Monday
I had a pretty good day with my kids. For reading class we were reading a story that had ‘chickens running frantically about’ and they didn’t know what the word ‘frantically’ was. So I demonstrated by strutting around like a frantic chicken in class. They got quite a kick out of that. Today was the first day we left the dog while we were at school and we were all worried about him during school. Chad, Jacki’s boyfriend who’s here visiting, went up earlier than the end of school to check on him. He did alright for being by himself, but we were glad to see each other. I ran Celaque and did really well time wise, which felt great. I had dinner by myself since LB and Sarah in town, did some school stuff, called Hilary, and played with puppy to finish my night.
Tuesday
Today was a long day; I was frustrated with my kids today in the afternoon. It’s just normal problems: talking while I’m talking or others are in multiple forms; not raising their hands to speak or asking permission to stand up. I just feel like a broken record player sometimes saying the same things over and over again. I don’t know what to do to have them change the way they listen. After my long day I took a nap. Sarah and I made chicken salad for dinner, which was delicious and something different. Our puppy got a flea bath so he’s all clean now!
Wednesday
Wednesdays are chapel; I had thought Mrs Lopez was going to do the devo, but when I got there it was just Tad and LB with their 6th grade and Nivelacion, so I did one on the spot. It went alright, I just hate being unprepared for things. I had a pretty good day; it’s getting consistently hot during the day, which I think affects the kids’ attention in class. I really had to go to the bathroom at the beginning of class and since I always tell my kids to go at lunch and recess, I decided to let them time me to see if I could do it in 3 minutes; I give them that much time when I let the whole class go. So I started running across the plaza and they all yelled to walk. I went to the bathroom so fast, skipped washing my hands (I had antibacterial stuff in my class) and started walking out when I hear my whole class yelling: “5, 4, 3, 2,1!” and I had missed the mark. I gave them a few extra minutes for recess in exchange. We went to town after school. I was feeling tired and hot, so I skipped running to do some laundry and started to pack for vacation. Almost there!
Thursday, March 25, 2010
Tuesday, March 23, 2010
Saturday and Sunday, March 20 & 21
Saturday
I GOT A PUPPY!!!! I woke up Saturday morning to a surprise! Sarah had gotten it the night before. We had been talking about getting one and we had been looking and finally found a healthy one! He’s so cute and his name is Fitzgerald, or Fitz for short. He’s about 6 weeks old, brown with a little black, and floppy ears. This is my first puppy; I never had a dog growing up so I have begun to realize how much work it is to take care of it. It’s kinda like a baby, but not quite as much work. I have to get up in the night to let it out to go to the bathroom, feed it, play with it, wash it, all the things that come with dog ownership. He’s our pride and joy though! Besides finding out about the dog, I needed to get some shopping done before Semana Santa and Tad had to get some things too so we made it a trip to town. I bought new dresses for the beach and a sweet pair of aviator sunglasses and Tad found what he wanted as well. Its great to know you can usually find what you want if you look long and hard enough.
We were waiting for our mototaxi near Guancascos and saw met Jen, Renske and Laura. They were in Gracias for the weekend with some other Project Trust (their British organization) people and invited us to go to the private hot springs! I was stoked because I’ve only been to the public ones because they’re closer and better known. But the private ones are obviously privately owned, less busy, and cleaner. They’re farther outside of town and for that reason we haven’t had the means to go there in a moto. Tad and I didn’t have our suits, but we worked with what we had; besides that’s how half the Hondurans do it, go bathing in their clothes in the hot springs. The girls’ director drove all of us to the springs and we relaxed there for the rest of the evening. It was great to just be able to be in nice warm water and be able to hang out with friends. I finished the night by watching the Pianist, which was quite a heavy movie, but very good.
Sunday
I slept in today, had breakfast and then went to river to lay out since it was my last weekend to do that before Spring Break. I took care of some spring break stuff, hung out with my housemates, and played with puppy. Tonight was also my first night of doggy duty. I have to admit I got crappy sleep because I went to bed kinda late, woke up at 1:30am, 4:00am, and finally at 6am. But a puppy’s gotta do his business; it’s my responsibility and the others girls’ as well. We take turns doing doggy duty nights so we can get a few good night’s sleep.
I GOT A PUPPY!!!! I woke up Saturday morning to a surprise! Sarah had gotten it the night before. We had been talking about getting one and we had been looking and finally found a healthy one! He’s so cute and his name is Fitzgerald, or Fitz for short. He’s about 6 weeks old, brown with a little black, and floppy ears. This is my first puppy; I never had a dog growing up so I have begun to realize how much work it is to take care of it. It’s kinda like a baby, but not quite as much work. I have to get up in the night to let it out to go to the bathroom, feed it, play with it, wash it, all the things that come with dog ownership. He’s our pride and joy though! Besides finding out about the dog, I needed to get some shopping done before Semana Santa and Tad had to get some things too so we made it a trip to town. I bought new dresses for the beach and a sweet pair of aviator sunglasses and Tad found what he wanted as well. Its great to know you can usually find what you want if you look long and hard enough.
