Pictures, Pictures, Pictures!

Here we go: I finally have albums of my stay in Costa Rica. Enjoy!

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2077257&id=3000897&l=a5b5df5852

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2077261&id=3000897&l=f2b3f1c3cd

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2077265&id=3000897&l=f2df13f61e

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2077278&id=3000897&l=9944fe5b08

Some Things Never Change

I'm currently at home in Mississippi for a short respite from Houston busy-ness. Each time I come home I marvel at the next new thing I see during my drive into town. Even home is not the familiar hidey-hole it used to be. My room is hardly recognizable now; it's more of a storage area where my my mom keeps extra notebooks and clothes. The dishes at the dining room table are square and oddly modern-- what happened to the white Corningware with the green floral edges?

Some habits never die, though. Yesterday evening, I sat down to peer at the local paper, just as I did many a evening while I was in high school. I quickly scanned the headlines ("School District at Risk for Failing") and read through the articles that piqued my interested before flipping quickly to the one page my brother and I most coveted.

Yes. The daily comics.

This time, however, my mom didn't yell at me for spending too much time reading "Blondie" or "Garfield" instead of getting to my calculus homework.

After soaking in the last of the funnies, I flipped to the next to last page of the newspaper, after the articles about Ole Miss football and the Dear Abby section, as well as the entertainment column, complete with a picture of Taylor Swift from the AMA.

There, as always, in the top left corner, was Dennis the Menace. How comforting it is to find that some things will never change.

Blessed

The sixth grade and I have gone full steam 'til now. It is Thanksgiving break, for which I am extremely thankful, and I'm looking forward to writing some before I have to start writing lesson plans again.

Hi Ho, Hi Ho, It's Off to Work I Go...

I'm back at work. I'm hoping to update with some pictures soon!

Back at Home

Back in Houston. I can't really describe how I'm feeling right now. :)

Le Doy Las Gracias a Dios Por…

My time in Costa Rica, in San Francisco el Bosque, is rapidly drawing to a close. In just a few short hours, I will board a plane back to everything that is familiar to me. While I am excited to see dearly-missed friends and family once again, leaving is a bit bittersweet, as I have grown to love many things here. My grammar teacher always begins class by asking us what we’re thankful for, so before I leave for Houston, I want to take a minute to write down the things I have been thankful for during my time here.

1) My Tico family. I have grown to love my host family, and I can’t believe they choose to sacrifice so much of their personal space and time to host students regularly. They have made me feel comfortable here, and while communication might have been a bit of a challenge, they have really challenged me to think about creative ways to say things.

2) Classmates. Study buddies, traveling companions, explorers, neighbors, friends. I’ve shared many a adventure and conversation with my classmates from school, and I’ve loved hearing about how they happened to end up here in San Jose. Kind, friendly folks are they.

3) The Vineyard. I’m thankful for having met Jose Pablo and Carlos in Houston back in May, for they were very kind in helping me connect with their friends and finding rides to church (Jose Pablo and his wife Laura even took me home after a very busy first night at the H13 conference). If not for them, I might not have met friends Marco and Sara and Ester, and the folks from Vineyards back in the United States, England, and in other parts of Central America.

4) Lack of communication devices. Not having a cell phone and solid Internet connection for a month may have been one of the best things to have happened to me, as I have learned to get by without both phone and Internet and to be super-efficient when I have access to one or the other. This is definitely the longest time I've been without a cell phone (in Korea I used my grandma's cell), and I think I could live without one.

Time to enjoy one last beautiful morning here before I head out to the airport. I want to drink everything in...

Viene Goal...

23 July 2009

If you’ve been watching the Gold Cup soccer matches in the United States (or elsewhere), then you might have known that Mexico, Costa Rica, the US, and Honduras played semifinal matches tonight. After dinner with friends, I opened the door to my house to find Christian, Adriana, Jimena, and Fabian (and a neighbor kid, Samuel) watching the Mexico-Costa Rica semifinal game. I couldn’t have asked for a more memorable experience. Each time a Costa Rican jugador neared an opportunity to score, we all sang, “Viene goal, viene goal…a Costa Rica viene goal!”

