Bring good fortune

 My artifact is an amulet that was made by friends of mine at cram school about 4 years ago. It is made of Polka dot cloth, light blue thread, and a 5 yen coin. Its size is about 8cm.

I went to a cram school when I was a junior high school student. Despite my cram school friends being different junior high school students, we have been friendly through studying hard. Before the high school entrance exam, Himari, who is a cram school friend, made and gave me one. I was very happy because I felt she would cheer me on and I can become a good friend. Some of my friends, Kei and Haruna,  took the same high school exam. They are more clever than me. So I thought many times that I may not go to high school with them. 

But they told me “I want to go there with you!” and “You can do it!!”

I decided to study harder and said “I'm definitely going to the same high school as you two.”

When I went to high school on examination day, I noticed it was a different class for my friends.

I feel nervous and lonely. But I looked at the amulet and felt empowered and I was able to exert myself. I went to the high school with them the day they announced their acceptance. We were so nervous, and we decided that even if one of us fails, we'll work together for the second round. We looked at the bulletin board with excitement and saw the number of three people on it. We were happy to cry. And everyone who received the amulet was able to pass the school they wanted to go to.

In Japan, many people misunderstand that I am not religious. Many Japanese people bring amulets in general. What is the charm for Japanese people? According to a report, The amulet is used by many people for emotional support and to receive strength from the gods. But shrines have deep roots in Japan. So many people can believe in gods and the effects of amulets. I bring an amulet on an important day. For example, the match of club activity and exam. I also have faith in God, so I was able to hope for the exam with confidence.

High school entrance exams are important. Some other countries don’t have a high school entrance exam. But there are differences between Japan and other countries in terms of whether students can attend high school free of charge and how education is divided. And they allow students to experience the rigors of entrance exams before the most important university entrance exams. For example, In Korea, there are no high school entrance exams. Because of this, university entrance exams have become very important in determining one's life and High school students in Korea will need to attend a famous cram school.  I think the good thing about Japanese high school entrance exams is that they emphasize academic qualifications. It is very good to be able to study with people of the same level while you are in high school. I think the high school entrance exam is both a production and a practice. Studying for the entrance exams with my friends in junior high school was very useful for the university entrance exams. I’m glad to have such friends.

<Reference>

https://www.world.ryukoku.ac.jp/fic/basic_seminar/pdf/report2013_omamori.pdf