I know this is a long entry, but if you can get through it, you'll have experienced just a tiny snapshot of what I've been doing here in only three short days . . .
“Make us proud, Sweets,” was the last thing my dad said to me as I left the car and headed to the airport desk to begin my nine week adventure. Mom helped me check in and send away my bags (both weighing exactly 50 pounds each) and then she, too, left me to do this on my own. After a day of waiting in lines, airport terminals and having to transfer planes, I finally made it to St Lucia only five hours later than planned. This is it, I’m really doing this.
The drive to the Cherbine’s house with Sr. Marie Therese was just the beginning, but already I knew I was going to have to make some big adjustments. Not only is the steering wheel on the opposite side of the car and they drive on the opposite side of the road, but apparently the 30 mph speed limits don’t really apply. We were flying around the sharp, dark turns and, had I been sitting in the front seat, would have been sick for sure. Arriving at the Cherbine’s home, I was greeted by so many people who would soon become my family. They brought my bags inside and offered me some soup. Hungry from the long day, I gladly accepted the offer only to find a “chicken soup” with a few indistinguishable ingredients. This would definitely take some getting used to.
After a very warm sleep and being awaken by a rooster, I accompanied the family to the two hour morning church service. The structure was very similar to home except for the length and the fact that the people here really belt out every song and sing with so much passion. It was absolutely wonderful and I tried to sing along. At the end of the service, the entire congregation acknowledged and sang Happy Birthday to anyone celebrating a birthday. Then, the priest looked right at me and introduced me to the whole crowd! He said my name, where I was from and why I am here and then everyone sang “Welcome, welcome . . . we love you, we love you.” It was such an awesome feeling to have so many people I have never met before be so welcoming and loving. It’s like one big family here and I’ll soon be a part.
After mass, Nadia (one of my “sisters”) arranged for a friend of hers to drive us around the northern part of the island to give me a taste of what to expect for the next nine weeks. After a short drive, we ended up in Pigeon Island Park at the shore of the Caribbean Sea. Absolutely gorgeous and a place I could spend the entire day at, I had to settle for a few pictures and simply stepping in the warm water. Walking across the parking lot and down a small hill, we ran right into the Atlantic Ocean! Yes, I definitely want to come back to this park. It’s only $5EC ($2US) to get in for the day!
Even if I’m still a little skeptical about the food my family serves (I’m trying everything though) I know I will not starve because they have the best ice cream I’ve ever tasted! I had some mint chocolate chip ice cream and was extremely satisfied. They also have these things called “icicles” which are basically freeze-pops, only more delicious! They sell them at school for only $0.25EC so I’m sure that will be a daily treat for me. I also told my family about how I love fruits so much so they are determined to have me try every fruit on the island. I’ve already had your typical apples, oranges and limes, but I’m also tried breadfruit, coconut water (drank right out of the coconut!) five fingered fruit, grenadine seeds, and golden apple.
My first day at the Monchy Primary School brought many more surprises and experiences. After morning assembly, the principal brought me around and introduced me to every class individually. After that, I settled in with the Grade 5 class I will be working with for the remainder of the term. Again, a rowdy bunch, but American 5th graders would be the same way. Ms. Hall often had to stop class in order to discipline certain students, but she was generally able to get them back on track. I noticed they do a lot of memorization and recitation of definitions and examples. She often asks them to recite, as a class, things that are written on the board. If the students don’t seem to understand the first time, she has them say it over and over again. One thing I was definitely not prepared for was for Ms. Hall to leave school at 1:30pm. . . school isn’t dismissed until 3:00! I had to take over the class and keep them busy for the last 90 minutes. The students finished the social studies assignment they were working on, then I asked them to work on the math problems Ms. Hall had assigned earlier and then we finished with a couple games of hangman. The hardest part was getting the students to settle down and stay focused when I couldn’t even call them by name. What a way to start!
The second day was much better. The students now know who I am and are grateful to have me there. It’s so cute when the younger students come up to me just to hold my hand and say “hi.” In class we had the students practice writing formal letters with the appropriate components. For the body, the students had to write two paragraphs each telling me about themselves. I guess I’ve already made an impression because some of the letters tell me that I am their favorite teacher! These kids really appreciate having someone new in the classroom and are just as interested to learn about me as I am to learn about them. At the end of the day, Ms. Hall finished with having the students count in French. I could have easily done this in Spanish, but it looks like I’ve got some more learning to do! Between learning French and Creole while I’m down here, I hope to greatly expand my vocabulary!
All in all, it has been a wonderful experience so far. I am blessed to be living with such an accommodating family. They are doing everything they can to make me feel at home and I hope I am expressing enough gratitude. On a final note, I wasn’t kidding when I told my mom that I don’t know how often they shower. My family and I do wash ourselves every day, however, without running water, a “shower” consists of standing in the shower stall with a bucket of water and a pitcher to pour the water over your head. I suppose you do get clean enough, but I will never again take for granted a shower at home, even in the Burke community bathrooms!
Until next time . . . “Afternoon, you okay?”
“Make us proud, Sweets,” was the last thing my dad said to me as I left the car and headed to the airport desk to begin my nine week adventure. Mom helped me check in and send away my bags (both weighing exactly 50 pounds each) and then she, too, left me to do this on my own. After a day of waiting in lines, airport terminals and having to transfer planes, I finally made it to St Lucia only five hours later than planned. This is it, I’m really doing this.