After Costa Rica tied the game 1-1 at the close of the second half, my entire family (and I) went outside to celebrate with the neighbors, banging on the gates, shouting “Ticos, Ticos, Ticos, Ticos!” and, of course, “Ole…”

Even Adriana crossed herself and prayed a little prayer as Costa Rica and Mexico rounded out the end of overtime, still tied, and went into penalty kicks. Each team matched the other until the third kick in the series, at which point Costa Rica missed, and unfortunately, the song we had to sing was, “No fue goal...” (It was no goal...)

Que triste.

Traveling Mercies

I’ve taken a couple of out of town trips during my time here. Here are some noteworthy experiences, in no particular order:

-Pay restrooms at the Gran Terminal del Caribe on my way out to Puerto Viejo. I wasn’t surprised at having to pay 200 colones to go to the restroom, but I had more of a shock to see a woman employed to hand me my ration of toilet paper.

-Visas (REALLY don’t leave home without them). I forgot and took only a photocopy of my passport to Puerto Viejo, sans visa. On the way back to San Jose, of course the police stopped the bus to check our passports (Puerto Viejo is close to Panama). We got an earful from the policeman about not traveling with our visas, but fortunately, he let the bus go without much hassle since many of the other passengers didn’t have their passports, period.

-Buses. I think the time it takes for me to drive the distance from Pasadena to Humble takes a bus here 4.5 hours. Why? Because the road into the mountains can be curvy and treacherous. Because you can encounter the aftermath of a mudslide along the way. Because you can be friends of the bus driver and have him stop randomly when you need to use the restroom (I kid you not).

-Carsickness. See above. At one point I opened the window because I thought I might…

An Addendum

Yesterday, at the artisans’ mercado by the Museo Nacional, I finally felt the need to stand up for myself. One vendor called out to me, “Konichiwa!” Promptly I whirled around and eyed him squarely in the eye and said (in Spanish):

“Excuse me, I don’t understand Japanese. I’m from the US, and my parents are Korean.”

Immediately the boy looked surprised that I had confronted him, turned red and apologized profusely, almost to the point where I felt bad about responding. We started conversing amiably for a while, and towards the end of the conversation, he said:

“Again, I’m really sorry. I guess it’s like you calling me something without asking about my roots first.”

Perhaps I don’t feel so bad about speaking up anymore…

Things I Might Never Get Used To

Physical discomforts I don’t mind much, be it cool showers, a flat cushion for a pillow, or the daily presence of insects (and more-legged creatures) in my room. I’ve observed my family so that I could, too, do as the Ticos do—watch the electricity and water usage, bed early and rise early, not flush toilet paper down to prevent drain cloggage, or wash clothes by hand.

However, living the life of another culture is not just about adapting physically to one’s environment. It’s also about adjusting to how people tend to perceive each other and react to those perceptions. It’s about how one communicates with another (and it’s not just about learning the language, although that is a huge step). While I have been forewarned about some things I would observe in the culture here, I don’t think a day goes by when something happens to take me by surprise.

If you have slanted eyes, you might be called “chino”. Actually, anything Asian might be referenced as “chino”. And if you’re a little overweight or a little slender or darker in skin tone, you’ll be called “gordo” or “delgado” or “negro”. And of course, many of us “gringos” live in San Francisco. Many Ticos openly describe others by their physical appearance. While the concept is a bit refreshing, I’m a little disconcerted each time someone across the street shouts, “chinita linda!” For example, the beautiful Japanese park a little east of the school is officially known as Parque Okayama. However, almost everyone calls it “Parque de Chino”. One man actually stopped his car while backing out to ask me:

--Senorita, es usted japonesa?
--No, mis padres son coreanos, y yo vivo en los estados unidos.


“Te amo, guapa.” One doesn’t have to be dressed immodestly to receive the preceding comment. Sometimes one only has to be a female and walking on the street to receive air kisses, cat calls, hisses, or other forms of attention from certain men. I think it’s the one thing I truly dislike about the culture—that such machismo behavior is widely accepted. I was positively livid to see one aggressive man approach a beautiful young Josefino and get in her face as she was walking and trying to ignore him. My favorite comment? “You are beautiful queens, guapas,” from a Rastafarian riding his bike down the main road in Puerto Viejo.

