Transfer students from Ukraine ~Mariya and 6 groups of 3th year friends~ March 3 31:11

A year ago, there was a girl who welcomed a new "spring of encounters" with mixed feelings.

Boyko Mariya, 1, from Ukraine.

After escaping the war-torn Ukraine, I transferred to an elementary school in Aichi Prefecture.

Mariya is suddenly deprived of her daily life and forced to evacuate to a strange Japan.

What did she find in her new encounter?

It is a record of one year until graduating from elementary school.
(Nagoya Broadcasting Station Chief Director Kazutaka Sakai)

May: Passing each other while not fitting in

Kyocho Elementary School 6th grade 3 groups in Obu City, Aichi Prefecture.

Our first visit to the classroom was in May last year.

At recess, many of her classmates gathered at Maria's table.

Give simple Japanese quizzes and communicate with gestures.

It was the child's concern to never let Mary be alone.

Classmate:
"I was surprised that they came to our class from Ukraine because it was talked about in the news."

Classmate:
"I try not to use the words Russia or war too much."

Mariya, on the other hand, responded with a smile to her classmates who treated her kindly.

At first glance, it seems to fit in with the class.

However, there was something sad in his eyes, and he didn't seem to be smiling sincerely.

I asked Mary what she really thought.

Mary:
"I don't know Japanese, I don't know what to do, I don't know what's fun. When I'm at school, I'm always thinking about my hometown in Ukraine."

In Obu City, where many foreigners live, special classes are held at several elementary and junior high schools in the city so that children who come into contact with Japanese for the first time can adapt to school life as soon as possible.

Mary also takes about eight hours of Japanese classes a week, but she couldn't really feel that she was improving.

A daughter who wants to return to her hometown and a mother who wants to fit in at Japan school

Mariya left her father in Ukraine and relied on relatives living in Aichi Prefecture to evacuate.

Currently, I live with my mother, Anastasiya, and my younger brother, Yaroslav.

Mariya is from Zhytomyr, a city about 130 kilometers from Kyiv, the capital of Ukraine.

There was a special place there that she always wished to return to.

It is "Mihairibsika Street" that I often visited since I was a child.

Many colorful umbrellas are displayed throughout the city, and it is said that it was a place of relaxation for locals, with songs, dances, street performers, etc. crowded.

Mariya
: "Every day before going to bed, I imagine myself taking a walk with my best friends and family on Mihairibsika Street, which is a very peaceful place and a comfortable home for me."

As her daughter thinks about her hometown, her mother, Anastasija, has mixed feelings.

Anastasija:
"Mary often asks me when I can go back to my home in Ukraine, and I always try to tell the truth, but I try not to use words that make my daughter sad. That's why I just tell them 'when it's safe.' I want Mary to go to Japan school while she's in Japan and to be with her friends her age."

I couldn't show my true self

Mariya was a fashion model in Ukraine.

She won the grand prize in the children's miss contest, and she loved standing out in front of people more than anything else.

Even at the local school, he was always a cheerful leader who led the class.

However, in Japan's school life, she lost her confidence and found Mary who was different from what she was supposed to be.

September Two classmates who care about Mariya But...

The second semester after summer vacation. I was about to decide on a new one.

Mary didn't understand what was going on.

At that time, two classmates said, "Let's work together as a blackboard attendant," and used a translation app to talk to Mary.

Mikoto is always cheerful and the mood maker at the center of the class.

And Hannah, who came to Japan from the Philippines when she was five years old, is also from a foreign country.

Mikoto:
"At first, I was thinking about how to talk to her, and although a child near me was helping out, Mary was still in trouble, so I thought I should go. I was separated from my good friends in Ukraine, and I thought it was always very dark and sad. I wondered if they were too careful to talk to me. I hate myself."

Hannah:
"I didn't want to see Mary sad."

Two classmates took the lead in supporting Mariya, but she did not participate in the school trip to Kyoto and Nara in late September.

I stayed at home and spent time painting Ukraine by myself.

Mariya:
"I want to go home to Ukraine, I want to see my friends back home."

October: Large-scale attacks across Ukraine

October. Mary was shocked.

All parts of Ukraine were subjected to massive missile attacks.

Mariya's painting depicted a Ukrainian girl standing in tears.

Mary:
"At the time of the big attack, I was chatting with my best friend back home on social media, and he said, 'I heard a strong explosion.' Then, suddenly, there was no reply. I kept crying."

