March began with some very interesting facial hair experiments for the male SMs. It was fun coming in to staff worship in the morning and seeing a new style.
The joint vespers continue to be a blessing, and as our time gets shorter and shorter I am realizing how much I will miss everyone here. It's sad that in order to open a new chapter of your life you have to shut an old one.
We are hoping to get together at some point to see each other, but whether all the road trips and vacations will materialize is unsure. We are bound to bump into each other, but it won't be the same.
Women's Sabbath was on March 5. We did a skit about women of the Bible and dressed up in our bedsheets for the performance. While certainly not worthy of any awards, the performance went fairly well and we enjoyed ourselves.
Our next big event was Creativity Fair on the Thursday before Spring Break. 3A and 2A did a very good job if I do say so myself. The students did their parts perfectly, and Ms. Dinah and I were very proud of them. The other classes did well, too. There were skits, musical numbers, bell choir, recititations (can you recite all of the U.S. presidents in order? I know I can't), blacklight musical numbers, and signing to songs. It seems to be a Palauan thing to not pay attention to performances, however, and it was so noisy most of the time that it was hard to hear. The night was long, and it was a lot of work decorating the classroom and getting everything worked out, but the kids enjoyed it.
That night two SMs left for Pohnpei early for Spring Break. Marianne actually went skydiving in Guam on the way, and she inspired Dinah and I to try it in Hawaii. This information probably won't thrill my parents.
Mom and Dad flew in on Monday night, and the next morning we left for Anguar. It was not exactly the vacation my parents had envisioned - sleeping on the floor, eating pb & j for numerous meals, no airconditioning, walking for hours in the hot jungle, a long, bumpy boat ride. They had fun despite it all, and seeing all of the WWII planes and buildings was cool.
We went by Jellyfish Lake on the way home, and they were complaining all the way up and down the hill to get there. For those of you who have never been, the path to Jellyfish is short but "not tourist friendly" as my parents said. There are steps of sorts made of sharp coral and a rope to hold on to lest you slip. While they were here, we also went out diving and snorkeling and stayed in a nice hotel for a day. We cruised around Babeldaob in the Maggot, and overall we had a good time.
School has been going well. My kids like me, I like them, and overall their behavior has improved dramatically since 1st Quarter.We have parent-teacher conferences today (I'm actually typing this in between conferences), and it is so nice to say more positive than negative things. I am going to miss these kids so much. They've got a piece of my heart.
Which isn't to say I can't still be a little mean to them now and then. Kaitlynn and I decided to pull an April Fool's joke on my kids. We switched classrooms in the morning and told the kids that we had a very long talk with Mr. Nelson. Since they had been so bad lately (and both classes have), Mr. Nelson decided it would be best if we switched teachers for the rest of the year. Kaitlynn's kids were pretty chill about it, but my kids were freaking out. Marlynne was hugging me and crying during recess, and the kids really missed me. We only let them believe it for about an hour, and then we brought them all together and told them. After we said, "April Fools!" my kids rushed me and half-pushed, half-hugged me out the door. They finally like me. It is a beautiful thing.
The SDA Kings, our elementary school boy's basketball team, had their championship game yesterday. Brenda, Jordan, and I painted our faces and most of the teachers came out to cheer on our boys. It was a close game, but they won.
I've been staying out at PMA this week to visit Marianne. It is so different from town - very peaceful and so relaxing. We go running under the stars, and it is just gorgeous. You can't beat the country.
This month has been the month for questions. A lot of us are struggling with the same things spiritually. I have been forced to reevaluate so many things this past month, and I still haven't found any answers for a lot of my questions. One thing that quite a few of us are wondering about is the lack of God experiences. Lately it seems like we don't feel God as much, or something, and we are wondering if it comes from getting older. Does God speak clearer and more frequently in high school because we're listening better? Are our hearts getting hard? We don't know. I hope this isn't a consequence of growing up. I'm praying for the simpler faith and excitement about God I had in high school.
I was also talking with one of the SMs about how teaching brings out the worst in us. It is such a hard job to be a consistent Christian in. I feel impatient and mean more than usual, and I wonder why I can't just be patient and kind. I have this ideal vision of me as a super successful and much loved teacher, but it never seems to materialize. Instead it hovers just out of reach. It makes one start to wonder, am I really a good person? Or am I just pretending?
Despite all these questions, I really am enjoying it here. Every week is bittersweet - the end and the beginning. My prayer through these last weeks is that I would really show my kids Jesus and enjoy every moment I have with them.
P.S. If you are thinking about coming to Palau as an SM, DO IT!!! They need teachers, and I have 12 rambunctious, future 3rd graders who I'd love to introduce you to... : )
Avery and Laden