We were waiting for our mototaxi near Guancascos and saw met Jen, Renske and Laura. They were in Gracias for the weekend with some other Project Trust (their British organization) people and invited us to go to the private hot springs! I was stoked because I’ve only been to the public ones because they’re closer and better known. But the private ones are obviously privately owned, less busy, and cleaner. They’re farther outside of town and for that reason we haven’t had the means to go there in a moto. Tad and I didn’t have our suits, but we worked with what we had; besides that’s how half the Hondurans do it, go bathing in their clothes in the hot springs. The girls’ director drove all of us to the springs and we relaxed there for the rest of the evening. It was great to just be able to be in nice warm water and be able to hang out with friends. I finished the night by watching the Pianist, which was quite a heavy movie, but very good.
Sunday
I slept in today, had breakfast and then went to river to lay out since it was my last weekend to do that before Spring Break. I took care of some spring break stuff, hung out with my housemates, and played with puppy. Tonight was also my first night of doggy duty. I have to admit I got crappy sleep because I went to bed kinda late, woke up at 1:30am, 4:00am, and finally at 6am. But a puppy’s gotta do his business; it’s my responsibility and the others girls’ as well. We take turns doing doggy duty nights so we can get a few good night’s sleep.
Monday, March 22, 2010
Friday, March 19
Friday
I was really excited for this Friday because it was the first day we as teachers could wear polos and jeans to school! In order to raise money for SAG, the teachers could pay 120 lemps (like $6) and be able to wear jeans and a polo through the end of April. Teaching went well today for a longer day Friday. It is also Father’s Day here in Honduras on the 19th so my kids decorated Father’s Day cards for their fathers. If they didn’t have fathers (which many of them don’t), they could do it for their grandpa, uncle, borther or even their mother. It’s really sad to hear some of the kids’ stories; like you ask them where their dad is and some don’t even know. I just relaxed at night; I ran and was really tired and went to bed early, like 10pm! I’m getting old, 10pm on a Friday night…
I was really excited for this Friday because it was the first day we as teachers could wear polos and jeans to school! In order to raise money for SAG, the teachers could pay 120 lemps (like $6) and be able to wear jeans and a polo through the end of April. Teaching went well today for a longer day Friday. It is also Father’s Day here in Honduras on the 19th so my kids decorated Father’s Day cards for their fathers. If they didn’t have fathers (which many of them don’t), they could do it for their grandpa, uncle, borther or even their mother. It’s really sad to hear some of the kids’ stories; like you ask them where their dad is and some don’t even know. I just relaxed at night; I ran and was really tired and went to bed early, like 10pm! I’m getting old, 10pm on a Friday night…
Thursday, March 18
I had to teach PE again since Mr. Bran not there. I had my kids run suicides to warm up (aren’t I horrible?), but I ran with them a few though. Then somehow some drama transpired between Claudia and Leonela. There were words exchanged and I think some history I didn’t know about and they were crying and blubbering. I tried to understand the problem but between them switching back and forth between Spanish and English and crying, it was tough. Thank goodness it was towards the end of class so I had the class line up for go back and took each of their hands in one of mine and we walked back to class. They were not allowed to talk to each other on the way there. I felt like a counselor, PE teacher and normal teacher today. Mr. Lara worked things out and straightened out some other drama in my class that had been happening outside class which I wasn’t aware of. I was tired after that; didn’t realize how much PE took out of me when I had to still teach during the day! Tutorias went pretty well for Language with comma rules, which is always helpful. I worked on progress reports at night; at least we don’t have them the Friday before break!
Wednesday, March 17- Happy St. Patrick's Day
Wednesday
I had a good day at school and we took our weekly trip to town. We got water and chimbo (gas) there and when I got back home I ran up Celaque for exercise. Afterwards LB and I were hungry so we tried to put chimbo top back in, but somehow we messed it up so it started shooting out at a high speed, spraying gas all over the house! So we dragged it outside so at least gas wasn’t all in the house. It was still shooting off at high rates of speed and I didn’t know what to do so I ran down to the neighbors to get someone to help us. I didn’t know if it was going to blow up, if we should try to save it, or what. One neighbor and Tad came up, then Sonia and Abby, then Bryan, and we asked if there was anything we could do because it was still full and they said no nothing. Therfore we had to waste a whole new container of chimbo; we just had to sit there and listen to the gas escape. Awesome…not only that but our water went out tonight, and I found a huge somewhat dangerous bug in our house after school which I had to kill. I was so pissed at the whole principle behind the chimbo incident that every time LB and I try to do something on our own or something, it ends up messing up (the sink, LB and her laundry, the chimbo). Days like these I just wish I lived in the US and had consistent electricity, running water and gas lines in my house for my stove.