Here You Are in Splendour...

There’s something about beauty that always makes my heart jump a little, and when I see something beautiful, I still squeal, clap my hands, and laugh like a little girl who finds that the last birthday present she unwraps is exactly what she wants.

Then, like the writer of this Vineyard song,

I bow down and surrender
Overwhelmed by beauty and grace

I’ve savored each encounter with nature I’ve had here in Costa Rica. I cannot describe any of them adequately with even the finest sketch, but a few deserve at least a meager mention:

-One of my favorite things about La Vina del Este is that it sits nestled in the mountains in the neighborhood of Salitrillos. On any given day one can see (through huge glass windows) the lush greenery soaring into the sky as the worship team plays. I walked into the sanctuary towards the end of worship one Sunday. A little bummed that I had missed out on the singing, I snuck down to the front, sat myself down as quickly as possible, and flipped open my journal. As I propped my head up to listen to the message, I saw a swooping motion just above the drum set. I ducked my head to focus, and there they were—two eagles sweeping the sky silently and encircling the tips of the trees.

-After a wonderful day with my friends Marco and Sara in La Fortuna and Volcan Arenal, we stopped in a tiny town to eat dinner at a soda. Tired from a long day of walking and van rides, we took a minute to shake out any tight kinks in our muscles. Mid-stretch, Sara gasped, “Look!”

We looked up to see vast, black night, scattered with a cloudy blanket of stars.

God has met me here, in splendor and in majesty, in each time I have encountered beauty. Each part of creation is a reflection of God’s great care and detail and love. If he has taken care to construct the most beautiful, delicate flower, how would he not know me and love me and care for me fully?

Ten Things I Enjoy in Costa Rica

1. Coffee. It’s something else here. I still like coffee best with a bit of milk and sugar, but Costa Rica’s the only place where I’ve been able to a) drink a cup of coffee every day, and b) drink coffee without my favorite additions. Tonight, my friend Laura and I had café chorreadore, made from a traditional wooden coffee strainer (like a French press, but better!).
2. Buses. I pay less than fifty cents for a one-way trip to the center of the city.
3. Nature. Flowers of all sorts exist here, as do lovely animals. On a jaunt to Volcan Arenal last weekend, we saw a family of monkeys climbing the trees and a herd of wild pigs crossing the road.
4. Fruit. I’m going to miss all the fresh pineapple, mangoes, papaya, guanabaya, cas, and more.
5. Time. I’ve had time in the mornings and evenings to read, to go salsa dancing, to write some, to play video games and Gran Banco, to sit and think…
6. Friendliness. At a market downtown this afternoon, a vendor named Vanessa sat me down and had me tell her my life story (in Spanish, por supuesto) before I could buy anything from her. And I love this one lady at aerobics who nearly dragged me into the class the first time I visited.
7. Casado. No, I’m not married. Casado is what we call dinner/lunch plates here, filled with rice, beans, picadillo (chopped veggies), fried plantains, and some sort of meat (beef, chicken, or fish). I think this dish is called such because it’s the typical dinner a married man gets from his wife.
8. Walking. I enjoy my ten-minute walk to the Institute, with or without a companion, and I’ve enjoyed walking around my neighborhood of San Francisco de Dos Rios.
9. Mountains. San Jose is nestled in the mountains, dotted with lights at night.
10. Rest. No additional words needed here.

A Sunset

Because we're in the wet season here and it's been raining almost every evening, I haven't been able to see a sunset here until very recently. Here, the sun is setting across from Lake Arenal.

Quiere Jugar Futbol, Gen?

I enjoy spending time with my Tico brother and sister, Fabian and Jimena. One of my favorite routines in the morning takes place when I’ve just opened my bedroom door and I’m about to start studying. Almost without fail, Jimena promptly sees that the door to my room is open and toddles in. She makes a beeline straight for my bed, where I’m studying on my stomach. Cocking her head, she smiles and exclaims questioningly, “Popó?” She promptly turns around and makes a dash for the doorway. She hides.

