My second day living in rural Japan, my supervisors took me to the local car rental place to pick up my car. My car was owned by the previous ALT and quite likely the ALT(s) before them (it's a 2008 Daihatsu Tanto for anyone curious). My main supervisor, being the wonderful woman she is, got in the car with me and had us drive to the gas station to teach me how to get gas. None of the ALTs in my area were directly taught how to get gas or given some basic driving practice, further proving that I have the best supervisor, but anyway back to the main point.
We drove to a gas station nestled along a narrow street near my house. There is only one gas pump, one kerosene pump, and a small building that always has a tea kettle on the stove and smells of cigarettes. My supervisor referred to the worker as やさしいおじいさん (yasashii ojiisan, kind grandpa/older man). He, an 80 or so year old man who is considerably shorter than me and always smells of fuel and cigarettes, is the only staff I have ever seen at the gas station. At that first meeting, I bought both gas and kerosene under guidance from my supervisor. He rang me up with a calculator and a not particularly modern cash register. He then told me the price slowly, not showing me the receipt. This might seem a little weird, but I actually appreciate this. In the past, people would often not say anything to me and just point at the number on the screen, or say it really fast as though I am fluent. By saying the price slowly and not showing me the receipt just yet, I have to listen and figure out the price. He wants me to practice, and is willing to help that. Something else I recently realized is he's an 80 year old smoker from rural Japan, so he should have one hell of an accent, but I can understand him fairly well. This means he is probably calming down his accent for me too.
My first time getting gas by myself, I forgot that I needed to pull a lever to unlock the gas cap. I couldn't figure out what he was asking me but he came over with a big flashlight and looked around in my car until we found it. Generally when I show up he asks me "まんたんで？" (mantan de?, fill up?) but also still lets me give my whole "I want to pay with cash, please fill with regular gas" spiel. He has probably seen this car since it was first rented to ALTs, so I really doubt he needs any input from me, but still lets me practice.
Recently, I bought kerosene and the price was 3016￥ or something like that and I handed him a 5000￥bill but he asked if I had 16￥ since that would be easier with a manual cash register. He asked a couple times but I was a little confused and having a brain fart about numbers. After some thinking, he said nevermind and started opening his cash register and my brain finally remembered what 十六(juu roku, 16) is and pulled out 16￥ of coins and held it out in my hand, saying "十六円?" (juu roku en, 16 yen). He looked surprised and happy, realizing that I actually could understand some level of Japanese and wasn't just limited to context and basic greetings.
The next time I got gas he greeted me with a smile and commented that I got 20 liters of fuel, saying more than just the usual "do you want it filled?". Given my previous brain fart about the number 16, I've been reviewing numbers and was able to hand him almost exact change. He smiled and helped me back out of the small gas station and get back onto the narrow street to go home.
We still can't communicate much, but his slow numbers and my giving him as exact of change as I can is still powerful in a way. He is trusting that I am smart enough and care enough to know numbers in his language, with a little help, and I am doing my best to prove him right. Apparently I'm the 14th ALT this town has had, meaning around 20 years or more of foreigners in this town. Most of this town is above the age of 60, meaning they have seen all of these ALTs come and go, each one leaving their impact on the town. Townspeople have shown me pictures, post cards, and told stories of previous ALTs and their experiences. The people here know they can use Japanese with me, as long as they slow down. This means a lot to me, because it means they recognize that I'm trying and want me to succeed. People don't stare at me, nor do they seem afraid when I wander up to the counter mildly confused and stumbling through my Japanese to explain what I want. Despite being one of the only foreigners in a 40km(25mi) radius, I'm not treated like an outsider here.
I make an effort to always go to the やさしいおじいさん (yasashii ojiisan, kind grandpa/older man)'s gas station, and fully intend to keep doing that for the remainder of my time here.
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