Also,

We now have a cat. Her name is Juliet and she is a psychopath. She was formerly the school cat but after the students finished she needed someone to take care of her. Since Iona was supporting all the food for her, we brought her here. Sometimes she is adorable. Most of the time she is literally an animal. She wants to go outside all the time, but she is so small that the street dogs and cats would probably eat her. She has had a few encounters with the soi animals, and, lets just say shes getting better at sticking close to home...

Back to School.

The new Intensive English Program has begun at our school. I am teaching math and physics...my specialties! It has actually been a lot of fun creating lesson plans and being outside of my academic comfort zone. The students have quite a diverse level of English comprehension ranging from fairly strong to almost none. I think the most challenging part is designing activities/games/assignments that will engage and challenge the students. I think my drawing ability has gotten significantly better since I have got here as I use pictures to describe everything! This week we learned the parts of a science lab report and we going to make one of my favorite dishes: tea leaf salad. Hopefully this will demonstrate how to write a method, list of materials and make conclusions...and, more importantly, I really like eating tea leaf salad.

It is starting to heat up over here with daily temps around 33-35 degrees. I play soccer most days with my students and I don't quite understand why the students don't seem to sweat anywhere near as much as their Canadian teacher. I mean, I can wring out my shorts after we play. Yesterday after playing the first game I had a shower with my clothes on and then continued to play. hot.

For the past month I have been playing soccer Friday nights at the Mae Sot turf field, which is a dream. The ground is level and I don't have to worry about blowing out my ankles in massive potholes.

Next Saturday I have signed up for the Mae Sot half Marathon. I figure I play soccer almost everyday so I should be in shape to giver'. If you don't hear from me for a while, just assume that I have passed out from heat exhaustion...Mom, I'll drink lots of water.

This week I volunteered to help out at an English camp for Thai children, so each morning I went to a Thai elementary school and lead games for 100+ kids. It was a great experience because the camp partnered with migrant schools to help teach English. Rarely is there ever a bond between the migrant schools and the Thai schools, so it was great to be a part of the relationship building process. We basically showed up and the director came over to us and said,

"Welcome, thank you for coming! Now, can you lead the children English games for 2 hours?"

We had no idea that was coming.... so played huckle buckle, beaver Sam, atoms, sang some songs: right up my alley. It brought back a lot of great SFS memories and I have never been so thankful my mom is a kindergarten teacher.

Lastly, we have started up a review class for the graduated students who want to prepare for their next level of education (which is pre-university). It has been great to see the students again and know how they are doing. A lot of them are doing their best to study but the reality is that there are not a lot of options for them. Everyone here will continue to do our best to stay in contact with the students and help them in any way we can.

family.

Front page news: Canada won the World cup with a come-from-behind Cinderella story of a victory. The tournament was a great day. We had 8 boys teams and most of the girls played - an afternoon of intense competition. We had to take breaks to water down the dusty field because the neighbors where complaining of the giant cloud that continually grew as we played...

Graduation was great. I have learned quickly that every special event in the Burmese community consists of 4 fundamental things: speeches, singing songs, eating and speeches. This one did not disappoint. It was great to talk with the students and meet some of their parents. The teachers conducted exit interviews to help the students with future choices and stay connected with them in the coming months as they go their separate ways. In Burmese culture a teacher is a highly respected member of society and students view their teachers similar to how they view their own parents. The students kneeled on the ground and prayed for us as a parting gift. Kind of overwhelming...just like the students back home...

I think everyone strives to be part of something bigger than themselves - A community where they are valued, loved and respected by others. One of the most powerful things I have noticed about the students and the community surrounding the school is their sense of commitment to one another. They are one giant family. Almost everything is shared. A new shirt was bought by one of the boys in the market and for the next 2 weeks following I think it was worn by a different boy each day. Everyday the boys and girls wear a combination of each others' clothes, shoes and jewelery.

When the students are sent money from their parents the teachers are usually the first to know. I have been treated to special meals and delicacies without ever asking. Last week I was given an ice dessert consisting of a bright green sugary syrup, red beans, bean jelly and peanuts all mixed together...it was so sweet I almost couldn't eat it. When I asked why, the student responded that he was given some money by his dad and he wanted to "appreciate his teachers".

This was the first thing he did with his gift.

I have started to learn Burmese and one phrase I love is "Saw bi bi la?" which means, "have you eaten yet?". Instead of asking "how are you" it is customary to ask if people have eaten..and if they say no, you have a meal together. No one goes hungry.

The sense of family here is unreal. The school consists of students from a lot of different ethnic groups who previously have been taught to shun ethnicities different from theirs. The school has all the students live, cook, and learn together in very close proximity - almost having no personal space. I think this has broken a lot of the animosity and given the students a different perspective.

Like a river.

So I have been slacking on my posting which could mean a number of things:

1. I'm getting lazy (most likely true)

2. My life is dull and uninspiring (...I personally definately don't think so)

3. I guess you could say I'm getting settled...

I think it is a combo of #1 and 3. Most people have told me that it takes around 3 months to start to get used to a new culture and although I am still learning new things about Thai and Burmese culture everyday (today I learned that it's better to slow down when street dogs come chasing after you on your bike rather than speed up (which makes them chase you longer and bark more...)) I think I am beginning to feel like this place is not a just new experience, but rather a new "home". There are so many things I love about this place and so many things that this place has made me appreciate more about my home in Canada.

School is coming to an end this week. I just finished marking the math exams and have submitted final grades. Friday is graduation. Where has 3 months gone? The new students arrive next week and a new semester begins. I will be teaching math and science as well as running a teacher-training program for graduated students alongside 2 other teachers here (Because of all my teaching experience...). I am really excited about the teacher training vocational program because it gives concrete, transferable skills to graduated students who want to become teachers. They will be doing a "practicum" with me and the other teachers and hopefully we can give them the skills to get a position teaching in the Burmese community. Currently we are designing the program and figuring out all the logistics. It will begin in a month.

I'm not sure if you've seen this on the news, but tomorrow our school is hosting the 2011 World Cup. Big Deal. We have a trophy and everything. There is mens and womens tournament, each with teams of 4. I'm on team Canada...Canada is the best country in the world, just not at soccer.

We are going to change that.

I read that it was a snow day in Southern Ontario today. I wish I could be at home to shovel and get in car accidents...I actually miss the cold weather like crazy. There are no runs open on the Thai ski hills at the moment...