It's the most wonderful time of year...

My Christmas was very non-traditional this year. Instead of Christmas Eve with family and at church, I learnt to use chopsticks at a Chinese restaurant. I'm by no means a master, but I can pick stuff up which means - I won't starve in Japan! Christmas Day meant "brunch". Brunch is in quotes because it became an all day affair; we arrived at 11:00am and didn't leave until 8:00pm. It was lovely though, we ate and sat around and talked and ate some more and played games and ate some more and I got to Skype my family and eat some more! Theme of yesterday - eating. This morning we went to church where we had lunch after. I take it back, theme of the weekend - eating. I love that holidays some how mean food. It was all very relaxed, laid back and full of food. Tuesday I'm off to see my parents for a second round of Christmas, this time in an actual colder climate (Florida). Merry Christmas, a bit late, to everyone who reads this thing! I hope your holidays were as wonderful as mine.

Oh Pretty Lady...

Sarah,

I wish I had emailed sooner. I wish I had emailed more regularly. I wish I didn't need to write this, I wish you could read it. I hope you knew how much you meant to me. I wish, I wish, I wish. If wishes counted eh?

There is so much I want to tell you, things I should have, things you'd like or laugh at. I've been in love, not sure you'd have liked him but you'd have been glad I was happy. Had my heart broken, you'd have been a good hand holder. Had a few Ashley "specials", and yes I still use that term for the boys I date when I'm bored. Met a guy who made it snow for me. You'd have liked that one and him.

Someone one referred to me as the Queen of Can-eh-de-a the other day. I laughed, because I'm pretty sure you and Emma coined that term first. Every time I have cupcakes I think of you and the fact that the Hummingbird Bakery got most of my salary. I still remember Coke in mini cans and pizza and shopping and the fact that you owned the most gorgeous designer heels known to man and preferred ballet flats. I'm wearing mine now, you rubbed off on my footwear preferences. You also shared your fondness for skinny jeans, black nail polish and smudgy eye make up with me. Three things I wear regularly and will now always think of you.

Red heads are special you used to tell me. I hope you knew how special you were to me and how much I valued our friendship. You were my first London friend, and seriously one of the nicest people I know. The first night we had dinner together and you "made" pasta. Our many fish and chips outings, I still eat mayo on my fries which grosses out most people.

I still have your Moschino skirt. It doesn't fit me anymore. I'll never throw it out now. It's that terrible sea green colour that both of us hated because it didn't do us any favours. It will stay that colour for the rest of my life. I've still got my Kate Moss dress too even though I'll probably never wear that again either. Now they're just triggers for my memories.

I still go on the Myla website and think, why couldn't that stuff have been this fabulous when we worked there? I loved working with you. I have so many memories of that job and that store and you. It's all tied up together.

I miss you, I miss knowing that you're there. It makes me sad that this is the first email I've written you in over a year and you don't get to read it. Elisalex and I are talking though. We've decided we can't let this happen again, we meant so much to each other and that we were so close, we should stay that way.

You taught me confidence, in myself and in my beliefs. You helped teach me that the people you least expect can be the best of friends. You believed I would be an excellent school teacher, and as your predicted I'm now teaching secondary school. English lit.

I hope you know how much you touched me, changed me and how much more complete my life is for knowing you. A year seems like a short time, but you can cram a lifetime into it. I miss you. I love you. And I wish I had sent this a month ago.

All I want for Christmas...

Christmas is fast approaching, but it's hard to tell when there is nothing marking the changing of seasons. There is no countdown via weather here. Unlike at home where snow marks the beginning of the season, here we can tell by the amount of fireworks and Christmas lights strung up. It's the season of fireworks, the louder the better.

The Christmas concert went amazingly well, if I do say so myself. God definitely had His hand in and on that. I loved hearing the Christmas story in all the languages that the kids speak as well as from the King James Bible.

I'm excited about Christmas here. It will be different but fun. I'm excited about stocking exchanges and musicals in Dutch and Christmas brunch. I'm also very very excited to meet my parents in Florida. It will be nice to see them and watch hockey!!

I will miss Christmas dinner, especially since it's at my parents this year. I'll miss opening presents and the Christmas story read by my dad and church on Christmas Eve with my entire family. My sisters. A lot, really. Thank goodness for skype.

