New Direction

Wow! Summer went by really fast. It was not at all what I expected it to be, but what is, especially in Peace Corps. So a week after school closed we were told that some construction was going to be done on the computer lab. They were going to retile the lab, so everything was moved out. I figured that it should only take 2 weeks for the tile to be taken up, it to be retiled, and everything to be put back in. I couldn’t have been more wrong. As I type this, the only thing that has been done is the old tiles were removed (and are still sitting in a pile in the lab). So that shot my main project for the summer, computer club. So instead, we got together and played cards, made journals, finger painted, made play dough, and set up our own bowling alley. It was fun, but not what I expected.

Now we’re getting ready for school to start on Monday. We have some new teachers and energy. It should be a really good year. Right now both of my projects at the primary school are in limbo. The computer lab is torn up and the computers were placed into the library (the only other secure place) and are blocking the books, so I’m trying to figure out what to do for the beginning of this term. I’m still going to be at the infant school one day a week working with them. It is also the last month for our principal who retires at the end of September. This term is going to be interesting!

Opportunities

So recently I’ve been realizing how much Luthur’s world is going to change if we get this visa (and how much mine will if we don’t). I think this was really pointed out to me by a trip I got to go on with some of the students not too long ago. For this trip we went to the mini-zoo, Pigeon Island, and Pizza Pizza. It was soo much fun! The kids loved it, and I did too! It made me remember going to the zoo when I was in 1^st grade, only with one difference. You see the zoo here is quite small. Less than 10 different types of animals. The animal that the kids liked the best was the talking Blue and Gold Macaw (the birds are always the highlight for me at the zoo!).

It also makes me that much more excited to show Luthur the zoo in the states! To get to show him and experience with him getting to see exotic animals from all over the world for the first time, blows my mind away. Simple things that I have taken for granted my whole life, like going to a huge zoo, students here don’t get to experience.

Not too long ago, I saw a yahoo! article about different playgrounds that every child should experience. The last place we went, Pizza Pizza is the only playground that I have seen on the island. (I’ve heard about one of the special educational schools that got one donated, but that’s the only other one I’ve even heard about). Schools do not have them, communities do not have them. Think of going to the park and swinging when you were a kid. That memory does not exist here because there are no parks that have swings.

I think that’s why people say multicultural relationships are harder. Backgrounds and memories are so different from each other. It just makes me excited to be able to show Luthur all the museums, zoos, playgrounds, parks, imax movies, trains, bridges, and restaurants that the US has. Maybe for our honeymoon we’ll go to the zoo…

Wedding Bells are Ringing!

These last couple of weeks Luthur and I have been wedding planning long distance with my mom, dad, and sisters. When I add Luthur into that equation, most people would think he's a silent partner for wedding planning. Not my man! He's helped choose all sorts of things, such as decorations, accent color, and what type of cake. Ok, so he's had the main voice in the color and cake :) It's been quite a fun process so far.
All this on top of my normal work, so I took a vacation day tomorrow. On that day we're going to do several things related to visa/getting married. First of all, Luthur's getting some additional shots and picking up his birth certificate that will (hopefully) now have his name on it (the visa things)! Next we're going wedding ring shopping for Luthur! This should be a lot of fun! We've looked at a couple different places already. It's just a lot of fun doing this together. (That's one of the things I love about Luthur, we just have so much fun together.)
While I'm on the topic of our wedding, I just wanted to mention that it will be a small affair. Our plan is to get married about a week after we get into the states. That means that Luthur will be dealing with culture shock, along with finally meeting my family in person. I really don't want to then overwhelm him with a large wedding. I thank you ahead of time for being understanding.

Just a note on work...I'm gearing up for summer programmes! The kids are really excited about Fun Fridays and computer club! So it should be a lot of fun! Right now we're also working on a dance with the Boys and Girls Club for the variety show next week. It was hard at first (because I had to learn the dance, and I'm not a really good dancer), but the kids are picking it up and we'll have it all together by then!

New Definition of Failure

Being a PCV has taught me a lot. One of the things is about failure. Before PC I used to think everything I did had to be completely successful and perfect. Lessons had to be planned, kids had to sign up and come, and they had to learn exactly what the objectives were. Needless to say, I look at it a little differently.

Last year before the kids were going on summer break, I had a couple different ideas for summer activities: computer club, reading clubs, reading and math help. When time came for the kids to sign up, the computer clubs were packed (and I had to add extra) and no one signed up for any of the other activities.