I had a good day at school and we took our weekly trip to town. We got water and chimbo (gas) there and when I got back home I ran up Celaque for exercise. Afterwards LB and I were hungry so we tried to put chimbo top back in, but somehow we messed it up so it started shooting out at a high speed, spraying gas all over the house! So we dragged it outside so at least gas wasn’t all in the house. It was still shooting off at high rates of speed and I didn’t know what to do so I ran down to the neighbors to get someone to help us. I didn’t know if it was going to blow up, if we should try to save it, or what. One neighbor and Tad came up, then Sonia and Abby, then Bryan, and we asked if there was anything we could do because it was still full and they said no nothing. Therfore we had to waste a whole new container of chimbo; we just had to sit there and listen to the gas escape. Awesome…not only that but our water went out tonight, and I found a huge somewhat dangerous bug in our house after school which I had to kill. I was so pissed at the whole principle behind the chimbo incident that every time LB and I try to do something on our own or something, it ends up messing up (the sink, LB and her laundry, the chimbo). Days like these I just wish I lived in the US and had consistent electricity, running water and gas lines in my house for my stove.
Friday, March 19, 2010
Tuesday, March 16
Today as a normal day until La Union came to play a futbol game at our school in prepartation for SAG. SAG is Student Annual Gathering and all of the Abundant Life schools in Honduras go to Teguz for a weekend and compete in different things like futbol, basketball, chess, ping-pong, debate and other sorts of things. It’s a huge deal for the kids; only the middle and high school get to go. It costs quite a bit of money as well. The futbol game began at 11:40, so the hour before (science) it was almost impossible to keep my kids focused on what we were talking about. The bus came, horns were being blown, drums were pounding, and you could just feel the excitement in the air for the game. Almost the entire school watched it because they were either at lunch or we let them out of class so they could watch. It was hot, too, for the poor girls that were playing. All the kids were out there, screaming and chanting, blowing those crazy horns and banging on the drums they brought. It was crazy; I felt like I was back in high school for a second at a big rival game. La Union is one of our rivals because they’re so close to us. Jake was bragging to us and talking smack to us. It was really fun watching and participating in that, too. Unfortunately, La Union just played better than us and they ended up winning 4-1. I stayed after to finish room because Mr. Lara took tutorias, which was awesome and then headed home.
Thursday, March 18, 2010
My Clumsiness
So I'm not sure if I've always been this way, if it's gotten worse as I get older, or if being in Honduras just perpetuates it...I'm clumsy.
Let me tell you the things I have broken or spilled here.
Broken:
3-4 porcelein mugs/cups
The top of a glass cookware pot
One cereal bowl
My computer screen-it was dark, I wasn't looking and put my hand down directly on my computer screen (don't worry its fixed now!)
Things I Have Spilled/Dropped
Water-all the time. Trying to fill my bottle at school, accidently knocking over, etc, etc.
Coffee- same thing. At school walking from class to class, drinking it at home, etc.
Milk-spilled it on our grass mats and concrete floor and the table
Tea-spilled it on our grass mat and on the table
Watermelon-yes I tried to get my watermelon cold quickly so I put the bowl with the pieces in the freezer, thinking I was a genius. Oh no, when I open the door, the freezer door opens and out fall all my water melon pieces
Numerous times I have dropped silverware on the floor.
So...there you have it. Evidence of my clumsiness. Hopefully its just a phase...or not.
Let me tell you the things I have broken or spilled here.
Broken:
3-4 porcelein mugs/cups
The top of a glass cookware pot
One cereal bowl
My computer screen-it was dark, I wasn't looking and put my hand down directly on my computer screen (don't worry its fixed now!)
Things I Have Spilled/Dropped
Water-all the time. Trying to fill my bottle at school, accidently knocking over, etc, etc.
Coffee- same thing. At school walking from class to class, drinking it at home, etc.
Milk-spilled it on our grass mats and concrete floor and the table
Tea-spilled it on our grass mat and on the table
Watermelon-yes I tried to get my watermelon cold quickly so I put the bowl with the pieces in the freezer, thinking I was a genius. Oh no, when I open the door, the freezer door opens and out fall all my water melon pieces
Numerous times I have dropped silverware on the floor.
So...there you have it. Evidence of my clumsiness. Hopefully its just a phase...or not.
Wednesday, March 17, 2010
Monday, March 15
I had a normal Monday today, although I stayed after until 5 working on my door again. I just wanted to get it done so I wouldn’t have to worry about it later in the week. I walked back up and was really debating whether or not to run because I felt like I had not energy. I decided to just get at Celaque and run. Good thing I did because it was the fastest I’ve ran Celaque: 13 min up and I finished the whole third hill! There’s about 4 hills you have to conquer before it gets relatively flat. I was pretty proud of myself J I was offered dinner at the comedor and it worked out great because it was just LB and I at th house; Jacki and Sarah were in town for work and getting medicine. The power went out for a bit, which always seems to happen when I need a shower… so another cold refreshing shower for me! They’re really not that bad. The irony it came back on as I was in the shower the electricity came back on. I finished the night by cuttin up some watermelon, did the dishes, went back down to the comedor to work for a bit and then chilled until bed.