I would really love to be in two places at once; sometimes I'm tired of missing someone or something. But Christmas reminds me of how much I truly have and how great God truly is. I have family ( and friends who have become family) and friends all over the world. I've got family who loves me. I'm never alone. I've got skype.

So all I want for Christmas is a little snow, family and love. And I've gotten all of that. I hope everyone else has a holiday that is just as good.

Thankful

Tonight we celebrated American Thanksgiving. We're a bit late, but we were in French Guiana for the original date and my roommates really wanted to celebrate. In no particular order here are some of the things I'm thankful for this year:

-my family in Canada
-my family in Suriname
-friends (here, there and everywhere)
-my students
-my job
-the roof over my head
-the fact that I went to the beach in November
-imported British tea bought in French G
-new shoes
-God and all the things He's teaching me
-sense of humour and the ability to laugh
-all things concert (it's keeping me humble)
-technology

That's really just a small sampling. I'm also thankful that I wake up everyday, that I'm healthy and that I'm loved, supported and believed in.

C'est la Vie...

Time just seems to get away from me and I just realized that it's been almost a month since my last post. In my defense - nothing has been new. Work, school, sleep... Wash, rinse, repeat. Christmas concert is only a week away and then I will have some of my life back!

One thing worth blogging about though is our recent trip to French Guyana. French Guyana is this amazing slice of Europe in South America. It's part of France and it has the shopping, beaches and food to prove it. It was amazing; we never wanted to come back.

We arrived there on Thursday around noon after a couple hours drive to the border and then a quick ferry ride, all of which was perfectly legal. You can enter illegally, but we didn't. We arrive at the car rental agency and Jenn gets us organized and gets us a car while the rest of us entertain the gentleman working there. We're about to get keys and go when he says that they only have manual transmission cars. All of my trip buddies just look at each other because none of them can drive a stick; luckily I can (Thank you Linda). So we get the keys and we start off.

We arrived at our hammock hut (Kalawachi) outside of Kourou several hours later. We went in to Kourou and drove around a bit, determined to find the beach. The beach in Kourou was a slight disappointment. But we did find the McDonald's, a Super U and an amazing bakery! We picnicked that night by a fountain in the city square. A Super U is this amazing French grocery store, basically like American ones, but with better bread and cheese.

The French have this fondness for traffic circles that I do not share, especially when we went into Cayenne the next day. To get into Cayenne there were about 5 roundabouts. They were less nerve wracking the longer you drove them, but they still suck. This trip to Cayenne was all about shopping and eating. We sat in this cafe and had quiche, cafe au lait and various other French foods. We set out to find the beach in the afternoon, which was an interesting experience of left turns. The ocean had to be there somewhere. We finally did find it and as we were coming down over the hill with our belongings we could see it. It was fantastic. Light sand, warm water. I forgot how much I missed the ocean. We really only stayed for an hour, but we went back for most of the next day. We played the next day in the waves for several hours, got a tan (or burnt in my case)and just enjoyed being there.

Our last day in French G we hung out at the hammock hut which is also a museum about the different types of Indians in the area. They had gotten together to preserve their culture. The man who helped build it was there and he gave us a tour and was really nice. He didn't really speak that much English but we did okay with communication. After our morning visit with him we headed back to Saint Laurent to catch the ferry.

We arrived in Saint Laurent early so we toured around the prison transit camp for while. The French used to use French G as a prison, there are some famous islands off the coast that were used as jails.

All was going well until we headed to the ferry and someone informed us that it wasn't running. We managed to get our passports stamped and get a little boat to Suriname anyway. All perfectly legal, albeit a bit sketchy.

All in all it was pretty magnifique!! French food, french shopping and french beaches.

We are Loved...

I'm worrier with a touch of OCD and a need for absolute perfection, so you can imagine that sometimes I overwhelm myself. There are a lot of things going on right now that I could be worrying about but I'm trying a new thing - stop worrying. Now this a major work in progress for me because every time I think "Christmas concert" or "family" I start to worry. However, worrying isn't going to do anything but make me feel like I'm drowning in things I can't control.

