So, this week has been sort of difficult for Seth and I. We were almost ready to pack our bags and go home, but a talk with my mom has helped me remember that teaching is hard no matter where you are, and that I’d probably regret leaving now for a really long time.
Still, it’s hard. Oh, the teaching itself isn’t so bad; it’s everything else - the communication barriers (we’re still working on getting Chinese lessons), the frustratingly inept and apparantly brainless managers, and for me, the universal frustrations of working with 15 3-year-olds. So, we’re going to do our best to make it better.
To paraphrase a drama camp counselor I once had, I’m going to act enthusiastic so I’ll be enthusiastic ( I will not, however, pickup trash while chanting “A clean ampitheater is a happy ampitheater!”). I’m going to do my best to act as if school (kindy, especially) is exactly where I want to be more than anywhere else. I’m going to try to shower my HRT (and Seth’s, and Nicola’s) with smiles and love and baked goods (see, we got a toaster over, so I can do that now - just need to buy some pans to bake in). I’m going to make this work, dangit, and I’m not going to let them see me sweat.
So, readers, friends, loved ones: help me to remember that this is what I’ve chosen, and I’m strong enough to handle it even when it’s the hardest thing I’ve done in my lazy life so far. Be my Bela Karoli - “You can do it, Lisbeth! you can do it!”
November 29, 2007 at 4:27 am
My sister came back from a stint teaching in Taiwan. She had a lot of the same frustrations. But nearer to the end, she did find that she learned a lot from the experience. Maybe one of the ways to look at the positive and get you through it is to try to figure out what skills you want to have learned and what you want out of the experience. Keep an eye on that and mark your progress on it to keep you going.
Good luck. I think you guys are dealing remarkably well for being in a very different culture without local language skills.