Work, Work, Work

September 13, 2006

Man, am I tired! I have been working really hard.

This is a good thing in that it makes the time go faster. It’s nice when I look at the clock and it’s 7:30, then I look again and it’s 1:30. Last year I spent a lot of time looking at the clock, waiting for the time to slip by. Now I don’t have time to cram it all in.

I still only have seven students, but I have three different spelling groups, three different math groups, and at least five different reading levels. My youngest is six and my oldest is nine. The planning is intense. I have to stagger all of my activities so as to assure that I can tend to everyone. I think my biggest realization is that I am not really cut out for first graders. I am truly surprised that I haven’t made one of them cry yet.

On the other hand, the weather has been great! We have had enough rain to cool things down, but not so much to make it really humid. We have also been playing volleyball fairly regularly. These things all make the time pass more quickly. Overall, the year has been going really well. Anna is working out great.

The boss says he’s coming up next week. He wants to fly in on Thursday evening and fly out Friday afternoon. Sounds great huh? Except that Friday is Malian Independence Day and there is no school. It’s convenient isn’t it; that the boss has never seen any of us teach. How does he even know what we’re teaching? He always schedules himself so as to miss out on anything important. Why does he bother to come up at all? It’s quite the switch from NYC.

My principal there was on my case all the time. If she entered my room it was to see what I was doing wrong. I hated seeing her and wanted her to go away. I’m not sure which situation was worse. At least I got the sense that Ms Darden had an idea about what I was doing. This guy James could care less what we do, so long as he doesn’t hear anything bad. It’s a weird spot, but in the end, I am very comfortable with what I’m doing and would probably react poorly to any criticism, constructive or not (nah, ya think? ME?!).
MJR

Growing

September 3, 2006

I love the way banana trees grow. New leaves start in the middle as a rolled up tube. It pushes its way up, unfolding as it rises. Finally it falls into place and unravels to reveal a huge green leaf. After some time, the leaf starts to fray until the edges become ragged and torn. It’s really cool to watch.






MJR

Settling In...At Last

August 28, 2006

We are home and things have settled.

School started last Monday for the upper grades, I had three kids. We got off to a slow start as we were all very frustrated and more than a little depressed by our homecoming. It’s amazing how much things can change here without ever making it different.

Ernie decided he had had enough and he resigned. He has worked in West Africa for eight years, but finally came to the conclusion that he needed time with his family. It seems a little late to me as his children are all grown, but he was happy and so I am happy for him. Tuesday night was a big party for his going.

Zachary was the only child present. He entertains himself well, especially at the club where there is a selection of toys to keep him busy. The legos always attract his attention. Our routine is to get a bag and gather enough legos to build an airplane. He was playing happily on the floor near the entrance to the bar, talking to his plane, flying around the world, when Richard Cox (you know…Dick!) walked in. He immediately addressed Zachary and spent some time chatting.

I was his next victim. He sought me out (maybe because he knew I was less then sober). He then proceeded to compliment me up and down on our child. He regaled me with praise for the brilliance of our child, claiming all the while that such a clever child must have extremely clever parents. I was a little dumbstruck, but ever grateful for the PR man I have for a son.

Thankfully, our bags arrived Wednesday and Anna had a home by Friday. It took some cajoling, a task Anna is ever capable of and does not shy away from (unlike our boss). She is now moved in and settled, which is good considering she started classes today.

Zman was ecstatic at starting school again. He was energized by the fact that he has a new teacher and practically ran the short distance to school. Oh, but hey, I almost forgot; we had a birthday party for the little man on Friday. There were four other kids who had birthdays around the same time so we had a big bash for everyone. There were five cakes, lots of food, and games galore. Just about the time everyone was ready for a swim, Zachary asked if we could play Musical Chairs. We obliged him, but guess who the first one out was? We played a second round, but again he was excluded immediately. We finally jumped in the pool and cooled off.










Maybe things are settling down. I hope so. I have a tough year ahead of me and I need to focus on that task, not a whole bunch of other crap. We discovered that it will cost $450 to ship Z’s bag. Fortunately, Kevin has volunteered to go through it and ship only the things we need (like Thomas and friends).
MJR