I can however, pray. Here's what I've learnt: this concert isn't about me and I can't make it perfect. I can do the best I am capable and leave it up to the Almighty, who it designed to praise anyway. God deserves my best, not my need for perfection. My perfectionist tendencies can't be the thing that takes the light off of God.

I'm 10,000 miles away and I have to put my family in God's hands and leave them there. I'm learning that there are things that I can't control, that I will never be able to control and there are things that God wants me to have no control over. This is hard for someone who wants to control everything. I'm still learning this one. I can't will people better but I can pray to the God who promises to never leave us alone. That's a hard one for me, it always has been - the idea of where is God when life happens. I'm very slowly learning that even though I have no idea why God allows somethings to happen, I know it ultimately brings Him glory and He's with me in whatever storm I have to face. Even if I never see Him, He's there. Life sucks sometimes, not God.

My favourite verse: I will never leave you nor forsake you (Hebrews 13:5). That's written on permanent marker on my keyboard so when I open my laptop it's the first and last thing I see.

This is currently my favourite song because the promise of something more contained within:

This is a love
Deep in the soul
O when you love
O when you love
The veil is torn
Mystery pours

Down from above
Down from above

And yet we are under benediction
So there is grace

Hallelujah, we rejoice
What a Savior
What a King
Hallelujah, lift your voice
To our Savior
To our King

O please do stay
Where you remain
Do not fall
Do not fall
Something greater
Is on the way
Just hang on
Try to hang on
Try to hang on

The love of angels
Becomes a love anew
O heavenly light
Takes on a fair skin

What a Savior
What a King

Say Something...

Busy is really the only word to describe my life right now. Christmas concerts, SAT prep, extra-curricular activities and endless amounts of marking. It's a good thing I love it all.

I've discovered, learnt and been taught a few things in and amongst the business of life:

1)Be very specific about what you wish for. For example: if you say you want/need a vacation, make it clear that it should involve a beach otherwise you might get stung by a bee and be laid up for a week. Bee stings do not equal vacation.

2)If you assign something in MLA formatting, make sure everyone knows what that is and how to use it.

3)Really, Christmas concerts are misnamed. They should be labeled the "Start preparation in August but put the show on in December" concerts.

4)Essay questions are great ways to show knowledge, however they requiring a great deal of marking.

5)Make sure the students don't finish the assigned book before you do. Although this was a massive shock!

6)Romeo and Juliet both kind of suck and are overly dramatic. (Thank you 9th grade boys!)

7)Everyone in Macbeth is screwed up and they have no sense of logic. (12th grade)

8)"Your fate is decided by your actions and that it is not an excuse to do whatever you want. We are responsible for the choices we make." A very smart 12th grader discussing Macbeth.

9)Recycled art is seriously fun. Breaking computers apart is a really good stress reliever.

10)When someone tells you that they respect you, or that they appreciate you or that you've changed their opinion of your subject it is the best feeling ever. Totally turns bad days into great ones.

I Will Survive...

Some weeks are amazing here and some are rough. This one has been rough.

I got stung by a bee. In most cases this is nothing and you keep going with your everyday life. However if you don't realize what happened and you let the stinger poison you for three days and get a massive infection then it kind of does stop your world for a bit. It also helps that I'm allergic to penicillin and so the drugs that I needed to take ended up making me sick.

So 3 trips to the doctor and the pharmacy, one very scary epi-pen which I put together myself, and too many bottles of Gatorade later - I will be okay. I'm still tired and drained and doing too much is hard but the infection is going away and I'm recovering. Thank you to everyone who prayed for me! I appreciate it. Now pray for my friend Nicole, she needs all your prayers this week!

Dancing in the Dark...

On Monday night in the middle of my first Tae Kwon Do class the power went out. We thought absolutely nothing of it and moved the class outside until it was too dark to see. On the way out we notice that the university is dark, then we notice the street is dark and finally we notice that the city seems to be dark.

There was indeed a city wide black out. We sat in the dark for almost two hours. Well actually we found every candle in the place and sat by candle light. I had to read for class that night, so I was reading my textbook by the light of 3 candles. My roommate has a Kindle so she was reading her books electronically with a book light. What a difference technology makes.

The power did come back on eventually, which was appreciated because I really wanted a shower. We did realize that our oven is gas which meant we didn't have to starve and it made sense to eat all the freezies so they wouldn't melt all of the freezer!