Sl-o-o-o-o-o-wly her curls peek out from behind the doorway, until her entire head slips out. My face makes a round “O” in surprise, and she giggles and hides again. We repeat peek-a-boo a few more times before she comes running back to my bedside, her face just a breath away from mine.

“Besito?” I ask her. She puckers up her lips, closes her eyes, and kisses me on the cheek before I scoop her up and take her to the living room.

With mischievous nine-year-old Fabian, I play “soccer” (I say “soccer” in quotes because my less-than-stellar footwork couldn’t in a million years be considered soccer). After setting up the goals, we take the usual routine of picking teams.

“Yo- Costa Rica, y usted- Estados Unidos,” Fabian says assertively. Usually he represents Costa Rica and I, the US. We play pretty fairly, although at times I forget and foul, at which Fabi promptly flashes an imaginary card in my face and yells, “Tarjeta amarilla!” Thanks to Fabi and our daily soccer matches, I have now picked up a fair amount of soccer lingo in Spanish.

Just last week, we played a Copa Oro (Gold Cup, which is currently taking place in the US) match with Fabi’s cousin Francini, fondly nicknamed “Mini”. Because she was a girl, she and I were on the same team, while Fabi roamed the concrete field solo. Mini was amazing; while she was a bit shy to confront her cousin head on, she had no problems making straight shots goal-to-goal. In the end, though, we fell short, as Fabi made the 20th goal to win the match. Afterwards, I comforted Mini by letting her know that she had pies de oro—feet of gold—which I mentioned to sports reporter Fabi in a post-game interview.

With these “breaks” from doing my homework, it always takes me just a little bit longer to finish for the evening.

Halfway Through...

On Friday my conversation teacher asked us how we were feeling halfway through the course. While my vocabulary has picked up in leaps and bounds, I couldn't really describe in Spanish what I have really learned in the past two weeks. Por ejemplo:

I left the United States just a little over two weeks ago feeling like I was running on fumes—dry, empty, thirsty. I felt far away from God, not knowing if I was hearing from him, and many times in the past few months I wondered if what I was doing was what he wanted me to do. As I sat in the airport waiting for my flight, watching the CNN coverage on Michael Jackson, I half-heartedly asked God to fill me up while I was in Costa Rica. I say half-heartedly because, honestly, I wasn’t sure if I’d be able to hear his response.

Well, you know how you’ll answer your cell in the middle of happy hour and have to walk outside to try to make out what your friend is screaming at you on the other end? And once you’re finally removed from the clinking glasses and blaring ESPN SportCenter, your friend’s voice comes ringing clear.

Going to Costa Rica has been like going outside the bar to answer the phone, and aside from learning Spanish, I think I’ve been spending the past two weeks becoming reacquainted with God’s voice and the way he talks to me. It’s been like hanging out with old high school friends after some years of not keeping in touch, and hearing how clearly he speaks to me and seeing how much he still knows and understands me brings me to tears.

At the H13 worship conference last weekend, the pastor of youth at La Viña del Este talked about one of the Greek words translated as “worship” in the Bible—proskuneo, which means to “turn around and kiss”. He gave the example of a man in love with his wife, who turns around to kiss her, gives her all of his attention and energy, sets aside time to be with her alone. His actions tell her, "You're all I have." The message was a bit of a wake-up call for me.

Proskuneo. God’s been showing me how clearly I can hear him and understand him when I set aside time for him, just me and him, and he shows me what he can do when I turn to him and say, “Help, God—you’re all I have” and let go of my distractions. How much he just wants me to hang out with him like Mary, and how much I have been a Martha in the past few months!

Muy Dificil...

So I'm not dreaming IN Spanish yet, but I have been studying to the point that I'm dreaming about what I'm currently practicing.

For example, a couple of nights ago, I knew I was dreaming about reflexive constructions (me siento, me lavo...) because I woke up thinking about them.

Now, if I could only use direct object/indirect object pronouns in my conversation. I'm having a time just putting it in writing!

...

I'll never again underestimate how challenging aerobics class can be. This morning I had a heaping serving of humble pie, as I sweated buckets and bumbled along in an attempt to follow the nimble footwork of our very fit instructor. Most of the regulars around me are older than I am (from mothers in their thirties with young children all the way up to seventy-ish), and they all stepped along without skipping a beat!