Saturday and Sunday, March 13 & 14
Saturday
Saturday morning we had French toast for breakfast since Tad’s friends were here. We got some work done and relaxed and then headed down to town to find a present for Paola. It’s her birthday this weekend and she’s having a party and we’re invited. And we just love Paola so even if she wasn’t having party she was still going to get a present from all the teachers! Sarah, Jacki, Tad, his friends, and I headed down to town to find presents. I ended up getting her a photo album and a hair barrette. We ate lunch in town (great tacos and puspusas) and then went to get coffee at Guancascos while we waited for the rest of the girls to finish up. We got back home in time to find out the party had been moved to later that evening. This meant more relaxing/working time.
Paola had her family from Comayagua here as well as some girls from her class up to her house for the party. It wasn’t as organized I guess you could say as the American birthday parties I’ve experienced. She opened some of her presents right away, then played, then ate dinner, then the cake with singing, then opened some more presents when she wanted to. Paola got great presents from the rest of the teachers as well as her friends and I think she really enjoyed herself. Renske and Laura called us later in the evening because they were in Gracias and wanted to come up to hang out with us. So the two girls along with Tad’s two friends (Mike and Pat) who were still in town came up for the night and we all hung out playing games.
Sunday
Today was my work day because I didn’t do much work the last few days as far as school work or housework is concerned. Mike, Pat, Renske, and Laura had to leave late morning so we had a big breakfast of pancakes to send them off. After they left it was time to work. I cleaned the house: picked up, swept and mopped the floor and cleaned the table and the stove. Tad and I did the dishes from our big breakfast and then I still had laundry to do. Yes, I decided I was going to do my own laundry this weekend. I only needed a few things done so I just did them myself. It was a still a lot of work though; I will never take a dishwasher or laundry machine for granted again! I took care of some more spring break stuff and graded and planned for school. By that time it was close to dinner, so I ate and took a hard earned shower. Finally at the end of the day my reward was to relax and watch a movie. Awesome.
Saturday morning we had French toast for breakfast since Tad’s friends were here. We got some work done and relaxed and then headed down to town to find a present for Paola. It’s her birthday this weekend and she’s having a party and we’re invited. And we just love Paola so even if she wasn’t having party she was still going to get a present from all the teachers! Sarah, Jacki, Tad, his friends, and I headed down to town to find presents. I ended up getting her a photo album and a hair barrette. We ate lunch in town (great tacos and puspusas) and then went to get coffee at Guancascos while we waited for the rest of the girls to finish up. We got back home in time to find out the party had been moved to later that evening. This meant more relaxing/working time.
Paola had her family from Comayagua here as well as some girls from her class up to her house for the party. It wasn’t as organized I guess you could say as the American birthday parties I’ve experienced. She opened some of her presents right away, then played, then ate dinner, then the cake with singing, then opened some more presents when she wanted to. Paola got great presents from the rest of the teachers as well as her friends and I think she really enjoyed herself. Renske and Laura called us later in the evening because they were in Gracias and wanted to come up to hang out with us. So the two girls along with Tad’s two friends (Mike and Pat) who were still in town came up for the night and we all hung out playing games.
Sunday
Today was my work day because I didn’t do much work the last few days as far as school work or housework is concerned. Mike, Pat, Renske, and Laura had to leave late morning so we had a big breakfast of pancakes to send them off. After they left it was time to work. I cleaned the house: picked up, swept and mopped the floor and cleaned the table and the stove. Tad and I did the dishes from our big breakfast and then I still had laundry to do. Yes, I decided I was going to do my own laundry this weekend. I only needed a few things done so I just did them myself. It was a still a lot of work though; I will never take a dishwasher or laundry machine for granted again! I took care of some more spring break stuff and graded and planned for school. By that time it was close to dinner, so I ate and took a hard earned shower. Finally at the end of the day my reward was to relax and watch a movie. Awesome.
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
News
So on Friday (March 12) after our lunch I had a meeting with Mr. Lara and Mr. Calderon about my decision for next year. I had been agonizing over this decision for weeks and finally in the last few days before Friday I felt peace about what I had decided to do. I went in and was really nervous to talk to them, but finally just spit it out and told them I'm NOT coming back next year to teach. Once I had gotten that out I felt so much better verbalizing it to the administration and it was official. They were sad, understandably, because they thought I was doing a good job and know how I work, but they also said they understand and they have other candidates who can fill my job.
So...I'm coming home the end of June! I really like living in Honduras, on the quiet mountains, with my neighbors in Villa Verde, seeing my kids in Gracias and traveling around the country and Central America. I like my job and my kids, but there are enough aspects about it that I don't love that have made me decide to not stay for another year. These last few weeks before Semana Santa are just dragging by, and then I still have 2 1/2 months after that. Now I can fully enjoy those months as my last here and hopefully get more out of them. I can also begin to think about options for next year back in the States (or not in the States haha). So if any of you who read this hear of anything you think I might be interested in, let me know!
