How could I not fall in love?

Thursday 3- 11- 13
This morning I got up and was about to force myself out of bed when I remembered I didn't have to get up so early today! Well that set the day off right! All day yesterday and even this morning I wasn’t really excited to teach this school. I had no reason and it wasn't logical. The only reason I could come up with was that it is pretty new and we haven't been able to build a relationship with any of the kids. Also, they don’t have anyone there that speaks much English so the classes are sometimes hard to arrange because we can’t tell them we have to arrange the kids because they have English names etc. but school is school and I’m the teacher so it’s off to school we go! Rachelle told Juliana the last time we taught at that school that we wanted to just come home and eat at our school so she said that we can do that. PHEW!
Remembered I get to teach later so I was enjoying the alone time getting ready and I thought why not put some makeup on.. WHAT?? haha I think I forgot how to apply it but I tried my best!
I went to the gate and saw Rachelle waiting and when 8:40 rolled around (when we thought we had to be there) no cars were there... dang its 8:50 thats a whole extra 10 min of sleep! Bummer. We got picked up and headed to the school.
Once we got to the school we split into our classes and started teaching. I don't know about Rachelle but for me classes FLEW by today! We had lots of fun and the kids were laughing pretty hard. When we cleaned up after our classes I was standing with Rachelle ready to go when the teacher said “eat lunch here?” before I could do anything Rachelle replied “sure!” …. what?? Are you kidding me?? I just looked at her and said “you are killing me”...
We headed up the stairs and sat at a table next to some of our students and got our plate full of nasty and started to dig in.. or gag whichever you prefer. In the middle of gagging down a spoon full of egg and tomato, I caught many pairs of eyes looking over their shoulders watching me and Rachelle.

 Once those eyes looked away another couple heads turned and I again witness the same thing. These kids are the most inquisitive group of kindergarteners I teach. They seem to notice our every move and it makes me both proud and yet weary because I know the responsibility that puts on me! After we got done teaching, the teachers told us that we will go outside and play with the Students.

Normally I would have loved it, but the last time I did this I was Sick and had to try to blow bubbles with a sore throat and clogged sinuses... with that memory rushing back to me and realizing we for sure are going to miss out on lunch back home I was the very definition of fake it till you make it.

 


We went outside to sunny with clear skies accompanied with the perfect breeze... my mind right then and there took a 180. Instead of dwelling on the food, missing lunch and being tired. I was soaking in the

breeze, sun and my students using me as their tug-o- war rope! They got the fact that I can't understand Chinese but these kids are no dummies, there is no mistaking what they mean when you get drug to a slide, you slide down it. If you get taken to a swing, you swing on it. But my most favorite thing, I get a hug and I hug them back and boy do I hug them! I should have known this would happen; it always seems to happen to me, I decide something is less than stellar and then everything I have decided is out the window. I love these cute little kids so much!

I have been hugged more today than I have my whole trip! I have felt more love and joy from these kids than I have since I got here! When It was time to go I was right in the middle of possibly the biggest group hug I have been in, in my entire life! Once the students were pried away, a little Chinese voice yells “don't go!” please tell me, how could I not love this place??

I got back from the school to go to in-service that ended up being cancelled. So I made my own lunch from the plain oatmeal I got from the market here and bragged to my friends about how amazing my life is because of those students. This morning I woke up in the bummest mood which was completely wrong of me to do but came home from teaching grinning ear to ear!

Today we had our Calligraphy class which was pretty hard at first but I felt like I was getting the hang of it right as it was time to clean up and go to dinner. I hate that it is only an hour long because I could have kept going for much longer!

Thank goodness I got that practice mat so I can keep working on it! After dinner I corn rowed 3 girls hair for them and trimmed the back of marks hair for his birthday because he had a full on mullet forming back there! When I was done with that I tried to get caught up on emails etc but didn't get too far because the internet here is less than stellar. I feel bad because I want to email people back but it never works and I still feel like I am not caught up on things that I need to do as far as lesson planning etc. and that is my number 1 priority here.
Well, its bed time and I am exhausted! Goodnight!