In Case You Didn't Know...

http://www.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/americas/07/06/honduras.political.turmoil/index.html

Honduran president Manuel Zelaya was ousted by the military a little over a week ago for trying to push a vote to make a constitutional change to allow him to run for another term in office (under the current charter, he cannot be re-elected). He arrived in Costa Rica shortly after I did, before Hugo Chavez scooped him up in a plane and took him to Nicaragua and El Salvador. He made a failed attempt to return to Tegucigalpa yesterday night.

Between the Hours of 9pm and 6am...

For those of you who know me, you're probably well-acquainted with my sleeping tendencies. I can usually fall asleep anywhere, almost anytime, be it on someone's living room couch amidst a lively social gathering, in the middle of writing an email with my laptop in my lap, or in my own bed. I've been sleeping well here in my little room behind the garage, but I do wake up every now and then, as the neighborhood is wide awake outside the gates of our house. To demonstrate:

1) At 9pm, the 2 cocker spaniels next door raise a bit of a ruckus when they see the neighborhood strays patrolling the sidewalks.

2) Every once in a while a red taxi zooms by (drivers don't usually mind the road signs and zip at high speeds along neighborhood streets.).

3) Once every few hours, a car honks in the street. Because most houses here have several layers of gates, usually drivers honk outside to let their wives/husbands/children know to come out and unlock the gates one by one.

4) At approximately 1am (almost every night), two neighborhood cats commence their ritual of tag on our rooftop, complete with melodious singing and scampering.

5) At 5:30 or 6am, the engine of my family's car coughs and chokes a couple of times before starting completely. (Christian goes early to his job as a mechanic).

6) At 6:30 my own alarm starts buzzing, although I'm usually wide awake before my watch sounds.

Something Random...

I went to my first (and maybe my last) aerobics class here last Friday. I insisted that I was only going to watch, but then one of the regulars insisted that I at least try the dancing portion of the class, which I did...and failed miserably.

There´s no way I can shake my body parts the way those women were (and mind you, the majority of them were at least fifteen to twenty years older than I am!).

Sin Palabras, Enamorado...

...dulcemente, quebrantado!

Thanks to the help of lovely friends and some new-found ones, I made it to La Vina del Este last night for the opening night of the H13 Conference and got to meet some peeps from the Southwest London Vineyard and Vineyard Columbus (in Ohio)!

More to come...

Some Getting Used to...

Things I´m adjusting to:

-A semi-cold shower in the mornings. Water heaters are expensive here, so most houses have an electric heater attached to the shower head. I didn´t know how to work the shower for the first four days and resigned myself to the idea of taking cold showers.

-Not understanding everything in my surroundings. Oh, wait. This happens back at home on a regular basis.

-Being aware of my surroundings during my walks to and from school. So far everything seems fine, but a fellow student at the Institute had her backpack taken during her walk to school yesterday morning. I´m guessing it can´t be any worse than walking solo in my neighborhood back in Houston at night, but yesterday I decided to stay for chapel so I could walk home with a girl who lives in my neighborhood.

-Relying on others for things that I need. I know God´s been reminding me that I shouldn´t and can´t rely on my own strength for the things I need.

-Not having my day planned to the last second. Back at home I´ve tended to fill my daily life with people, activities, email, etc, from the moment I get up to the second my head hits the pillow...all for what reason? It was weird not to have somewhere to go Wednesday night, and it´s a little bit weird to be stripped of all the things I normally do back at home.

A Typical Day...

I've just arrived at the Institute this morning to write a few quick emails and postcards before heading off to the library to study. My Tico family lives approximately a ten-minute walk away from the school in the neighborhood of San Francisco, and while it's cooler here than it is in Houston, I broke a sweat during my walk this morning.

I feel like a bit of a little kid again, living with my Tico family. While my Tico parents are approximately my age (Adriana is just a few months my elder), they do a tremendous amount to take care of me, including cooking meals, washing clothes, making sure I don't get lost, etc. It feels a bit unusual when I'm used to fending for myself, but I am appreciating it. Just this morning, Adriana sent me off to school with a slice of pineapple in hand to munch on during my walk, haha.