See you Stateside the end of June!
So...I'm coming home the end of June! I really like living in Honduras, on the quiet mountains, with my neighbors in Villa Verde, seeing my kids in Gracias and traveling around the country and Central America. I like my job and my kids, but there are enough aspects about it that I don't love that have made me decide to not stay for another year. These last few weeks before Semana Santa are just dragging by, and then I still have 2 1/2 months after that. Now I can fully enjoy those months as my last here and hopefully get more out of them. I can also begin to think about options for next year back in the States (or not in the States haha). So if any of you who read this hear of anything you think I might be interested in, let me know!
See you Stateside the end of June!
Sunday, March 14, 2010
Monday-Friday, March 8-12
Monday-Friday March 8-12
Recap of the week! Mr. Lara came back on Tuesday with people from Teguz for the day, along with three girls from the Netherlands. They will be staying here for 3 months developing some new tourism curriculum for the high school. Science tutorias went well; I helped kids with our upcoming quiz and I think they understood and will do well. I went swimming in Froni’s pool with Paola and Tad after school because it was so hot. We tried to teach Paola how to swim, but she kept getting scared or as she’d say “I have a scare!” Wednesday I got my free periods of math back to plan since Mr. Lara is back! Tuesday and Wednesday night the power went off for a few hours each night, so I had to grade by candlelight. Since there was no electricity, that meant no hot water which meant I had to take a few cold showers; it was quite refreshing to say the least!
I ran up Celaque on Monday and Wednesday. I’m getting getting better at handling the hills and such, which makes me glad. I still miss running on flat ground though! The stars Wednesday night were so beautiful because there was no power anywhere. It was also unbelievably warm, like a summer night, so I just enjoyed looking up at the stars for a while. Laura Beth and I played with Candido and Abagail for little while Wednesday night; they make my heart so happy. They’re just normal kids living in the mountains of Honduras and so full of life and laughter. I had whole conversations with them in Spanish, so I felt pretty proud talking to a 4 year old haha.
Thursday morning didn’t start out very well for me. A cat had gotten into our house the night before and had knocked over a glass jar. So there was broken glass all over the floor. As I was trying to clean it up I knocked over another one. Then when I arrived at school, Husai was stung by a scorpion, Jenny’s water bottle broke, and I had to teach PE because Mr. Bran was in La Union with the soccer team. So I was tired already by recess. I talked to Ana and we ‘decided’ on our new jobs for next year: she’ll take Vicente’s job and I’ll be the recruiter, like Mr. Lara and Jake just did. That way we can both stay in Gracias and Honduras if we don’t want to teach. Mr. Lara took my kids for math today during tutorias, so that was a nice change of pace. I worked on some of my room decorations for Semana Santa. Friday we had a half day (the kids left at noon) which I think was the closest we were going to get to having a day off from Teguz. It’s better than nothing; I’ll take what I can get. We had an all staff lunch and quick meeting and I stayed after school to work on my door for a while and then went home to take a nap.
Friday night I went into town along with Tad because his friends from La Union were coming into Gracias for the weekend. I had a craving for baleadas, so I ate those for dinner and then just chilled in the central park for a while. I just sat there and enjoyed the warm evening and the tranquility of Gracias, remembering that I live here…in Honduras…and this is my life right now. I do that sometimes, just have those ‘I live in Honduras’ moments and its great. I talked to my family on the phone until Tad and his friends were done with dinner and then we all headed back up the mountain to enjoy our Friday evening.
Recap of the week! Mr. Lara came back on Tuesday with people from Teguz for the day, along with three girls from the Netherlands. They will be staying here for 3 months developing some new tourism curriculum for the high school. Science tutorias went well; I helped kids with our upcoming quiz and I think they understood and will do well. I went swimming in Froni’s pool with Paola and Tad after school because it was so hot. We tried to teach Paola how to swim, but she kept getting scared or as she’d say “I have a scare!” Wednesday I got my free periods of math back to plan since Mr. Lara is back! Tuesday and Wednesday night the power went off for a few hours each night, so I had to grade by candlelight. Since there was no electricity, that meant no hot water which meant I had to take a few cold showers; it was quite refreshing to say the least!
I ran up Celaque on Monday and Wednesday. I’m getting getting better at handling the hills and such, which makes me glad. I still miss running on flat ground though! The stars Wednesday night were so beautiful because there was no power anywhere. It was also unbelievably warm, like a summer night, so I just enjoyed looking up at the stars for a while. Laura Beth and I played with Candido and Abagail for little while Wednesday night; they make my heart so happy. They’re just normal kids living in the mountains of Honduras and so full of life and laughter. I had whole conversations with them in Spanish, so I felt pretty proud talking to a 4 year old haha.