Again last year we restarted up Girl Guides. At first the girls came regularly, but then it began to taper off, especially with Carnival activities. At the same time, the boys in the community were constantly bugging me as to when Boy Scouts would start. I didn’t want to leave the girls that did come to Girl Guides without anything, hence Boys and Girls Club aka Superstars Club.

My new definition of success is: did the kids have an activity they wanted (not necessarily the one I was planning on from the beginning), did they have fun, and did they learn something. I now tend to come up with projects in twos or threes and hope one succeeds. If an idea doesn’t come to fruition, it doesn’t mean it failed, just not want the kids wanted or needed!

Conference

This Saturday is the Peace Corps Volunteers (PCV), Japan Overseas Cooperation Volunteers (JOCV) and Taiwan International Cooperation and Development Fund Overseas Volunteer (TOV) that myself along with two other volunteers have been planning for months! I am looking forward to the conference because it should be a lot of fun! I'm nervous though because it's something that I've helped plan. Planning this conference comes under my VAC (volunteer advisory council) duties. It's been really fun getting to know Grace and Chika (the two volunteers I've worked with on this) better, planning, and getting to see it come to reality!
I'm sure the volunteers have gotten tired of my many emails this past month! From emails about the conference, to our MST video that I needed pictures for, to the Project Plan review that I also needed pictures for, they're going to be greatful when this month is over!
I also got to go with Luthur to get shots for the visa process. He doesn't have a shot record and last week when the school nurses were in giving the 2nd Hep B shot to the grade 6 students, they were telling them to get the 3rd one in December and I realized that we needed to start his shot process started ASAP! I don't want him to get turned down because he doesn't have his shots :). He had to get 5 shots and some drops. In a couple weeks he has to go back and could get up to 6 more shots (right now I'm checking at a hospital to see what shots they have, if they have them all, he's getting 6)!
For those of you who want to know about the visa process, we're in the waiting stage. We probably won't hear anything about the first step until about September. Thankfully the PC application process taught me all about waiting!

May and Random Thoughts

So this is the testing term at school. Going through public schools and having to take proficiency tests, I thought I knew what pressure was when associated with a test. When I was working in Cincinnati at Boys Hope Girls Hope and the 8^th graders had to take a test to determine what high school they went to, I realized my tests weren’t that bad. But even those tests were to get into a good private school. In St. Lucia, the grade 6 students take a test that determines what secondary school they go to for the next 5 years. That’s some pressure! Not all these schools are equivalent, so really you’re taking a test that determines your future. However, at least now all the students get to go to secondary school. There was a time, not that long ago, where if you didn’t do well on the test, you didn’t get to go at all.

It being the testing term means that I’m not doing computer club after school, because I had students that were skipping lessons to come. (Grade 4 also has a huge test which they are taking today, so it’s not just one grade.) This, however, give me more time to plan for activities this summer and the last two weeks of school. The last two weeks, again this year, are throw away weeks because the ministry has planned teacher trainings during those weeks, so we’ll have about 3 teachers for the 155 students. Not a really good ratio, so I’m seeing what kinds of large group activities that we can do that don’t cost anything! Field days, scavenger hunts and things like that look like they’ll be on the agenda. I’m working on a video because our project plan for the Eastern Caribbean is up for review. I’m going to show what the volunteers have been working on this past year!

It’s kind of weird. When I got here I was counting up how long I’d been here. Once I hit the year mark as a volunteer it went more towards counting down. I can’t believe I only have about 10 months left. It’s going so fast.

Catching up!

Wow! Time flies! This month has been going fast. We stared out the month by taking a group of kids to the beach for Labour Day (the first day in May). We had fun, but got rained out in the end. Then some of my PC friends threw an engagement party for Luthur and I. We had so much fun! It was amazing to see how many people showed up to support us. This month is reading month at school, so I'm holding a creative writing workshop at the school on Fridays. The kids are enjoying writing, and are really creative when you let them be! This past week I was "up north" all week at the VAC meeting and MST. VAC is a group of us that get together with PC senior leadership to go through any issues our islands are having. MST is when you're a year into your service, all the volunteers get together and refresh. It was a great time and very much needed. I think one thing you don't see on PC blogs is how much of a struggle it is at times. In PC you have the highest of highs but also the lowest of lows. It was good to get together with other volunteers that are facing some of the same struggles you are!