Later, her best friend was confirmed safe, but Mary was unable to share her shock with anyone.

November: An incident in which I confided my heart to a classmate for the first time

November. In the sixth and third years, "an event" occurred.

A learning presentation on world cultures in front of parents.

It was the time of that rehearsal.

Shortly after the rehearsal, Mary suddenly sat down on the floor.

Then, I went into the bathroom so that no one would notice me and stopped coming out.

It seems that you are crying alone.

What had happened to Mary left her and her classmates confused.

"I wonder if the French flag used at the presentation was similar to the Russian flag, which caused me a hard time...", "I may have hurt Mary without realizing it...",



we all discussed, but we didn't know why.

Mikoto:
"I knew you looked sick during the rehearsal, but I really cared... I missed..."

That's where Hannah, from the Philippines, started moving.

I took the tablet with the translation app and went to Mariya, and snuggled up to her with my homeroom teacher.

Mariya explained the real reason why she cried, saying, "Everyone told me that I was able to do Japanese, but in reality, I was frustrated, embarrassed, and unable to do it at all."

Hannah came to Japan from the Philippines when she was five years old.

He understood Mary's feelings better than anyone else.

Hannah:
"It's okay, I told Mary that it was difficult for me to learn Japanese, and when I came to Japan, I missed making friends."

Mariya became positive "Helping someone"

Mariya learned that her classmates thought of her, and little by little she became more positive.

I also wanted to help others, so I wanted to sell my paintings at a local flea market and donate the proceeds to the suffering people in my country.

Mariya
: "I saw a lot of pictures online of mothers and babies who were affected by attacks on maternity hospitals and other buildings, so I decided to draw them."

Mariya's painting with Ukraine in mind happened to be bought by a woman who runs a local maternity hospital.

The paintings displayed next to the compartment were healing people in a place where new life was born.

Ms
. Mary: "I wonder if there will be such an encounter....I am so happy that I can't say a word anymore."

December: I want to express my gratitude to my colleagues in my own way

Mary has been doing this ever since she came to Japan.

I was introduced by a relative and helped professional magician Daiki.

After practicing and being allowed to perform as an assistant, Mariya invited Mikoto and Hannah to the "Ukraine Support Charity Magic Show" to be held in her hometown of Obu City in December, hoping that they would know more about herself.

Mary had a special magic that she had been practicing for this day.

The magic of returning a torn newspaper to its original clean state.

I prepared a surprise message of gratitude to the two of them.

Three people who were born, raised, and spoke different languages.

But now we have become important friends who can understand each other's everything.

Mary:
"Hannah is a kind and funny child, we don't speak the same language, but we understand each other better than anyone else. Miko is sociable, has a lot of friends, and is always there to help me."

February: "I'm not alone"

In February of this year, less than one month until graduation.

With the cooperation of the school, Mariya was able to perform a magic show in front of three groups of sixth-year students.

A group photo taken with all my classmates.

At the center of it all was a smiling Mary.

Mary:
"I'm not alone, I'm not alone anymore."

Hannah:
"Thank you for being friends for one year, and I hope you don't forget me when you go back to Ukraine."

Mikoto:
"Mary is a friend like I've never had before, and she can talk not only with words, but also with gestures and eyes. There are things that can't be conveyed with words alone."

Hoping to one day return to Ukraine, Mariya continues to paint pictures of her hometown.

One thing that changed was that I started painting Japan.

March What I want to tell myself one year ago...

Graduation day.

Mary presented a picture of cherry blossoms to the three sixth-year students who took care of her.

There was Mary, who looked different from the one I had met a year ago.

I asked Mary:

Author
: "What would you like to say to yourself when you came to Japan one year ago?"

Mary:
"Don't be shy, be confident, meet a lot of people and make friends."

Mariya will start attending a local public junior high school in April.

He said, "In junior high school, I want to do my best with excitement for meeting new people."

A girl and her friends who fled war-torn Ukraine and transferred to an elementary school in Japan.

At first glance, this may seem like a special story.

But the words of Mary, Mikoto, and Hannah resonate with everyone.

If there was someone suffering from loneliness next to me or in a familiar place, if it was me...

The sight of the children made me think about such things.

After working for Nagoya Broadcasting Station's Chief Director
Kazuki
Sakai, he was in charge of documentary programs in a wide range of genres, from investigative reporting on the
2018 career entrance war and false accusation cases to human documents.