oh, well, I am not going to bombard you with information but I let you know the basics. Japan and the US have made a treaty that has to do with the war that happened years ago. The US pretty much said that they would take care of us and protect us from any harm, but they also wanted to have military troops in our country and there are some people scared and angry about it. So they try to handle it by protesting, the people want their voices to be heard. I am not saying that you should go out and protest either. Your still young, so the only things you need to be worried about is homework. So try not to worry about it too much”, he tells me. I nod at his response.
“ Oh. I don’t know what my mom didn’t want me to know about this because it doesn’t sound that bad”, I tell my teacher.
“Well, it is probably because adults look at it differently. She might just want you to stay away from these problem”, he tells me.
“Okay, well thank you for letting me know about this. I will see you tomorrow”, I tell him as we exchange goodbyes. I walk out of the classroom into the hallway thinking about what he told me. It made start to think about the issue. I start to think about all of the people that are affected by this and how a lot of them are protesting because of it. I wonder if there is any way I can help this situation. As I walk through the halls, Sajonara walks up to me.
“Hey, I saw you talking to the teacher. What was that about?” she asks.
“Oh, I asked Mr. Watanabe about the protests going on”, I tell her. I explain the whole situation to her about the treaty that was made and how the people aren’t happy about it and that is why they started protesting.
“Woah. So it must be an actual problem”, she told me. This whole situation could become a problem and I don’t want all of this to get worse. At the end of the day, Sajonara and I were walking home. It was quiet out today and all I could hear was the wind and birds chirping. I got home to an empty house and a note on the table saying “ I will be home later tonight, just got caught up at work - Mom”. I decide since I was alone, I would invite Sajonara over. She gets to my house in a matter of 3 minutes due to the fact she lives in the same neighborhood as me. When she gets to my house, we start working on some homework that was due the next day. As we were working, Sajonara looks at me as she remembers something.
“Hey, I just remembered that there is supposed to be a protest at the park near the school. I was thinking that could see what it is about. You don't have to go if you don't want to ”, she tells me. I think about how we could actually make a difference and help, but I also remembered what Mr. Watanabe told me, that I shouldn't take part in these protests. I am not sure if it is a good idea to go, but if I were to go, I could look out for Sajonara so she won't get hurt or maybe I could try to convince her to not go.