The drive to the Cherbine’s house with Sr. Marie Therese was just the beginning, but already I knew I was going to have to make some big adjustments. Not only is the steering wheel on the opposite side of the car and they drive on the opposite side of the road, but apparently the 30 mph speed limits don’t really apply. We were flying around the sharp, dark turns and, had I been sitting in the front seat, would have been sick for sure. Arriving at the Cherbine’s home, I was greeted by so many people who would soon become my family. They brought my bags inside and offered me some soup. Hungry from the long day, I gladly accepted the offer only to find a “chicken soup” with a few indistinguishable ingredients. This would definitely take some getting used to.
After a very warm sleep and being awaken by a rooster, I accompanied the family to the two hour morning church service. The structure was very similar to home except for the length and the fact that the people here really belt out every song and sing with so much passion. It was absolutely wonderful and I tried to sing along. At the end of the service, the entire congregation acknowledged and sang Happy Birthday to anyone celebrating a birthday. Then, the priest looked right at me and introduced me to the whole crowd! He said my name, where I was from and why I am here and then everyone sang “Welcome, welcome . . . we love you, we love you.” It was such an awesome feeling to have so many people I have never met before be so welcoming and loving. It’s like one big family here and I’ll soon be a part.
After mass, Nadia (one of my “sisters”) arranged for a friend of hers to drive us around the northern part of the island to give me a taste of what to expect for the next nine weeks. After a short drive, we ended up in Pigeon Island Park at the shore of the Caribbean Sea. Absolutely gorgeous and a place I could spend the entire day at, I had to settle for a few pictures and simply stepping in the warm water. Walking across the parking lot and down a small hill, we ran right into the Atlantic Ocean! Yes, I definitely want to come back to this park. It’s only $5EC ($2US) to get in for the day!
Even if I’m still a little skeptical about the food my family serves (I’m trying everything though) I know I will not starve because they have the best ice cream I’ve ever tasted! I had some mint chocolate chip ice cream and was extremely satisfied. They also have these things called “icicles” which are basically freeze-pops, only more delicious! They sell them at school for only $0.25EC so I’m sure that will be a daily treat for me. I also told my family about how I love fruits so much so they are determined to have me try every fruit on the island. I’ve already had your typical apples, oranges and limes, but I’m also tried breadfruit, coconut water (drank right out of the coconut!) five fingered fruit, grenadine seeds, and golden apple.
My first day at the Monchy Primary School brought many more surprises and experiences. After morning assembly, the principal brought me around and introduced me to every class individually. After that, I settled in with the Grade 5 class I will be working with for the remainder of the term. Again, a rowdy bunch, but American 5th graders would be the same way. Ms. Hall often had to stop class in order to discipline certain students, but she was generally able to get them back on track. I noticed they do a lot of memorization and recitation of definitions and examples. She often asks them to recite, as a class, things that are written on the board. If the students don’t seem to understand the first time, she has them say it over and over again. One thing I was definitely not prepared for was for Ms. Hall to leave school at 1:30pm. . . school isn’t dismissed until 3:00! I had to take over the class and keep them busy for the last 90 minutes. The students finished the social studies assignment they were working on, then I asked them to work on the math problems Ms. Hall had assigned earlier and then we finished with a couple games of hangman. The hardest part was getting the students to settle down and stay focused when I couldn’t even call them by name. What a way to start!
The second day was much better. The students now know who I am and are grateful to have me there. It’s so cute when the younger students come up to me just to hold my hand and say “hi.” In class we had the students practice writing formal letters with the appropriate components. For the body, the students had to write two paragraphs each telling me about themselves. I guess I’ve already made an impression because some of the letters tell me that I am their favorite teacher! These kids really appreciate having someone new in the classroom and are just as interested to learn about me as I am to learn about them. At the end of the day, Ms. Hall finished with having the students count in French. I could have easily done this in Spanish, but it looks like I’ve got some more learning to do! Between learning French and Creole while I’m down here, I hope to greatly expand my vocabulary!
All in all, it has been a wonderful experience so far. I am blessed to be living with such an accommodating family. They are doing everything they can to make me feel at home and I hope I am expressing enough gratitude. On a final note, I wasn’t kidding when I told my mom that I don’t know how often they shower. My family and I do wash ourselves every day, however, without running water, a “shower” consists of standing in the shower stall with a bucket of water and a pitcher to pour the water over your head. I suppose you do get clean enough, but I will never again take for granted a shower at home, even in the Burke community bathrooms!
Until next time . . . “Afternoon, you okay?”
3 comments:
Elizabeth! I am soooo happy you made it safely to St. Lucia. Your experiences so far sound amazing and it's great you are trying new things. The school you are in sounds great and I am sure you will have a lot of fun. :D
On a different sad note, I thought I would let you know that a few students from Freedom High School were in a car accident last week. Two of the students were hurt and one student was killed. The name of the student is Dylan Landeau and he was a sophomore. I didn't know if you knew him or not, but I thought I would let you know about it since you will be going back to Freedom High School.
Anyway, have a great week! We miss you! ~Kristen
Hi Beth,
Great recap! Sounds exciting, so looking forward to going to Pigeon Island Park with you... Love you lots ~ Mom
Sounds like the wonderful adventure has begun! Make sure you take advantage of every "opportunity".
Students are a little down due to the accident, but we are off until Monday because of teacher's convention.
Take lots of pictures and work on that tan.
Ron
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