Weekend Respite

I feel like last year all we did was explore. Ok, there was some teaching involved in our lives, but looking back, we spent so many weekends just exploring. First we began to explore the neighorhood in which we live. We then branched out to the neighborhoods surrounding ours, and eventually we decided to explore the rest of the country. We haven’t seen it all, but last year we definitely hit the highlights. 

This year we haven’t done a whole lot of that. I’m not sure why exactly. Lack of motor vehicles is a big factor, but maybe we are just tired. A couple weekends ago though, we got out. The city was just too much for too long. Too much smog. Too much trash. Too much burning trash. Too much dirt and dust and heat. Too much noise. Too much! The school van was working and we wanted to get away. A good friend and fellow teacher offered to let us use her family’s cabin up in the mountains. She said it wasn’t much and, if we were planning on camping, it would be perfect. She definitely downplayed how nice the cabin was. It definitely wasn’t your fancy Colorado style cabins, but it was more than a shack in the woods. 

The cute cabin!

After driving up the mountains and out of the city (and calling our friend several times to clarify directions) we pulled into a cute drive and say a rustic green and white wooden cabin. The caretaker opened the windows for us, brought us some semi-dry wood (it had been raining all afternoon) and then left us to our weekend. We explored and marveled in the cool, damp air. There was greenery….everywhere! And it was cold!! I can’t express the sheer joy of feeling cold. It’s a beautiful feeling. We set up our hammocks in the trees behind the cabin and begin to work on a fire (ok, the boys worked on the fire. Jill and I cut vegetables). 

Fire attempt....Fail.

Tasty dinner even without a campfire. 

After several hours, we realized the wood was just too wet to get a fire going (we had an Eagle scout working on the fire, so we gave it a good try) and used the camp stove instead. After a delicious dinner we sat around talking, resting, and soaking in the cold mountain air. We fell asleep wearing layers of clothing to keep us warm and listened to the sweet sound of silence instead of the car horns and radios we are so used to drowning out in the city.

View from the cabin early in the morning.

The next morning we were able to get a pretty nice fire going. We had a breakfast of smores and eggs; good fuel for our afternoon hike.

Boy Scout.

S'more. (A box of Graham crackers was $10 USD. We went with the $2 sugar cookie things)

Our chefs!

As we hiked we marveled at the beauty of this country. Why doesn’t CNN show this? Yes there is destruction and unimaginable poverty, but every once in a while take a second and show what Haiti does have! Beautiful land all around. Green lush mountains  covered with a patchwork of terraced farms. The late morning fog rolling in was icing on the beautiful landscape. We walked around a bit and, eventually, returned to the house to rest before driving back down into the city.

The boys contemplating life's meaning.

What a restful, rejuvenating 24 hours to get away from the noise of the city and breathe the fresh, clean, cool air of the mountains. 

Strange Habits

Thoughts on a Thursday night (because I haven't been very diligent about blogging....)

I sometimes wonder if, when I eventually move back to the states, I will be that weird person who lived overseas for a while. I wonder if I have developed certain odd habits that will stick with me for years to come.

--Will I always try to be in bed before 9pm, because that's when the air conditioner turns off and I want to fall asleep before it gets too hot?
--When I want to call my parents will I reach for my computer to Skype instead of my phone?
--Will I still spray bug spray on, even when I live in a less-mosquito infested area?
--Will I feel the need to always have a mosquito net canopy above my head and an oscillating fan blowing on me?
--Will I always have an unhealthy fear of accidentally drinking water from the tap?
--Will I always have an unhealthy lack of fear of rats, because they're just part of life?
--Will I end all of my plans with "if ______________ is working"?  (the _______ being the car, internet, electricity, etc)

Honestly, that's about all I can think of. I'm sure there are dozens of more weird habits I have picked up, that I don't even realize anymore because they are so ingrained into my every day routine. I'm settled in to life here. I've adjusted to the different routines and ways to do things, so much so that they are no longer "different" but are now normal.