Tae Kwon Do was fun; the cardio work out before - not so much. I think I'm severely out of shape because squats did me in and I can't even talk about how much it hurt try to stretch out parts of me that have never stretched before. I do, however, have a pretty decent punch. Muggers beware!

What Would You Do?

I should be reading for class. I feel like I'm back in university with that statement but I'm the teacher. Sometimes that just feels so surreal. Year two of my teaching career. This year it's high school. It's a different type of challenge but so far I'm loving every minute of it. My big goal is to teach them that reading can change their lives; the way they see the world. We'll see if I'm successful.

Life in Suriname seems to never change; go to the pool on the weekends, plan on Sundays, hang out with some great people. I like the steadiness of that but sometimes the cabin fever seems to set in. To off set it Jenn and I are starting to take Tae Kwon Do. It should be interesting, if I don't hurt myself. I think it could become a real cool stress relief tool, as well as something new to do. I think I need hobbies!

This afternoon it started to rain which wouldn't have been a problem if the school car window hadn't rolled down and never rolled up again. We managed to get a garbage bag and tape it in place. We're breaking the new girls in Suriname style which means by just breaking things. Although I do solemnly swear that I did not break the window. No one will believe me, but it's the truth!

Still the Same...

I know I'm back in Suriname because things break/fall apart in my presence! I will admit to not having much grace in North America but I seem extra cursed here. For example:

-the shower in bathroom flooded the bedroom
-the water in the washing machine wouldn't load it just kept draining
-went to turn the fan on and the knob came off in my hand
-last night I turned on my air conditioner and the power went off in the entire house (We than wandered around outside looking for the fuse box with flashlights. We looked like we were casing the place!)

I'm basically renowned for this kind of thing and am very lucky that all the people around me have senses of humour. Thank God for people with the ability to fix things and laugh all at the same time!

Just Another Day...

I'm reading some of the incoming teachers blogs and am enjoying them. I laughed when one of them mentioned whining over blog. Been there, done that!! Half of my posts it seems are whining about packing and visas.

It seems that the Suriname government didn't get any faster this time around. God's perfect timing is something that is never going to make much sense to my punctual personality but it is something I've learnt to live with. Progress.

All good things...

There are two weeks left of my Canadian vacation which is crazy because I'm pretty sure I just got off the plane yesterday! It's been five relaxing weeks full of friends and family and doing absolutely nothing. My sisters are particularly fond of making fun of me for not working. It doesn't seem to matter to them that I worked all year and one of the best perks of teaching is summers off to lay around the pool. The pool which no longer have after this week because the house has been sold.

I knew that the house was being sold and I didn't really think I had any sentimental attachment to it until I was down the other cleaning it and all the memories came back. I fell in and out of love there, had a friend come from England and stay for a while, and mostly I grew up there. Not physically but emotionally and spiritually. It's where I really became an adult, where I worked hard and where I decided to do what God wanted and teach overseas. I have some really great memories of that house and the people who either lived there or stayed there or just visited there. I'm glad my parents are selling it though and I'm looking forward to my house in Suriname, who knows what fun things will happen there!

Airplanes... (and sail boats)

I like airports, particularly the arrivals gate. I love the enthusiasm and the excitement that is there. I love the feeling I get in my stomach as my plane touches down in Fredericton, the feeling that there are people on the other side of that wall waiting for me and I can't wait to see them.

I like being home. The reverse culture shock is wearing off a bit and I'm getting to do things that I love. I love being able to walk up and see my family. I like being able to buy books in English and buy clothes that are quality and have the sales people speak to me. I also love catching up with people I haven't seen in a while.

I went to Saint Andrews yesterday with one of my sisters, grandmother and one of my aunts. It was so much fun. I love the way the ocean smells and the feeling of smallness I get when I stand in front of it; like I'm just a small piece of a giant puzzle. I love the boats and the waterfront and the little shops and friendliness of people.

I love getting to sit around with my friends and talk and laugh and act like we just haven't had thousands of miles separate us. I love that distance never really seems to come between the best of friends.

I watched my littlest sister graduate on Friday and was incredibly proud. She also looked beautiful at the prom. I remember graduating high school and being feeling scared and brave all at the same time. I'm not sure that feeling ever goes away, even as you grow.

