An interview with twin sisters Sakura and Ran Isei, flight attendants at American airlines, reflecting on their early school days in the U.S. with no English, their struggles with the language, and the breakthroughs that came in their professional lives.
井清 桜 Sakura Isei
Originally from Kagawa Prefecture, she moved to the United States at age 11 due to her father’s job transfer and spent seven years attending a local school in New York. After returning to Japan, she enrolled in and graduated from the Faculty of Liberal Arts at Sophia University, where all classes are conducted in English. She began her career at a major financial institution in Tokyo, working in a generalist position. Questioning Japan’s work culture while also realizing her declining English proficiency, she decided to pursue a career change in the United States. She is now working as a flight attendant for United Airlines. Instagram
井清 蘭 Ran Isei
Born in 1992 in Higashikagawa, Kagawa Prefecture. In 2003, she moved to the United States due to her parent’s job transfer and began attending a local school in New York from sixth grade. In the fall of 2010, she entered Sophia University’s Faculty of Liberal Arts and relocated to Tokyo. As a student, she founded a college club and organized various events. In her senior year, she took part in an American Airlines recruitment event held in Texas. After graduating, she completed nearly two months of aviation security training and officially began working as a flight attendant in the spring of 2015. Since 2016, she has been based in Los Angeles.
Sakura and Ran Isei are twin sisters from Kagawa Prefecture, born only twenty minutes apart. Their early lives were identical—until career choices began to set them on slightly different paths. Today, both work as flight attendants in the United States, though for different airlines and in different cities: Sakura in San Francisco and Ran in Los Angeles.
Their journey with English began at age eleven, when their father’s job transferred the family to the U.S. Until then, they had lived in a small town where foreign residents were rare and English exposure was nonexistent. Aside from a few weekly lessons before the move, they arrived in the U.S. knowing only how to spell their names in English. Entering local schools with no Japanese peers, they relied on classmates’ kindness, nodding along and using simple “yes” and “no” to get by.
Throughout middle school, the sisters spoke exclusively in Japanese with each other—even during class. Unlike many siblings who gradually switch to English, they never once did. This solidarity was a source of comfort, but it also led them to adopt a strategy of “smiling and pretending to understand” instead of asking questions. Their English education came primarily from a small, customized ESL program and a dedicated tutor who helped them with pronunciation and reading through children’s books like Dr. Seuss.
Speaking skills grew faster than literacy. Reading assignments of thick novels were grueling; Ran recalls spending entire nights deciphering a single page with her electronic dictionary. Writing essays was equally painful, but tutors guided them patiently, turning their limited English into passable assignments. Sakura leaned on mathematics as her academic lifeline—an area where her Japanese schooling placed her well ahead of peers.
It was in high school that English began to click. Both joined marching band, where shared musical vocabulary helped them grasp surrounding instructions and conversations. Repeated phrases and teamwork built confidence. Gradually, what had once sounded like a blur of sounds began to separate into meaningful patterns. By graduation, daily conversations felt natural, though academic writing and class discussions remained intimidating.
In classrooms, both avoided drawing attention, often hiding in the “teacher’s blind spot” to avoid being called on. Yet at home, their dynamic was anything but passive. With test scores tied to allowance, they competed fiercely, each striving to outscore the other—even by a single point. This sibling rivalry became a driving force in their studies, balancing their shared struggles with personal motivation.
Although they initially planned to attend American universities, even paying deposits and preparing for dorm life, a last-minute acceptance from a Japanese university—and strong encouragement from their parents—shifted their path back to Japan. Both enrolled in a university in Tokyo, at first reluctantly. Ran admits she longed for America, but soon discovered the conveniences and vibrancy of Tokyo life. Sakura also took time to adjust, but by her third year, she found joy in classes and hobbies unique to Tokyo. Both now believe their parents’ decision was the right one.
Returning to Japan brought a new challenge: kanji. Having left Japan before intensive instruction began, their writing ability stalled at elementary-school level. While speaking Japanese remained natural, reading and writing proved far harder. In contrast, English had become their working language, shaping their professional identities abroad.
Although Ran loved her life in Tokyo during university, when it came time for job hunting, her true desire was to become a flight attendant. She applied widely to international airlines, open to working in any country. By chance, the first company to hire her was American, which led her back to the U.S. Though she had lingering insecurities about English, the job forced her to use it daily.
During training, Ran struggled with memorization and her old fear of speaking English. But in the new environment, no one knew her hesitant past self. She decided to reinvent her “character,” acting as if she could confidently speak English—even if her grammar wasn’t perfect. Surprisingly, this worked: her colleagues understood her, and her confidence grew quickly. She realized that English didn’t have to be perfect to be effective, and from then on, speaking became natural.
In contrast, Sakura initially stayed in Japan after graduation, working in sales at a Japanese company where she used no English. While this life was comfortable, her English ability declined, especially compared to Ran, whose skills were improving rapidly. The contrast made her realize, “This isn’t good,” and she decided to change course. Influenced by her sister’s experiences, she sought work in the U.S. and pursued the same career as a flight attendant.
Sakura faced hesitation when speaking English again after a two-year break, frustrated by her accent. But once working, she noticed that many international colleagues spoke with heavy accents or imperfect grammar, yet performed their jobs with confidence. This observation freed her from the burden of “sounding like a native.” She came to understand that English doesn’t have to be flawless to be functional and enjoyable.
Both sisters ultimately recognized that the pressure to speak “perfect English” is unnecessary. Their experiences show that confidence, communication, and persistence matter more than flawless grammar or accent. Letting go of perfection allowed them to enjoy using English and grow as professionals.
