Well here I am. Living on the island of Roatan, Honduras. Sitting in my apartment. Fan blasting at my face. Perpetually sticky from humidity. Amazed by the greenery and the beautiful crystal blue ocean. Incredibly blessed. Nervous for the first day of teaching. And in awe that I get to live here for the next year.
I guess I'll start at the beginning of this journey...
Two days ago, Laura and I boarded a plane from LAX at midnight, and arrived in Houston at about 6am, had a four hour layover, two of which were spent sleeping on the terminal floor, and met up with two other teachers who were flying in from Dallas and Virginia. We quickly bonded over what little teaching experience any of us had, how beautiful we knew Roatan was going to be, and how many unanswered questions we all had. Two and a half hours later we arrived. Greeted by our wonderful school director, Ms. Nina, a short stocky Honduran lady with seemingly endless energy, another teacher, Ms. Nina's husband Don Jaime, and their two kids Paulina and Diego. I quickly learned that Diego is going to be in 6th grade (the grade I am teaching!!!) and he quickly began to tell me allllll I needed to know about their class.
Here is what I've learned:
The LOVE to talk.
They love Eminem.
They have pretty much all been in the same class since kindergarten.
Diego likes a girl named Maria who continues to reject his advances, even after 5 years.
Daniela has anger management issues that everyone thinks is crazy but Diego likes because she drew him a picture of a dragon once.
There is a boy named Andy whose head sounds like a coconut if you knock on it.
They love to dance.
And they really loved the teacher that they had last year.
...So after talking to him I'm not sure if I am more or less nervous to start teaching...it sort of changes by the second. Luckily, or perhaps unluckily, none of the other American teachers have any real teaching experience, so I think we will be a great support for each other.
We went from the airport straight to our new home! A cute and quaint beachy little wooden, tin-roofed apartment building. It is painted bright yellow with blue trim. There are three apartment on top and three on bottom, Laura and I lucked out with a second floor apartment which means vaulted ceilings! We are also the only apartment that has yet to find any cockroaches, or spiders. (praise the lord) I attribute this to our little reptile friend that we met upon arrival. I first found him in my room when I was moving in, today he roamed about the living room, and ended the night in the kitchen. We've named him Leonardo (last name daGecko). I pick him over roaches any day.
Today we went to a resort called Turquoise Bay and got to spend the day at the beach. The water is warm and blue and beautiful and seems to go on forever. If I could have my class meet in the ocean everyday I would. We did meet some crab critters (one of the girls had her toe pinched) and I tried my first cup of conch soup..which was surprisingly delicious, and saw some of the cutest little kids playing some futbol in the sea.
I am really loving getting to know all the teachers better. Living in the apartments there are two guys, one from Washington and one a local Honduran who hasn't arrived yet. Four American girls, one who also hasn't arrived yet, and two Honduran girls that live next door to Laura and me. We all, for the most part, seem to be in a similar phase of life. A transitionary phase. Freshly graduated and figuring it out from there.
I guess that's what I really hope to do this year. Figure some things out. Figure out what I am most passionate about, where God is leading, and what that will look like in the future. So forgive me if these blog posts ever grow to be too introspective and talking in circles-y. But thanks for being a part of my processing and encouraging me along the way!
Well, I am sure there is a lot more to say and a lot I've left out, but orientation starts early tomorrow! and seeing as how this is my first every blog post, I am not really sure how to end one of these things. So I'll end it with this verse that I read in Max Lucado's Grace for the Moment. It was from August 6th, which was the date that I left California to start this adventure.
Fix your attention on God. You'll be changed from the inside out. - Romans 12;2
Pray for an inside out change in me.
Love and prayers to you all.
Tricia
I guess I'll start at the beginning of this journey...
Two days ago, Laura and I boarded a plane from LAX at midnight, and arrived in Houston at about 6am, had a four hour layover, two of which were spent sleeping on the terminal floor, and met up with two other teachers who were flying in from Dallas and Virginia. We quickly bonded over what little teaching experience any of us had, how beautiful we knew Roatan was going to be, and how many unanswered questions we all had. Two and a half hours later we arrived. Greeted by our wonderful school director, Ms. Nina, a short stocky Honduran lady with seemingly endless energy, another teacher, Ms. Nina's husband Don Jaime, and their two kids Paulina and Diego. I quickly learned that Diego is going to be in 6th grade (the grade I am teaching!!!) and he quickly began to tell me allllll I needed to know about their class.
Here is what I've learned:
The LOVE to talk.
They love Eminem.
They have pretty much all been in the same class since kindergarten.
Diego likes a girl named Maria who continues to reject his advances, even after 5 years.
Daniela has anger management issues that everyone thinks is crazy but Diego likes because she drew him a picture of a dragon once.
There is a boy named Andy whose head sounds like a coconut if you knock on it.
They love to dance.
And they really loved the teacher that they had last year.
...So after talking to him I'm not sure if I am more or less nervous to start teaching...it sort of changes by the second. Luckily, or perhaps unluckily, none of the other American teachers have any real teaching experience, so I think we will be a great support for each other.
We went from the airport straight to our new home! A cute and quaint beachy little wooden, tin-roofed apartment building. It is painted bright yellow with blue trim. There are three apartment on top and three on bottom, Laura and I lucked out with a second floor apartment which means vaulted ceilings! We are also the only apartment that has yet to find any cockroaches, or spiders. (praise the lord) I attribute this to our little reptile friend that we met upon arrival. I first found him in my room when I was moving in, today he roamed about the living room, and ended the night in the kitchen. We've named him Leonardo (last name daGecko). I pick him over roaches any day.
Today we went to a resort called Turquoise Bay and got to spend the day at the beach. The water is warm and blue and beautiful and seems to go on forever. If I could have my class meet in the ocean everyday I would. We did meet some crab critters (one of the girls had her toe pinched) and I tried my first cup of conch soup..which was surprisingly delicious, and saw some of the cutest little kids playing some futbol in the sea.
I am really loving getting to know all the teachers better. Living in the apartments there are two guys, one from Washington and one a local Honduran who hasn't arrived yet. Four American girls, one who also hasn't arrived yet, and two Honduran girls that live next door to Laura and me. We all, for the most part, seem to be in a similar phase of life. A transitionary phase. Freshly graduated and figuring it out from there.
I guess that's what I really hope to do this year. Figure some things out. Figure out what I am most passionate about, where God is leading, and what that will look like in the future. So forgive me if these blog posts ever grow to be too introspective and talking in circles-y. But thanks for being a part of my processing and encouraging me along the way!
Well, I am sure there is a lot more to say and a lot I've left out, but orientation starts early tomorrow! and seeing as how this is my first every blog post, I am not really sure how to end one of these things. So I'll end it with this verse that I read in Max Lucado's Grace for the Moment. It was from August 6th, which was the date that I left California to start this adventure.
Fix your attention on God. You'll be changed from the inside out. - Romans 12;2
Pray for an inside out change in me.
Love and prayers to you all.
Tricia
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