A completely non-black club activity

Japanese version

Not a Bukatu if It's Not Black

"Bukatu" short for "bukatsudō," refer to Japan's after-school extracurricular clubs.For Japanese junior high students, club activities after school were the primary way to spend time, and their sheer pervasiveness gave rise to abbreviations.

”Black" originally means the color black, but in recent Japanese usage, it refers to poor or harsh environments.

People of the Showa generation, thoroughly poisoned by "Captain" and "Playball", thought that a club without black elements isn't a real club. "Captain" and "Playball" are Japanese manga that captivated children with their sports-spirit stories, depicting youth entirely through baseball.

If you work hard with all your might, it inevitably turns black. If you don't go that far, you won't be satisfied with yourself above all.

It's the Reiwa era now.

Middle schools already have only half the number of clubs. Choosing from that limited handful feels a bit lonely, but that's the path chosen by middle school teachers and students. If there's any scandal (not even that serious, like buying food at a convenience store or using a phone without permission), they quickly eliminate clubs one after another.

Naturally, boys' clubs dwindle first. Scandals are caused by boys, and girls' clubs rarely get dragged in. It's unclear why boys of the same gender have to bear the consequences of someone else's scandal through club elimination, affecting future generations.

In those few remaining clubs, you no longer see school teachers; instead, specialized coaches appear.In Japanese club activities, it was standard for teachers to serve as coaches or advisors, and some even prioritized coaching over their teaching duties.

People who aren't quite up to coaching middle schoolers get weeded out early by the early mornings and packed weekend tournament schedules, so no need to worry.

My kids' club activities are clearly not black in terms of time commitment or content, yet they're fulfilling, and above all, he prioritizes club above everything. Until club ends, club > studies > everything else (like trips) was the rule.

He never skipped club even once, and since we discussed and set that priority from the start, there was no hesitation in decisions.

Objectively speaking, it wasn't like winning big tournaments in middle school, but as long as he prioritized it above all and dove in wholeheartedly, it became a proper club even without being black.

Whether the external environment sparks personal passion.
It's fine not to be good at it; just lose yourself in what you love, forgetting to sleep or eat. And it doesn't have to be love at first sight—sometimes you try something from limited options and grow to love it.

Most people won't go pro anyway, so Bukatu offer fascinating examples of how hobbies form. There's nothing more beautiful than a clumsy passionate amateur.

He plans to continue that club into high school.