Cultural intelligence is something that comes to mind when I think of the number of different ways Japanese people communicate with each other. Depending on what context one is in, there are different words and expressions used exclusively in those contexts. For example, if one is talking to a friend you would use terms like "I", "Hello", "Sorry", and more in casual ways. However, they'd never use such terms with a Boss, always opting with formal speech. As a matter of fact, there is something called "Business Japanese" which is its own thing. I find it interesting that in English, when we switch from casual to formal speech, the differences are not as prominent in Japanese (I think atleast). For example, there's no other way in English you'd say "I", but there are three in Japanese at the top of my head.

When learning Japanese in high school, I learned that the language would fall under this category (verbally at least) while English would fall under "low context" communication. When Japanese people are having a conversation, the one listening would often go "mhm" frequently until it was their time to speak or the conversation ends. It's to confirm that you're listening and it's not considered rude as it does in English. Reflecting on this and understanding now that those receiving the message in this language context are expected to interpret it, this makes more sense. And also why it's considered polite in Japanese but rude in English (being a low context language).

The notion that there are behaviors that those who grew up in a certain culture do things as thoughtlessly as breathing is interesting to me. When reading this, I recalled someone saying that when they went to a stadium in Japan and were leaving, he recognized that there was almost no trash anywhere to be seen. Such really surprised me, as that is not what would come to mind to me if I thought of a stadium after a game would look like here in the U.S.

My interpretation (not sure if I'm right) as why this is the case is to the fact Japanese people at a very young age are taught to clean not only after themselves but after their community also since a very young age. But I don't know, just an idea.

I too recognized a noticeable difference between expressions of love across different languages (specifically between Japanese and English), but also just expressions in general. For example, in Japanese there are a number of different ways to say "love" but are used to emphasizing different aspects of its expression. For example, 愛 (Ai) is a general term for love while 恋 (koi) is a romantic love, often used to describe a love found in an early stage of a relationship. Later in this chapter, the book mentions that much of the words in Japanese are often not spoken and instead replaced by action.

I have an interpretation of what leads to a lack of words to express specific expressions. It appears to me that language reflects and forms the personality, character, beliefs, values, and ideas of the individuals to whom it is shared. As external factors outside of those of a shared language (Like climate, communication of other groups, and more) influence them, it leads to a more stronger emphasis on certain terms of expression. For example, a long famine in a land can lead to more expressions of negative speech and less on positive terms like "love", but over a period of decades the terms not used become forgotten and thus specific expressions no longer stands to be used. Just an idea.

I recognize at times in the past I've been more focused on "reaching the summit" as this section mentions rather than considering the journey to get there as being an intrinsic value and part of the process. To tie back to the last page about motivation, it matters more to have a genuine interest and pursuit of learning a language than any talent that would objectively make it easier to learn. When in pursuit of "reaching the summit", some of the joy and genuine interest can be stripped from the path, thus potentially making it more difficult to achieve the very goal in pursuit. Or, at least maybe it would make it less enjoyable.

This has provided a new perspective for me regarding accents. I've had the thought of it being disadvantageous to learning a language in an accent not akin to most native speakers. Not sure why. Maybe because I'd feel less sophisticated or that I'm losing something in regards to my capacity to communicate. Or maybe I'd just feel out of place. Perhaps I'll just start focusing on communicating with proper grammer the best I can and eventually through immersing myself around more native speakers I'd develop the accent at some point.

I very much agree with this statement. Communication relies on a number of working parts to convey meaning, such as context, body orientation, use of space, hand gestures, and facial expressions as mentioned in this section. However, I'd like to add that communication using the methods just mentioned earlier isn't limited to just conveying meaning through expression, but also character. Depending on how you orientate your body, you can display a confident or timid personality. Facial expressions can reflect a lively and energetic personality, or one that is more reserved. How we vocalize or emphasis/use certain words to describe ourselves and the world around us can contribute to assessing one as having a nihilistic or optimistic character (or something else).

As someone who prior to reading this section of the chapter held an idea that I must be able to communicate perfectly in a language to be considered efficient and understandable, this was surprising to have read. Especially the past mentions of misusing a word while seeking directions, successful negotiating without recognizing some spoken words, and placing an order misusing a grammatical structure. In the past, whenever I'd take an exam on language, I would often gauge my capabilities to communicate based on my academic performance. To have learned this has broadened my scope of what can be defined as proficient communication and perhaps a new perspective on how I'm to assess myself.