American Life: June/Father's Day
Father's Day and the end of the school year!
In June life in America for me had some similarities to life in Japan and also some differences. Today, in this third entry of this blog series I would like to talk about one similarity and one difference between the Japan and the America I know. America and Japan have the same Father’s Day but the ending of the school year is not the same. I will talk first about what the two countries have in common; Father’s Day, and finish with a few comments about the ending of the school year.
Father’s Day.
Father’s Day in America, Japan and the UK are on the same day. As far as I know it has always been on the third Sunday of June. As a father, this will be my third time celebrating the holiday. Growing up I remember delivering my father breakfast in bed (just like I did with my mother on Mother’s Day.) My opinion on this custom has changed over the years, as I have mentioned before. I used to think it was a great idea and something I always wished I could do. Thinking back on it now, I am glad this custom doesn’t exist in Japan, although it is very cute!!
I also remember giving my father different presents that were mostly crafts I had made at school. I remember specifically in kindergarten (late 1970s) we made our father’s clay ashtrays. This used to be a typical Father’s Day gift a long time ago. I can’t imagine kindergarten students making ashtrays now. Aside from school crafts I couldn’t even count how many neckties and pairs of socks we gave my father on Father’s Day over the years. I still haven’t received my first pair of socks from my daughter. It is just a matter of time, I guess.
America is quite a large country. Many families move around for work, sometimes very far. I was lucky to have only moved once as a child. So we never lived far from our grandparents on either side of the family. If I remember correctly, I think my mother would cook dinner on Father’s Day and invite both sets of grandparents to our house to eat together. Home parties are very common in America. Also it is not unusual for both sides of the family to gather on special occasions.
How is this different or similar to how your family celebrates Father’s Day? Please don’t forget to celebrate Father’s Day with your family on Sunday June 20th!!
The end of the School Year
The school year in America is typically from the end of August or beginning of September to June. Where I grew up in Philadelphia (North Eastern part of US) there is no official rainy season and June is not thought of as a particularly rainy time. In fact our school sports festivals were often held in June and not October as they are in Japan. In October the weather is cool and fine so we could have a sports festival if we wanted to but students and teachers are busy with their Halloween preparations instead. Please visit this blog again in October for more on Halloween! June, as I remember, is a happy month because our summer holidays started and people began to travel. Because of the pandemic this year I am not sure how everyone's schedule will be affected, but typically speaking, June is the beginning of our summer, our freedom from school! Luckily for kids the summer holiday is very long!
Thank you for stopping by to read our blog. Please let us know your comments!
See you next time.