Thursday morning didn’t start out very well for me. A cat had gotten into our house the night before and had knocked over a glass jar. So there was broken glass all over the floor. As I was trying to clean it up I knocked over another one. Then when I arrived at school, Husai was stung by a scorpion, Jenny’s water bottle broke, and I had to teach PE because Mr. Bran was in La Union with the soccer team. So I was tired already by recess. I talked to Ana and we ‘decided’ on our new jobs for next year: she’ll take Vicente’s job and I’ll be the recruiter, like Mr. Lara and Jake just did. That way we can both stay in Gracias and Honduras if we don’t want to teach. Mr. Lara took my kids for math today during tutorias, so that was a nice change of pace. I worked on some of my room decorations for Semana Santa. Friday we had a half day (the kids left at noon) which I think was the closest we were going to get to having a day off from Teguz. It’s better than nothing; I’ll take what I can get. We had an all staff lunch and quick meeting and I stayed after school to work on my door for a while and then went home to take a nap.
Friday night I went into town along with Tad because his friends from La Union were coming into Gracias for the weekend. I had a craving for baleadas, so I ate those for dinner and then just chilled in the central park for a while. I just sat there and enjoyed the warm evening and the tranquility of Gracias, remembering that I live here…in Honduras…and this is my life right now. I do that sometimes, just have those ‘I live in Honduras’ moments and its great. I talked to my family on the phone until Tad and his friends were done with dinner and then we all headed back up the mountain to enjoy our Friday evening.
Saturday, March 13, 2010
Saturday and Sunday, March 6 & 7
I slept in late both days, which felt amazing to not have to worry about an alarm or have anywhere to go. I didn’t really do much all weekend; we had gone to town on Friday so there wasn’t an absolute need to go to town. I laid out by the river and got burned (again); I played with neighbor kids and went to church on Sunday night. I did think about my decision a lot because we all starting talking about it Saturday afternoon and then it was heavy on my mind all weekend. All of us, whether we were staying or going, talked about pros and cons of each and it seemed to give me more questions than answers again. On weekends when I’m just living here I feel like I could stay another year. I had that feeling at church on Sunday night when Paola was sitting by me, hugging me and I was worshiping with my neighbors. I feel like that at times when I’m teaching as well. I talked to my parents and some of my friends back home about it as well; I need to know by next week (March 12thish). I just want to make the decision so I can know whether to gear up for another year here or if I’m not staying, then to enjoy even more these next few months in Honduras.
Thursday, March 11, 2010
Decisions and Reflections
Decision time this week…still not completely sure on it. Some days I think yes, some days no. I just have to keep listening to God and my family and friends and take the time I’m given. I also can’t believe its March already. I no longer have to count down how long I’ve been here but start counting down the months until the end of the school year. I was also thinking about where I was a year ago; I was in living and working in downtown Chicago, getting into the swing of my internship at Erie House. I was in one of the biggest cities in the US, using the public transportation system everyday and having a plethora of restaurants, shops and activities to choose from. I think this time last year was when I first heard about this opportunity as well and was getting excited about it. I just can’t believe how much has changed in a year. Now I am living and working in the mountains of Honduras, with internet (usually), electricity and water (most times), bugs, amazing neighbors, my crazy kids, the public ‘transporation system’ here, and a few restaurants, a central park, and a market for entertainment in Gracias. Ah life…I just wonder sometimes how Honduras is going to fit into the puzzle of my life. I’m sure I’ll look back on this experience, as I have on other experiences, and see how this has prepared me for ones to come. Hindsight is always 20/20 right? And God knows whats up, too; I’m glad someone does!
Monday, March 8, 2010
Monday-Friday, March 1-5
Since things have been so in a routine lately, I’ll just highlight/summarize this week in one blog.
Monday was definitely a Monday; I was tired and ready for vacation. Jacki was home sick on Monday, so she graciously made homemade pizza for us for dinner, which was amazing. Tuesday I think I just woke up on the wrong side of the bed because I had a shorter fuse than normal. When I have days like those, I try to not let it affect the way I teach, but unfortunately it does at times. I ran up Celaque on Monday for exercise, but just needed to rest on Tuesday, so I took a nap Tuesday afternoon to rest. Wednesday I did chapel on the tower of the Fruits of the Spirit and had my kids act as fruit trees that did and did not produce fruit. I think they liked it. Art is on Wednesdays as well and they had a messy project that day: paper mache. The floor was covered in newspaper, flour and water and some kids decided it would be funny to dump some out on each other as well. Crazy kids, but I think they really enjoyed it.
My tutorias with science went well this week. We played a game, girls vs boys and my boys are rambunctious. That energy just works out so much better when there’s less kids in tutorias. They got so excited about the answers they had to come up with as a team; they would jump up and down with their arms around each other and chant the answer…so awesome. Thursday pretty well, although I had progress reports to work on. Finally Friday arrived and I found myself through another week.
Funny things my kids have said: I asked Husai what’s up and he said the sky; I was definitely not expecting him to answer that and I could tell he was all proud of himself. It’s also amusing that my kids can tell when I’m tired ; they’ll be like, “Miss, you look tired,” and they know I like and need coffee haha.