I sometimes forget how funny my sisters are, how vibrant my best friend's personality is, how sweet and wonderful the girls I used to work with are; how much I love listening to my mother play the piano and how much I love just being able to stick my head into my dad's office to say hello.

It's nice to be home to remember, to have a break, see people and to get hugs.

Truth....

Here's a round up of all the things I've learnt this year:

-Ants are carnivorous beasts that will eat anything!
-Cockroaches like to share your shower.

-Blondes will always get hit on.
-I prefer to get hit on in a foreign language because I can't understand it.

-Spray sunscreen is great.
-And awful.

-If you ask for patience God will make sure you earn them.
-If you want to show love He'll find the kid that needs it the most.

-You have to live the life you've got and let go of stuff that doesn't matter anymore.
-God might let one dream die but He'll provide you with others; better ones.

-Never say never because you'll end up doing what ever you said never too.
-Some times the best expectations are to have none. That way you always get to be pleasantly surprised.

-The best friends can be the unexpected ones.
-MSN/Hotmail/Skype/Facebook all can help strengthen relationships.

-The strangest people will bless your day.
-You learn an awful lot about your character when you move to a place like Suriname; good and bad. You also get the opportunity to develop and grow.

This hasn't been the simplest year but it has been a blessing, a challenge and one of the best times of my life. Here's to the next.

Erase/Rewind...

Suitcase, boxes all
spread out over my floor
moving sure does suck

That little haiku was brought to you by the fact that I hate packing. I could swear I just blogged about being a horrible, procrastinating packer. And when I looked back I realized that it's been almost a year since I (started to) packed my bags to come down here and now I'm packing them up to go visit family for summer break. I'm pretty excited to be back in Canada and to get a bunch of hugs.

Stayin' Alive...

Yes, I am still alive. I've just got swept away by life and let blogging get away from me for awhile.

May flew by. It was a blur of concerts, plays and art nights. It was a pretty fantastic month though. I managed to make an entire life size fairytale mixed media piece in about three for art night. I had so much "help" as well. ["Teacher I don't want to colour anymore", "Teacher are we done yet?".]

The Spring Concert might have been one of my highlights (and not because I was kind of the director). It was one of my favourite things because it was amazing to watch people come together and help. My coworkers are amazing and kind and generous and have such wonderful talents and I am so blessed by them. I also got help (real this time) from high school students who kept asking if I needed anything or who were volunteered to help me. It was an awesome time and the kids were amazing and cute and funny. And the whole thing is on video!! (Another of those amazing people did this!)

We saw a play put on by the drama class, it was fun and nicely ad libbed.

Got a little wet, because when does it not rain here?

Painted faces at a carnival.

And I wrote a paper. The English classes had an assignment to see if they could summarize their entire year and I gave it a try. Harder then it sounds. It took me 2 days, 10 different beginnings and about 30 Bruce Springsteen, Bryan Adams songs. Thunder Road is on permanent repeat in my brain. I've decided to paste the conclusion here, because my year is winding down and I'm heading back to visit Canada soon. So here are some of my brief thoughts on the past year:

Randomly, I can only write to classic rock ( which is a cliche that entirely my father's fault), so as I was writing this paper I had Summer of '69 playing and that one particular line stood out. "If I had the choice, yeah I'd always wanna be there". I might not have made the choice to come to Suriname, but I made the choice to follow where God called and He brought me here. Looking back over this paper I realize that if this were my choice, I would make the same one every time. I would always choose this path, this country, and this life. I would always choose to end that relationship, get on that plane and let God change my life for the better. I have been so blessed by following God here and letting him lead me. The next line of the song is "Those were the best days of my life", and maybe the song is right, that these are some of the best days of my life.

It's My Life...

Every other email from my mum reminds me to blog. I guess I forget that even though my life is pretty relaxed and and sometimes repetitive to everyone else it is different and I should be writing about it.

Two weeks ago my roommates and I went away with our churches for a family camp. It was a lot of fun; even the kitchen duty. We ended up with several early morning breakfast duties and one hot afternoon was spent chopping cabbage. I can now say, that with several hours of training, I am a half way decent cabbage chopper! It was a real cool time and fun to get away from the city for a bit. I'll be the first to tell you that I love cities but every now and then you need a break.

