Saturday, February 23, 2013

Sheryl Crow

As Sheryl Crow sings, "I think a change will do you good," there are a few changes that have happened recently and it is time to share. :)  Nervous yet...?????

Change 1: I turned one year older.  As I creep closer to 30 my life is not exactly where I thought it would be but I am SO GLAD about the lessons God has taught me over the years.  I am grateful I am not the same person I was 10 years ago. I know my college friends and roommates were introduced to a dramatic basket case that (hopefully) has mellowed out some!  I have wanted to live overseas for about 15 years and I am overjoyed that in God's timing and provision it has happened when and how it did.  I celebrated my 29th birthday surrounded with students I adore and co-workers/friends that love and encourage me daily.  I have included some pictures of the fun day.  Some friends and I went to The Optimist (an Italian restaurant) for my birthday dinner. It felt a little like Olive Garden minus the breadsticks and salad, but it was tasty! I hadn't been there yet so it was neat to try something new. The weekend following my birthday we had a joint birthday party - Suriname meets 1920's.  It was fun to get dressed up and play Taboo. Our crew would be LOST without that game.  I was introduced to balloon volleyball which involved flailing on the bed and lots of laughs. It is definitely a new fave of mine.  My birthday well wishes almost made me a little homesick. My love tank was so full I wanted to hug everyone and cry because I missed them!  I am so grateful for the friendships I have had over the years that have encouraged me in countless ways. I am excited to see what happens in my 29th year of life. :) 

Change 2: The Mission House roommates (Carmen, Steph, and I) had to move.  So our party Saturday night was surrounded with moving boxes and the weekend was spent cleaning and packing. The way our living situation worked out I moved into my friends' house (Sherry and Shelby) and Carmen/Steph found a house down the street from me. My new house is closer to the school and stores I frequent. I do miss my roommates, but my new ones have been so kind to me. I am one blessed girl.  I miss my old house - so much space - but I did get luck again and my new digs have a dryer. :)

Change 3: I have lost two students to their home countries and I going to lose another student in a week and half. If you have been keeping track of my student count that puts me down to four students again.  Of course I am sad to see the students go and it does change the classroom's dynamic but I am glad I had the opportunity to meet them. They have blessed my life so much even if they were part of my world for what seems like the blink of an eye. Prayers are appreciated as we transition from all the kiddos leaving. It is not the easiest thing I have gone through but God is good.

Change 4: (Probably the biggest development...)  Without boring the world with all the details, I will not be returning to Suriname next year to teach.  My contract was for two years, but because of a separation between the local school board and the organization (NICS) all contracts are void at the end of the school year.  The news of the separation came in November and following that I was forced to make a decision about what I wanted to do. The separation felt as if my parents were divorcing....I just got here....This wasn't supposed to happen....I just sold my belongings...What does this mean....What is my life going to look like...Who is the board.....A confusion of emotions and rationale came like a wave over me.  When I signed my contract I didn't foresee making this decision for another year.  But the situation is what it is. I have spent time seeking Godly counsel and prayed about it and reached a decision to leave.  With all that being said, I wanted to stay with the NICS organization and a position was available at another NICS school in South America.  God opened the doors and I am SO EXCITED to share that I will be teaching 2nd grade at the NICS Lima, Peru school for the next two years.  When I interviewed for the Suriname job I also interviewed with the Lima school. I really liked the school and country but didn't have a peace about moving there. I had an indescribable peace about moving to Suriname.  I don't regret moving my life to Suriname. I have met incredible people.  I have learned and grown so much. I believe God is the Potter and I am the clay.  This pot is not done being molded. I will take so much from my Suriname experience.

So my geographical location may change but I am still journeying.  Let's enjoy this wild ride together.

You are loved,
Megan

Sunday, February 10, 2013

Holiday Highlights

It doesn't take a super smart person to recognize the date of last time's post and this current post.  It is true...I have fallen behind (again) along with forgetting my password for about a month.  But there also is much that has gone on in my world that I was/am still trying to process.

After a while, my new life has become my normal life - the bike rides to school, the dogs, the interesting food, and the countless mosquito bites all have become "normal" to me. In the beginning everything seems so drastically different so EVERYONE will want to know EVERYTHING.  Now most of my life seems so natural that I don't think about how I still need to share what is going on in my world.