I had a quick talk with 9th grade about the word b**** because they were singing Katy Perry’s “Hot n Cold” and came to the part about ‘you PMS like a b**** I should know’ and one of the girls was like ‘we can’t sing that word it’s bad.’ And not all the rest of the kids knew what she was talking about. So I explained what the word meant to an extent and strongly advised them to first, never use that word, and second (especially for the boys) to never call a girl that word. So that was fun.
Just another week in my life in Honduras….
Monday was definitely a Monday; I was tired and ready for vacation. Jacki was home sick on Monday, so she graciously made homemade pizza for us for dinner, which was amazing. Tuesday I think I just woke up on the wrong side of the bed because I had a shorter fuse than normal. When I have days like those, I try to not let it affect the way I teach, but unfortunately it does at times. I ran up Celaque on Monday for exercise, but just needed to rest on Tuesday, so I took a nap Tuesday afternoon to rest. Wednesday I did chapel on the tower of the Fruits of the Spirit and had my kids act as fruit trees that did and did not produce fruit. I think they liked it. Art is on Wednesdays as well and they had a messy project that day: paper mache. The floor was covered in newspaper, flour and water and some kids decided it would be funny to dump some out on each other as well. Crazy kids, but I think they really enjoyed it.
My tutorias with science went well this week. We played a game, girls vs boys and my boys are rambunctious. That energy just works out so much better when there’s less kids in tutorias. They got so excited about the answers they had to come up with as a team; they would jump up and down with their arms around each other and chant the answer…so awesome. Thursday pretty well, although I had progress reports to work on. Finally Friday arrived and I found myself through another week.
Funny things my kids have said: I asked Husai what’s up and he said the sky; I was definitely not expecting him to answer that and I could tell he was all proud of himself. It’s also amusing that my kids can tell when I’m tired ; they’ll be like, “Miss, you look tired,” and they know I like and need coffee haha.
I had a quick talk with 9th grade about the word b**** because they were singing Katy Perry’s “Hot n Cold” and came to the part about ‘you PMS like a b**** I should know’ and one of the girls was like ‘we can’t sing that word it’s bad.’ And not all the rest of the kids knew what she was talking about. So I explained what the word meant to an extent and strongly advised them to first, never use that word, and second (especially for the boys) to never call a girl that word. So that was fun.
Just another week in my life in Honduras….
Saturday, March 6, 2010
Saturday and Sunday, February 27 & 28
Saturday
The last few Saturdays have been rainy, which changes our plans to walk to town on Saturdays. It’s not very good motivational weather either! I attempted to get some work done after sleeping in and got a call from Renske and Laura (the two European girls who teach in La Union) saying they were in town and wanted to come up to Villa Verde to visit and say hi. So we spent the afternoon with them, showing them our house and neighborhood as well as catching up. Renske is the 5th grade teacher in La Union and she and I decided we’d try to do a pen pal thing between the 5th graders in Gracias and La Union. I’m excited to see how that turns out! After we hung out for a bit, most of us headed back to town with the girls for dinner at a nicer restaurant. I got fettuccine alfredo with chicken; it was so good! The girls were staying at Guancascos, so we hung out there for a while before heading back to Villa Verde for the night.
Sunday
Today was another chill day; I slept in, did some school work, relaxed by the river for a little bit and caught up with my family and some friends. It gets frustrating being down here for the reason that I usually have to be the one to contact my family and friends by phone because the call is international and cheaper for me to call them. They can’t just pick up the phone and call me. So that’s another thing to think about and it’s gets hard to try to coordinate schedules to make sure I can talk to someone when I call them. Despite it being a relaxing day, I am still not ready for Monday and another week to start.
The last few Saturdays have been rainy, which changes our plans to walk to town on Saturdays. It’s not very good motivational weather either! I attempted to get some work done after sleeping in and got a call from Renske and Laura (the two European girls who teach in La Union) saying they were in town and wanted to come up to Villa Verde to visit and say hi. So we spent the afternoon with them, showing them our house and neighborhood as well as catching up. Renske is the 5th grade teacher in La Union and she and I decided we’d try to do a pen pal thing between the 5th graders in Gracias and La Union. I’m excited to see how that turns out! After we hung out for a bit, most of us headed back to town with the girls for dinner at a nicer restaurant. I got fettuccine alfredo with chicken; it was so good! The girls were staying at Guancascos, so we hung out there for a while before heading back to Villa Verde for the night.
Sunday
Today was another chill day; I slept in, did some school work, relaxed by the river for a little bit and caught up with my family and some friends. It gets frustrating being down here for the reason that I usually have to be the one to contact my family and friends by phone because the call is international and cheaper for me to call them. They can’t just pick up the phone and call me. So that’s another thing to think about and it’s gets hard to try to coordinate schedules to make sure I can talk to someone when I call them. Despite it being a relaxing day, I am still not ready for Monday and another week to start.
