Tanabata

Today was Tanabata.  Not that we did anything special, but I just wanted to show a few of the special things you'll find during this time at school. 

You will definitely see one of these in front of the 1st grade classrooms.  Sometimes they're displayed at city hall or some shopping centers as well.  Children write their wishes on rectangular pieces of paper and tie them to the branches. 

This kid wants to get better at swimming. 

Some of the wishes can be pretty interesting and they're a good sign of each child's personality.  Many of them want to get better at some school subject or have better writing.  Some of them write what they want to be in the future (soccer player, pastry chef).  Other kids just write something they want, like it's a letter to Santa....  *facepalm*

Kyushoku gets in on the celebration as well.  This is a typical Tanabata soup.  Includes star shaped...whatever the heck that is...and okra (which is naturally star shaped).  Not terribly delicious, in my opinion, but it's tradition.