Just some thoughts from today. This afternoon a few of us are getting out of town this weekend to go camping in the mountains. We haven't been out of the city at all this semester and it will be fabulous to get into the mountains with the fresh, cool air and relax for a bit.....if the car is working :)

Update

Yikes, I stink at this whole blogging thing lately. Here are the highlights from the past few weeks:

Teaching

I am in my fourth week as the sixth grade teacher hereat QCS. It is exhausting and quite a change from last year. I plan, teach, and grade all subjects (except Science, I switch with the 5^th grade teacher for Science and Social Studies). We are also responsible for our kids at lunch (yep, supervise lunch every day), recess once a week and irregular planning periods while our kids are at specials. We also plan chapel a few times a year in addition to the other responsibilities. I knew it would be a lot of work, but I didn’t realize how exhausting it would be! It made my year teaching in the states (with mandatory planning periods and student-free lunches daily) look a lot easier. 

However, depsite all that (which, really, isn’t that bad) I’m enjoying this year so far. The students are getting into their routines and I am too. We are doing a new reading and writing curriculum which I just LOVE and I enjoy getting to teach Bible to my class each day. That is definitely something I wouldn’t be able to do in an American public school. 

Weather

A few weeks ago Isaac made his run through the Caribbean. We avoided the worst of it here in our neighborhood. Friday night we all got together to hang out and just waited for Isaac to arrive. The day at school had been crazy. Kids on edge and everyone glancing up at the sky seeing if there was any difference from the last time they looked up. The wind picked up significantly around 2pm and that’s when parents came to pick up their kids early. The afternoon was a wash with no one really focused on anything but Isaac. 

Friday night the wind and rain came in and the temperature dropped. I actually had a sweatshirt and sweat pants on and opened the windows to let the cool air in. The wind howled all night long and the rain poured steadily throughout the night and morning. Our faithful gate guard, Pierre, was on duty all night in what we call the “guard-shack,” faithfully serving. Jill took him coffee and eggs the next morning to warm him up. Pierre deserves his own post. That Friday night marked 20 years that he had been working at Quisqueya. Talk about dedication!

Community

Over the summer we had several members of our community leave to other places and adventures and we had a couple of people join us here on campus. The dynamic in the community is different, but just as good. 

The other night our director, who grew up in Japan, had a few of us over for an authentic Japanese meal. Boy, did we feast! We even got to roll the sushi! When I return to Dallas this summer I will be hitting up one of the many Asian markets and attempting this on my own. 

Cats

The cats (Jasper and Max) survived the summer! Jasper is my cat and Max belongs to my roommate. Jasper has been very ill-behaved and might find himself sold on the street soon. He has the gift of being able to escape in a Houdini-like manner from a room with closed doors and windows. We haven’t figured out where and how he is able to get out, but we’re working on it. The cats are, however, exceptionally cute and we have not seen a single mouse, cockroach, or lizard in our house this year so they must be doing their job.

Volleyball

Volleyball is up and running again! I won’t be able to be as involved as last year, but I will hopefully still make it to a practice or two a week. I’m so excited to hang out with these girls and watch them grow as a team and individuals. 

I think that’s about all that is happening right now. Haiti is still Haiti with it’s pros and cons. Hopefully I can be a little more diligent in my blogging in the coming weeks. Thanks for following along!

First Week: Survived

Well, first week of the school year completed. It was way more exhausting than I thought it would be, but a great start. Teaching elementary here is very different from teaching in the states. The schedule wasn't finalized so we taught all of our specials this week. We supervise our own lunch and don't get a planning period. I was craving adult conversations at the end of each day. But, all in all it was a great to start to the year and I'm looking forward to many other great weeks!

2012-2013 School Year: Here We Go!

Welcome to the 2012-2013 school year! If decorating and setting up the classroom was the hardest part of the year I would be all set. Unfortunately, it isn’t, but at least my room is ready and it looks like learning can take place inside. Here is a little tour…

(The picture are a little out of order from how I wanted them but it took all day to upload due to horrid internet so I'm not risking even moving them around a little)

Classroom library. 

