...my major in college- I often refer to it as the liberal arts of the 90's with some skepticism as to the value of using this degree to get a job, perhaps only because of the choices I have made in the jobs I have had. However, teaching English in Japan has opened my eyes, again to be precise, to the value of the word. In a place where the written language seems encrypted and the verbal remains a mystery except for a few scattered words, a place where more than once I have pointed to the plastic food models in the window to order lunch, I realize the importance of a simple concept that when it is not present can cause the most simple task to fail.