The Spring Concert is fast approaching. I hear recorders in my sleep. I think it will go quite well though. Lots and lots of hard work has been put into practicing and they are doing a very good job!

Added something else to the "Things Ashley Can Cook List": peach pie. Pretty good too.

Nothing really new and exciting. It alternates between hot and wet. But I still like it.

I'm from the country*...

So what do you do on a random Thursday night when American Idol is over and you're waiting for Oprah? You country line dance! I mean what else would you do? My roommate Jenn decided we needed to line dance last night. It was the best laugh I've had for a while. I admit, I watched a lot. I am a bad line dancer (can't grapevine). But I laughed even more when I tried. I'm slightly directionally challenged so I usually managed to turn the wrong way; which threw the whole thing off. Line dancing is not, nor will it ever be my favourite style of dance; it might however be the best laugh you can have.

*I would not actually say I'm from the country. It's the name of a country song and it fit as a title.

It's Only Life...

Inconsistent blogger alert! I'm sorry. I did the thing that I hate, I stopped. It just seems like in March nothing really exciting happened right until the end. The first three weeks were normal days; get up, teach, hang out, watch American Idol, read, kill the normal amount of bugs and just life as normal. We did some shopping, and watched a few good movies (Alice in Wonderland). There were a couple of stand out things. I managed to get the upper elementary to take their recorders home and practice and when they did they realized how good they can sound. They're getting pretty good at Amazing Grace and Joyful, Joyful.

Saturday night was probably one of my favourite things about being in Suriname so far, the International Food Fair. It was so much fun. Basically it's a giant buffet and all of the teachers and families make food that is from their passport countries. Then we set it up in the gym with decorations and art and entertaining and just have a very good time. The food is amazing, the entertainment is good and the people are wonderful.

Next weekend we're doing Passover (from a Christian point of view) and then Spring Break!!!! I have no idea what we're doing; we change our plans frequently but half the fun of what you're doing is making the plan. All that matters is it's ten days of relaxing and sleeping in. And there are 5 school days left, not that we're counting down.

Oh, Canada (or Go, Canada)...

[Patriotism: love for or devotion to one's country]

I admit it. I'm one of many in a generation of Canadians who are apathetic towards patriotism. In truth, strong patriotism weirds me out. I don't necessarily believe my country is the best and strongest one in the world and that everyone should follow our way and I'm wary of anyone with that attitude toward their own country.

The longer I live abroad however, the more I realize there are certain things that will inspire patriotism in me. The main one right now is the Olympics or more specifically: Hockey.

Okay, I know this one is a little (a lot) cliche. But hockey might be the thing that makes me the most patriotic; particularly with the gold medal game for the Olympics coming up. I'm rooting for the home team.

I really can't even define how this makes me patriotic. I could tell you that this is Canada's game and yes there are great players from every other country but there is something particular about why we're better. I could tell you that I love sitting in a room with all of my friends or family and cheering for the teams until we're hoarse.

I'm at least 6000 miles away from Vancouver and yet I'm trying hard to find a place to watch tomorrow's gold medal game. Do I want Canada to win? Yes. Do I believe they deserve it? Yes. Do I believe they are better then the US team? Yes. Will they win? Hopefully. Will I be rooting for them every step of the way, even if I'm at my computer watching the score change? Yes!!

I believe that hockey is one of the things that unites Canadians; East coast, West Coast, up North, it doesn't matter where tomorrow there will be millions of people watching 5 men on ice chase a little black circular thing around. I think that hockey makes us believe we can be more, we can believe in something and we have a common interest and goal that we can all support. As a country we have so many divisions on issues but this is something we can all get behind and believe in. We are Canadian, hockey is our game and no one plays it quite like we do.

So from one Canadian to another, where ever you are tomorrow: Go, Canada, Go!!

Fever...

I have discovered recently that a head cold and a fever feel the exact same in the tropics as they do in the non-tropical countries and that is: MISERABLE. And if you're hot with a fever there, you're even hotter here.

But luckily I'm armed with ginger ale, chicken noodle soup (thank you roommates!) and Advil. The evil cold will not defeat me! But seriously, I really don't ever want to be sick down here again and I don't have anything major. I also hate being sick and it makes me whiny. Okay, even more whiny.

