First, well, it has been a while now since it really occupied more of my thoughts, but it struck me just how important it is to know others and be known. It is such a basic part of being human. The problem is it's much easier to live life without ever having a really good connection with someone. True, we don't want to open to just anyone, and I recognize how those self-protection mechanisms are constantly on alert. Yet, I believe that those deep friendships are so vital to a full enjoyment of life. Anyway, just as a sidenote, I encourage you to keep developing those friendships--try to know and be known by at least one friend. Ask hard questions. Be vulnerable. And find joy in serving others. I believe it's a part of God's original plan.
I'm sure you're also wondering about my car situation. Well, I have partially fixed the problem of the truck being 2.5 inches lower on the right. That is a good thing. Set me back $235 to have the leaf springs reshaped (apparently one was slightly flatter than the other, aggravating the problem) and had the u-bolts and bushings replaced. My car now rides probably 2 inches taller than stock...in the front. This is great except that now I have to replace the shocks (they're bad anyway) with ones two inches longer. This means probably double the price. Looking at more than $200 for this, too! Between these fixes and the list I've been adding to, I'm trying to decide what really must be fixed and how much is definately necessary before my parents make the trip in 3 weeks. Also kind of funny: because of the first downpour we had yesterday I realized there is some pretty big leak happening somewhere in the dash and falling onto the floor by the clutch. Good thing Toyota put nickle-sized hole in the floor of the car. near that same area. :)
In terms of teaching, I don't know exactly how to feel. First, let me say I enjoy working with children. I enjoy the relationships with them...when we are not in class. When we are in class I feel like I'm fighting with them all the time trying to get their attention to help them learn English and how to respect me and the other students. And I feel like it's a losing battle. I believe that someone skilled in teaching ESL could make this a very good and very successful program. I did want to mention something that was meaninful for me two weeks ago. I had raised a concern that high school students were coming late to my classes, were being unprepared, and generally a bit disrespectful. The director called a meeting with the other high school teachers and then and there they made the commitment to make sure students were on time and ready for class. They also agreed that one of them would sit in my class to monitor the respect levels and be ready to step in if I needed any help. These two things were for me hugely encouraging as high school has been by far my biggest challenge. Since this started, things have been going slightly better. Most of the time I am able to start the class without having to chase people to their seat then having them leave the room to get a pencil or their textbook or a notebook. It's a relief to start without that negativity.
Mother's day was this past week. We had a very entertaining celebration presentation at the school. Many of the classes organized and performed a dance. We had a dance instructor come to the school and work with the different classes everyday for a week. She did a fantastic job and I was very impressed by the quality of the dancing. Even the kindergartners had an amazing dance. I took some video, so if I can swing it I'll show it to you in a later email.
I'm really enjoying the new living situation. If you'll recall, I moved out of the house with the Honduran family and into a house across the street with a friend. We bought a bread machine at a local second hand store and have been baking our own bread. Quite fun, and quite unheard of here. Still trying to perfect the recipes, but I'd say we're doing a good job.
One more interesting note. A drug bust was made in the apartments that I lived in when I first arrived. Check out this friend's blog for some photos and a brief synopsis.
Prayer Items
-Prayers of thanks for the support I've felt in high school.
-Please pray that I will have understanding in dealing with 2nd graders who have no attention span and 4th graders who will not stop talking.
-Pray that I will be able to experience those know/be known friendships.