The school hosted an American Thanksgiving feast on Thanksgiving for the students and parents but it was not required for staff to attend.  SO... Mr. and Mrs. Gee (also known as Poppa and Momma Gee) and Fabienne (our amazing secretary) loaded up the bags and went to French Guyana for a few days. Fabienne's friend was going to let us stay at her house for free and enjoy her pool! So EARLY Thanksgiving morning we were picked up my a taxi and rode for about two hours to the river, left Suriname and entered French territory.  After getting our passports stamped, we found Budget and rented a car and drove for about 3 hours to where we were staying. Seeing a nicer beach was so wonderful, working on my tan, and visiting the European Space Center were fun (and educational) parts of the trip.  It was nice to escape to somewhere else for a few days.  Instead of mom's turkey with stuffing we had Brazilian pizza for dinner. :)

The Christmas season was super fun with my class.  The school put on a super cute Christmas concert and they sang and danced their hearts out!  I was even asked to do the dancer's makeup. I guess this diva title is more fitting that I was aware of!  It was a great time to gather the school and parents together to celebrate the Reason for the Season.  I will try to post pictures.  I did a Christmas Around the World unit with my kids. Having international students it was cool to celebrate other cultures.  We were busy learning and crafting!  Within my class we did a gift exchange. It was precious.  They kept it a secret all week and were so excited to have their person open up their gift!  I got in on the fun and was given some fragrant perfume (in an apple bottle, of course!) from one of my students.

I was able to go home for Christmas and see some sweet faces. I treasured every moment I had with all my friends and family. It was a whirlwind of a trip.  I can't thank enough those that let me borrow cars, sleep in beds, fed me, and planned special excursions.  I am truly grateful for your generosity.  I had some much quality time all jumbled into a two and a half week span my heart couldn't handle much more! Seeing Ms. Mitchell's class and all the questions they had for me was a definite highlight. I LOVE those kiddos! Walking into Target and Wal-Mart was a splendid experience. I typically live off of $100/week but I managed to spend $50 in Wal-Mart in 30 minutes.  Maybe it is a blessing I don't have access to such goods on a regular basis. :) 

I don't think I was upset about leaving America and returning to Suriname when the time came. I was more like...."I don't wanna go back to work!" It was great to have three weeks off, but I wasn't nervous about returning to Suriname since now I knew what to expect. Since being back I have gotten two new students...that makes 7 in case you have lost count.  I have five boys and two girls.  My two new students don't speak much English and one is quite shy.  I ask something energetically and get a stone wall response.  We are working on it though! :)  We celebrated the 100th day of school last week and dressed up like 100 year olds! I had lots of fun and so did the kids. I have included a picture for those that don't have Facebook. :)  I had so much baby powder in my hair that I whipped my hair later in the day and clouds of powder choking me.

Yesterday, February 9th, I went over to my friend Sherry's house to have a fun girls' day with some of her kiddos.  (Hindsight I should have brought my kids over too) We did nails, hair, makeup, Just Dance, Sing It and art projects. It was fun to love on them.  My eye makeup was rose colored. It looked like I just had my eyebrows waxed and my eyes were inflamed. :)  Of course we played Truth or Dare which revolved around sharing the name of your school crush. (Oh to be 9 again!)  They roped me into the game and I said "dare."  So tricky...they said, "I dare you to tell the truth."  It was a great day. :) It reminds me of why I am down here to spend quality time with these kids. My heart was full.

Lately I have been thinking about my amazing kids and how smart they are.  They care so much for each other and know so much about the Bible. I want them to understand God in their minds and hearts. Not to be so full of knowledge that they miss a relationship with God.  Pray along with me...ya mind???

Coming up...
-My 29th birthday!!!!! (My roommate Steph has her birthday on the 19th so we are having a joint birthday party at our house. The theme is going to the Roaring 20's since we are both turning 29 and leaving our 20's behind. I am sure it will be fun! We aren't dull people!)
-Moving houses...I am not sure where we will be going but pray that I can keep a sweet attitude about it all. I really like my house and hate to leave it. I have told the girls we are stealing the dryer...it may be ghetto-fabulous but it works (only if you duct tape it closed).

I hope you are doing well! Please drop me a line and let me know how you are!

You are loved,
Megan :)