Do They Know?

Things I didn't know until I moved to Suriname (Or realize I needed to know):

-Spray sunscreen is the best and worst thing ever. Best because you just spray it on. Worst because if you miss a spot you get selective sunburn. I'm currently only burnt on my right shoulder.

-Jungle rot is a special thing that can be found in incredibly humid climates. Basically it eats everything. Everything. Elastic in your clothes, books, playing cards and the the little thing that makes Ipods change songs and volume. Where as I am used to being damp and sticky, my Ipod doesn't like it so much.

-Driving on the otherside of the road is hard because you have no idea where the side is; and you need to stay on the road because usually the road is several inches higher then the dirt beside it. The phrase "You're going to fall off" can be regularly heard when my roommates and I drive.

-Rain can soak you through in about 2 mins. Not kidding.

-Mosquitoes are tireless creatures who's only goal in life is to eat you alive. And they live in packs here. The only thing that can save you - the electric mosquito bat. Get one. It's fun!

-White people are fascinated by other white people. They tend to stare at each other when they come into contact and are basically thinking something along the lines of "white people? what are they doing here?".

-If you have light hair and light eyes everyone assumes you're Dutch and so they try to speak to you. Usually it's several mins of not understanding a word they say before I can break into the conversation and ask if they speak English.

-International pancake week? Why?

-Hanging your clothes on the line is nice but a clothes dryer would be wonderful to shrink them back every now and then. Plus something is eating little holes in my tank tops and I only have so many (thank you jungle rot).

-Cotton candy will actually melt off the stick before you have a chance to eat it all.

-Reese's Peanut Buttercups are hard to find however we managed to find the one store down here that stocks them.

-It doesn't matter where you're going, if you're female, the men here think they are entitled to hit on you. They're not. Makes me glad sometimes I don't speak Dutch. Or that my best Dutch word is no.

-Students like to repeat the following words when I say them: out, about, mouse and house. The high school girl (who comes to my class to help in the afternoon) and I spent a good 5 mins one day where she tried to make me say house like an American. I'm not capable. But we both laughed.

-Some holidays are really just North American concepts. Like Halloween and Valentine's Day. And on that note, happy Valentine's Day! Thank you for reading along. I love you for it.

The Sound of Silence...

...Yeah right!

Phrases that can be heard in kindergarten:

Me: "Are you listening?"
Reply: "No, teacher."

"Teacher, teacher..." (That's what I'm called, but it just makes me laugh)

Me: "What did you do?"
Reply "Nothing! Well, he did it first..."

Student: "Is it time to play now?"
Me: "It is learning time"
Reply: "Why?"

Me: "Are you doing what I asked you not to?"
Reply: "Yes teacher"

Me: "It's time to read, what book would you like?"
Reply: "Mouse Cookies", "The Jesus book"
(This is all spoken at once. Translation: If you Give a Mouse a Cookie and The Bible.)

Me: "What's the weather like today?"
Reply: "Weather? What is weather?"

Me: "What is symmetry?"
Reply: " A long word?"

Student: "Are you white?"
Me: "What? What's white?"
Student: "Well, I'm brown, are you white?"
Me: "Yes I guess I am."
Other student: "With little brown dots." (freckles)

Student: "Teacher, I like you but what happened to your skin?" (referring to a sunburn)

Those are just some of the things that can be heard in my classroom. Needless to say I laugh daily.

The Water Music...

"If you think education is expensive, you should try ignorance."

I have no idea who said that, but I love it. I just read one of the best books called Half the Sky and mostly it was about how to improve the lives of women all over the world. The part that really stuck with me was all about educating girls. It costs next to nothing but it will improve society if women are education. As a teacher I'm for education for everyone, but particularly women. It kills me that some societies deny girls something basic as the opportunity to read. Reading and writing are just things that I take for granted. I knew that I would go to school and have the opportunities to learn, yet not everyone gets that privilege. There is so much that we don't even think about living in the first world. So many opportunities we don't even realize we have and so many things we whine about doing (like working) that so many people would love to have the opportunity to do all over the world.

So I guess this is a post about appreciating what you've got. I know I learnt a lesson this week when the hot water went away and I had to shower in cold. I mean I still had a shower but you don't know how much you appreciate hot water until you don't have it anymore.