View from the front of the room. 

Place for book recommendations. "I liked this book, maybe you will too."

Math strategies. Two walls are all windows so those become bulletin boards.

View from the back of the room.

Birthday poster and class rules by the door.

My rendition of a classroom facebook. Kids will draw pictures of themselves the first day and I'll put that next to their "staus" box. We may have a prompt each week and they can change their status. The boxes are laminated construction paper so they can write on them with dry erase markers. 

Class jobs (Superhero theme) and the calendar (also the handy-dandy potable drinking water jug)

Writing wall. 

Weekly Objectives. i can write on the frames with dry-erase markers the objectives for each subject that week. 

My Jeopardy board. I didn't like the chalkboard so I turned it into another bulletin board. :)

I hope you enjoyed the tour. Tomorrow the kiddos will have their first day. I'm excited and nervous all at the same time. Looking forward to a fabulous year in sixth grade.

Update: Back in Haiti for Round Two

Oh hey, this old blog thing. I guess I should dust it off and get back to updating. I am back in Haiti and about to begin round (year) two here at Quisqueya Christian School. I had a great time back in the states over the summer. I got to see friends and spend some time in Dallas. I was able to visit my friend Katie, along with my friend Jill, in the Seattle area. We did the tourist thing, saw Les Miserables, watched one day of the U.S. Olympic Track & Field trials, soaked up the cool weather, and enjoyed each other’s company. I went to a teaching conference in South Carolina and then got to spend time with family after that. All in all the summer was filled with friends, family, fun, relaxing, and soaking in all the comforts and ease that America provides. 

But, it was time to come back to Haiti...and I’m so glad to be here! I felt sort of out of place in America without an apartment or house, or even a bedroom to really call my own. I so appreciate the friends and family who opened their homes to me and were so gracious and accommodating, but I am definitely glad to be back in my own space and back in the craziness of Port-au-Prince, Haiti that I call “home” right now. 

I came back to Haiti a bit earlier than some of my coworkers. I joined up with some friends of mine from Watermark Chuch in Dallas who were in Haiti on a mission trip spending time at Mission of Hope. I enjoyed getting to visit and catch up with them and witness them experience life in Haiti. After that I came back to the hustle and bustle of the city to get settled back in my apartment and begin setting up my classroom. 

That’s right...my classroom! I am teaching 6^th grade this year and have my own class and my own room. I’m so excited (and a little nervous) about what this year will be like. 

It feels strange to think that a year ago I was brand new here. A know-nothing noob fumbling around trying to interpret Creole and convert dollars to gourdes. How much I’ve learned and changed in a year, who knows where I will be and what I’ll know a year from now!

I’m pumped for the school year, fun with old friends and making new ones, getting to know my students and their families, and hopefully more travel around the country. 

Some things to pray for:

*The upcoming school year at QCS, that it would be a time of growth and change

*Continued stability (and improvement) in the country

*Protection from weather in the current hurricane season

*All-around safety and protection from illness

Thanks for following along for another year, I will definitely get better at updating now that I’m back!

Internet, Cars, and Food...

...are so stinking fast in America! It's kind of awesome.

I arrived back in Dallas last night. I had dinner with friends and slept in a big comfy bed in a cool, air-conditioned house. I went for a run this morning that involved a lake and quiet cool air instead of dust and  car horns.

I forgot how easy things can be in the land o' plenty. I downloaded a You-Tube video in 23 seconds. I took a hot shower that had water pressure. I forget that houses have central A/C and every time the air turns off I think "oh, the generator stopped working."

I have broken about 3-4 different traffic laws because I think I am driving in Haiti. The roads are weirdly smooth.

I'm excited to be back. I miss Haiti and it's craziness but I think I am going to relish the sweet simplicity of predictable life here for a few weeks.

Just a few thoughts.