Thursday and Friday, February 25 & 26
Thursday
Colder today, an easier day overall. I had tutorias which went pretty well for language and reading. I finished grading my kids’ science projects as well. Speaking of science, I started giving notes in science class using concept maps and flow charts, which the kids really like more than just straight notes (I don’t blame them). They’re like, “Miss are we going to do another map like last time?” So I think I’ve found a better way to communicate with my students in science while still getting through the curriculum.
Friday
Finally Friday! I taught my kids the meaning of TGIF, so now they know what to say on Fridays! I was ready for the weekend to be here, especially with my parents being here and being out of a normal schedule with that. Fridays are my longs days; I figured out in literal hours I teach for 6 hours on Fridays, or all 9 of our classes. But I made it through and Friday nights are awesome…no worries, nothing I have to do. Weekend here I come.
Colder today, an easier day overall. I had tutorias which went pretty well for language and reading. I finished grading my kids’ science projects as well. Speaking of science, I started giving notes in science class using concept maps and flow charts, which the kids really like more than just straight notes (I don’t blame them). They’re like, “Miss are we going to do another map like last time?” So I think I’ve found a better way to communicate with my students in science while still getting through the curriculum.
Friday
Finally Friday! I taught my kids the meaning of TGIF, so now they know what to say on Fridays! I was ready for the weekend to be here, especially with my parents being here and being out of a normal schedule with that. Fridays are my longs days; I figured out in literal hours I teach for 6 hours on Fridays, or all 9 of our classes. But I made it through and Friday nights are awesome…no worries, nothing I have to do. Weekend here I come.
Wednesday, February 24
We had chapel today, which I did the songs for and the rest of the day went well until I had to leave early to bring my parents to Santa Rosa. My dad bought a Honduras jersey before he left and then we dragged their suitcases down to the bus station and were on our way. It was a little stressful making sure the ride to Santa Rosa went alright. The more stressful part was finding a bus to SPS for them when we got to Santa Rosa. I tried my best to find a nicer one for them and the one they were on was alright; it could’ve been better. I waited til they were off and then treated myself to some coffee and got some groceries at the supermarket (two things that are a treat for me). I went back on bus to Gracias and was worried about parents all night. They had no way of contacting me until they got to SPS unless the borrowed someone’s phone. They left Santa Rosa at like 3 so at the latest they should have arrived in SPS around 7. I got a few calls from them on someone else’s phone that they were stuck in traffic coming into SPS and to call the hotel that was going to shuttle them to tell them they would be late. Finally around 8:30-9ish I talked to them and they had made it, barely! They had made so many stops on the way to SPS as well as getting stuck in traffic just outside SPS; my parents were done with the public transportation of Honduras!
Tuesday, February 23
First a disclaimer: I apologize for lack of updates. I want people to know what is going on in my life here, but sometimes life here gets busy or in a routine and I forget to update. I love and miss all of you.
It was a good day even though it was long. I lost one of my free periods because Mr. Calderon couldn’t teach my math class because he had a meeting. He is supposed to be teaching 5th and 6th grade math classes while Mr. Lara is away in the States recruiting for next year. So he comes to me yesterday or today and was like, “Miss can you cover math for me, because I have a lot of things to do, but when I can I’ll come to teach and you’ll be able to rest.” Now I’m a team player and willing to help out where I can, but that is taking away my free periods, passing your responsibility onto someone else because you supposedly have better things to do, and throwing me into the curriculum when I have no idea what my kids have been learning and where they are. Extremely frustrating for me and I don’t expect many free math periods the next few weeks. My tutorias went pretty well and my parents came up to the school just as I was finishing up. They had another one of my experiences of walking up the mountain back to my house with me. They stayed for dinner with the whole house; I made spaghetti. I wanted to make sure they got back in time again, but before they left my parents, Tad, and I played Euchre; guess who won? They leave tomorrow…the week with them has flown by!
It was a good day even though it was long. I lost one of my free periods because Mr. Calderon couldn’t teach my math class because he had a meeting. He is supposed to be teaching 5th and 6th grade math classes while Mr. Lara is away in the States recruiting for next year. So he comes to me yesterday or today and was like, “Miss can you cover math for me, because I have a lot of things to do, but when I can I’ll come to teach and you’ll be able to rest.” Now I’m a team player and willing to help out where I can, but that is taking away my free periods, passing your responsibility onto someone else because you supposedly have better things to do, and throwing me into the curriculum when I have no idea what my kids have been learning and where they are. Extremely frustrating for me and I don’t expect many free math periods the next few weeks. My tutorias went pretty well and my parents came up to the school just as I was finishing up. They had another one of my experiences of walking up the mountain back to my house with me. They stayed for dinner with the whole house; I made spaghetti. I wanted to make sure they got back in time again, but before they left my parents, Tad, and I played Euchre; guess who won? They leave tomorrow…the week with them has flown by!
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