PS - Hot water fixed now. Hallelujah!

It's raining, it's pouring...

The average human being spends 3 to 5 years of their life waiting for things. Crazy eh? Think of all the things we could be doing with that time. Just so you know, I Googled this while I was hanging out in the Trinidad airport(for about 7 hours). I was curious to know how long most people wait for things; apparently quite a while.

I'm back now in Suriname, safe and sound. Kind of feels like I never left. I got to test out my full wet suit today went I went to church and it works! I was completely dry.

Basically we've just been hanging out, falling back into routine and living our normal lives for the past week and it's been good. The Pizza Hut people still need to be given very specific directions to our house, even though they're there regularly; movie night popcorn is still one of my favourite things, Sarinah's makes the best curry in town and it's still raining! Nothing has changed! Thank goodness.

Come Back Home...

I was asked to speak in church tomorrow, just a brief 4 min presentation about what my life in Suriname is like. I have slides and pictures and something to say but really how can fit four months into four minutes? It's like cliff notes at its minimum. I've hit the highlights: students, house, school, city, rainforest... But sometimes it's what I'm not saying about those things that are the best parts.

I'm showing pictures of my street, but I can't even begin to describe the pot holes (massive), the neighbours (sweet, she cooks for us) and the lake at the base of our driveway when it rains (deep). I do mention that my students are rewarding and I love them and that they are what God has sent me there for; but what I'm not saying is that as much as I'm affecting their lives, they are changing mine even more. They are one of the single best and most frustrating part of my day and I wouldn't have it any other way.

The pictures of the rain forest can't describe the majesty, the scope of it and just how small you feel standing in it. What God can create is awe inspiring and amazing. The air is cooler there, less oppressive then the city which can feel like it is pressing down on you. The picture doesn't show how grateful you are for the two minute shower when there finally is water, even if it is the most freezing shower ever.

I am so grateful to be back for Christmas and to have this opportunity to speak tomorrow to tell people about my life but it occurred to me as I was preparing this that I miss it. I miss the rain and the crowds and the corner store with that adorable kid who sits on the counter. I miss the slowness of the pace, the idea that time isn't something to worry about. This little piece of South America has really started to become home for me.

It's strange when the places switch, when the place you live becomes home and when home becomes the place you visit. But it's a good strange; you start to feel less like a visitor and more like someone who lives their life there. It's a little conflicting as well but those are the feelings that makes you human because you will always miss something, somewhere.

Auld Lang Syne*...

I know I haven't blogged much about being home and probably I won't because it's been such a whirlwind. And I want to keep some of those memories just for me. Let me just say I'm having a wonderful time with family and friends. Now on to what I really want to blog about...

Happy New Year!!

A quick thing about me you should know - those email surveys that go around with like a 100 questions all about yourself - Love them! Last year someone sent me one entitled Goodbye 2008 and it was all about what you had or had not done that year. Some of the questions are silly but some actually made me think about what I actually wanted to do with my life in the future and what I was doing with it in the present.

It starts off with this question: What did you do this year that you had never done before?

If I were answering for 2009 I would say: moved to South America, hiked in the rain forest, taught my own class, drove on the left side of the road, visited Memphis, and lived with people I had never met before. I'm sure there is more, this is just a sampling.

When I started 2009 I had no idea that this would be my answer to that question. I had no idea that I would be living in South America teaching kindergarten. I just figured my life would go in the direction I had planned it to: degree, relationship, teaching at home... and that was not in the plan at all; clearly God had other ideas. Got the degree, but nothing else stayed according to my plan. But as I look on 2009 I have to say God's plan was definitely better: get degree, get passport and go. It was hard and scary and at times I thought I was crazy but it honestly has been one of the most worthwhile things I've ever done. It's still hard and scary some days but it's also been funny and rewarding and full of people who make my life better everyday (family, roommates, students, co-workers...just in case you needed a list).

So the ultimate answer to what have I done in 2009 that I have never done before? Been brave and followed a plan that wasn't of my own design. And what a ride it has been.

*Auld Lang Syne - comes from a 1780s poem by Robert Burns and basically translates to days gone by. It's a song sung mostly on New Year's Eve now.