Every Friday, as the air begins to cool the hot island of Bangka, ETA Kiyoko “Kiki” Nakamura-Koyama grabs her Bahasa Indonesia book and makes her way to her weekly two hour lessons. The family teaches her a new language, culture, and gentle familial love. They feed her new words and the best, and most incredible Indonesian foods. The family patiently unscrambles grammatically incorrect sentences and plugs in fans to subside the constant dribble of sweat that drips off of Kiki’s face. Their patience is a reminder of the patience she must have in her classes every day. The family is precious because they remind Kiki of her own family. At 6:30pm, her teachers give her bags of fresh produce and bid her farewell.

Kiyoko “Kiki” Nakamura-Koyama is currently teaching at SMA Santo Yosef Pangkalpinang, Bangka-Belitung