The first time you open it, the page is a forest of squiggles. Hiragana stares back at you like a secret code. But then, slowly, you learn to decipher it: あ is “a,” い is “i.” Your pen scratches across the margin of the workbook, and for the first time, your hand writes something that isn’t English.
Ganbatte kudasai. You’re on your way.
Here’s a short, evocative piece written for someone using Genki I —the classic Japanese textbook for beginners. It captures the feeling of starting that journey. The First Step Genki I
Every chapter is a small victory. Lesson 3: you learn to tell time. Lesson 5: you make your first full sentence about going to Kyoto. The kanji look like little drawings at first—but then 山 (mountain) actually starts to look like a mountain. The first time you open it, the page