Calvin was considered one of the faster kids in the day care, but his real strength is in the distance races because, in my opinion, he can remain focused on the task at hand far longer than the other kids seem able to do. All of his teachers admire his ability to complete what he starts, whether it's drawing a picture, cleaning up his toys, or running a race. Yoko tells me that, when it comes time for elementary school, many parents send their children to juku (cram school) -- not to study, but to learn to sit still, be quiet, and focus on a single subject for more than a few minutes! In the 'marathon', Calvin came in fourth in his class, and did well in the relay, though his team came in third.
Calvin's final music concert at the day care before moving on to elementary school. Calvin is in the back row, center. I've never seen these lung-powered, hand-held keyboards anywhere else but in Japan, and in Japan, every kid has one.
Calvin, the original web-footed water boy, had no problems adjusting to swimming classes. They said 'jump in', and he did, with a smile on his face. He couldn't believe that they were actually going to let him play in all that water! Although I have questions about the pace of the lessons -- eight months into the lessons, they are still using kickboards and haven't 'swum' a stroke -- Calvin is setting his own pace, zooming through each test to the point that he has left all of his original classmates far behind.
Calvin dancing at obon.