Whenever I meet a Japanese person, the first thing they always say is: "My English grammar is terrible." Sometimes, people will chat pleasantly for a while in Japanese, pretending to ignore the topic of English, but eventually, the fateful confession springs forth, as they blush, wincing and wiggling, and confess: "My grammar is terrible." When I hear that, I feel as if the entire English language educational structure is not connecting me to people, but putting up a huge structure separating me from people. Grammar has ruined most of my conversations in Japan! What do they think? I am going to test them? Test their grammar? Right there in the izakaya?
I can tell when the knock on my office door is not one of my regular students just by the sound. The knock will have a hesitant, unsure rhythm, followed by a long pause before the door opens quietly and I'll be asked to do something. Of the many requests from unknown students I receive after the door opens, most are reasonable and interesting, but the one I hate the most is: "Could you give this a native check?"