Initiation with a Washcloth
Mari Iwahara (The Dalton School)
“Ittekimasu!” I called back to my mother as I hurried out the doors and into the small streets. I
readjusted my white button-up blouse, navy pleated skirt, white socks and Nike sneakers, specifically
picked out to imitate the basic Japanese middle school uniforms. This was the first day of my fifth grade
taiken-nyuugaku, a two-week school experience at a middle school in Kanazawa, Japan.

The inside of my matching navy backpack consisted of a notebook, pencil case, tissues,
handkerchief, and washcloth. My mother had hand-sewn the washcloth, telling me that I would need it for
souji no jikan, “clean-up time”, during school. “Clean-up time” sounded like a preschool activity and I
wasn’t sure what to make of it, but since the cloth was clearly listed on the supplies list, I didn’t bother
questioning it. The handkerchief and tissues were to be with me at all times for sanitary means. I was also
given a pair of brand-new shoes that I was supposed to change into once I got to school. “You need two
pairs of shoes,” instructed my mother the night before. “One for indoors and one for outdoors. That keeps
the dirt from getting inside the school.”
Once I got to school and changed into my indoor pair, I saw exactly what she meant. There wasn’t
a single piece of trash on the floor or a single spot on the wall, and every child was changing into his or her
clean pair of shoes, making sure not to dirty the wooden floors. The whole environment was unbelievably
clean, a complete shift from the careless, chaotic school hallways back in New York City. As I walked
down the hallways to find my classroom, there were posters on the walls that reminded the students to
“keep the school clean”, “clean up after your own mess”, and “respect the environment”. No wonder this
place was so clean. There was no graffiti smeared on the posters. Even as I sat through classes and moved
from classroom to classroom, the neatness of the school was impressive. “The janitors must be excellent
here,” I casually thought.

The surprising truth was that there weren’t any janitors taking care of the place. I learned this the
period after lunch, when suddenly, lively music started playing from the intercoms. All at once, as if on cue,
the children got up and scattered. Confused at first, it quickly occurred to me that this was souji no jikan.

Numerous brooms and mops emerged from the closets, children carried water-filled buckets, desks and
chairs were moved around, and trash was taken out with factory-like efficiency. Some girls invited me to
clean the hallway with them. “Mari-chan, come help us wipe the floors clean,” they said. “You do have a
washcloth with you, right?” I saw that all students had their own washcloths, each hand-sewn by their
mothers from old clothes or towels. I had never used a broom, mopped bathroom floors, taken out school
trash, or raced down a hallway on all fours while pushing a washcloth with my hands to scrub the floor. I
managed to accomplish all of that during these two weeks at school. “Clean-up time” was more like chore-
time, but I noticed how nobody objected and everyone did their part. There were set rules, reminders, and
jobs, and everybody cooperated.

Six years later, I realize that this applies not only to schools but to Japanese society in general.

Even the busiest city streets, train stations, and parks are spotless because of the country’s successful waste
management and recycling systems, enabling the nation to rank as one of the top “green” nations in the
world. Sanitation is an important priority in the lives of the Japanese, deriving from the old Japanese ideal
of respecting and being a part of nature, preserving it for the people’s enjoyment during all seasons of the
year. Another component that creates this success is the cooperation and full commitment of the people
who are educated early as students to develop a sense of social responsibility. Those two weeks were the
only times that I went to a school in Japan and I have not used a washcloth since, but the importance of
souji no jikan still leaves a profound impression on me. Their tradition of cleanliness, sense of cooperation,
and respect for nature are exemplary of the spirit of Japan.

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