A home-built carnival

I was so worried we were going to miss it.  My son had helped in the beginning stages and he wanted to see it through.  But, we had already purchased our tickets to visit the US before I learned the dates the school would hold the beloved carnival named Mix Land.  It was scheduled for the Friday before we returned.

With a heavy heart, he accepted that he wouldn't get a chance to ride the rides the kids built.  Knowing he was disappointed, I apologized to him for causing him to miss yet another fun activity while we were away.  It seems I have a talent for scheduling our American adventures whenever his school has a field trip or other fun activity.

The kids work so hard to make 5 rides from scratch to enthrall the lower classmates and kids from the community.  This year there was a train ride that went up and down the hallways; a ghost ride that goes through a dark tunnel and uses black lights; an underwater themed carrousel; a snail ride that goes round and round making the riders dizzy with glee; and a jet coaster that shoots riders down a ramp.

A feeling of relief came over me when I dropped my son off at school the day after returning to Japan.  The kids were still playing with their Mix Land creations.  He was in luck, as it would be the last day of fun before everything was going to be torn down.  We hadn't missed it after all.

I was invited to stop by and see the festivities.  My son, bouncing around like a maniac from jetlagged exhaustion, ran from ride to ride before going and helping his friends with the jet coaster.  He was overjoyed to experience the home-built carnival.

I still can't get over how proud I am of his class.  A team of 6 year-olds designing and constructing a whole carnival is just impressive beyond measure to me.  It is a lesson about teamwork, construction, and executing a plan that they won't soon forget.