Classes are in the afternoon. I tested into a mid-beginner/beginning intermediate grammar class and an intermediate conversation class (thank you to all my friends who speak Spanish to me back at home!), so a lot of the concepts we're learning are a bit of a review. After a special chapel service, I usually sit outside to study/have some quiet time before eating lunch and going to class. When classes end at four, I make the trek home. I'm a little wary of taking my North Face backpack with me wherever I go; while I don't have valuables minus a bit of money in my pockets, the backpack makes me an easy target, I want to take a bit of precaution. Just yesterday a missionary friend told me about a friend of hers who was robbed at gunpoint not too far from here.

Despite all the walking, I'm not losing any weight! Adriana feeds me huge portions that I can't refuse. Just last night I had a plate of arroz con frijoles negra (rice with black beans), a small omelet, chayote (which is a root vegetable like a potato), and fresh veggies. And not too long before dinner, I had cafecito, which is a little like the Chilean once with coffee, fruit, and bread and cheese or bread and butter.

In the evenings I play with my Tico brother and sister before I work on homework. Fabian is 9 years old and loves to play soccer with me, and Jimena is just over 1 (we like to dance to reggaeton together). Fabian is still in school, so he usually works on homework or studying when I am. A bit of TV (I allow myself to watch since I think it helps me to learn), a bit of reading, and then I'm usually off to bed by 10:30 at the latest. No, seriously.

My time is up here, so I'll be back to update soon...

Ahnyonghasaeyoh!!!

Imagine my surpise to find a small population of Koreans here in Costa Rica. Two of them are in my intensive language course, a couple around my parents´age, who talk to me in Korean when they´re having trouble understanding the instructions in Spanish (or in English, for that matter).

My brain is a bit taxed right now, and my head is whirling. I´m having a challenging time switching from one language to another, much less having to use a 3rd language I hadn´t expected to use.

I´m loving the people I´m meeting here, though! May God show me who He wants me to hang out with, since there are SOOOO many of them...

Halo...

...found an Internet cafe and wanted to say hello from San Jose! Just to update you:

-I am staying with a family of four (a couple my age plus 2 little ones-- a 9 year old boy and a 1 year old girl) in the neighborhood of the Instituto de Lengua Española.

-I can´t get enough of the coffee here, which is simply coffee with a bit of milk, enhanced with some sugar

-I watched the Michael Jackson ¨Thriller¨video with my host family for the first time yesterday afternoon. Go figure.

My time is almost up, but I wanted to send a quick update. Will be posting regularly soon. Classes start tomorrow, so perhaps I can find a place where I can hook up my laptop.

Hello, Korean Food!

http://dolsotbibimbap.com/

Someone just found a new way to procrastinate...

Adios...

Adiós. I'm pretty sure that one doesn't have to be a native Spanish speaker or reside in the great state of Texas to know what that means. It's one of two Spanish words I knew before I moved to Houston nearly nine years ago, and it's perhaps the word I've used most flippantly since then.

A Dios. "Adiós" is an expression of farewell, but its literal Spanish meaning is, as a friend told me once, "to God". I'm bidding Houston "adios" for a month, as I step onto a plane this Friday that takes me to Costa Rica to participate in a Spanish language program. I have been very excited about this journey, but in the past week or so, I've been bogged down by a bit of uncertainty and fear about the future, especially as I review a flashcard or two at a stoplight ("What? I don't remember seeing this!") or pack in time to hang out with folks before I leave because I know I'm going to miss hanging out with them for a month.

Yeah. Call me crazy. I don't always embrace change and opportunity with the freedom I've imagined I should have, and I've been feeling lately that God wants to work on that aspect of me some more. So, I'm hoping this month I'll learn to become even less attached or afraid. As I leave Houston, here's to giving more of my life completely to God...

Spontaneity is...

-taking a walk around the neighborhood without a directed path

-running into friends who use your dining area to cut and stuff wedding invitations

-going to Chic-Fil-A after deciding upon Japanese ramen...no, wait, La Guadalupana...oh, I mean, La Tapatia...oh, yeah, let's get a chicken sandwich and waffle fries

-meeting up with friends for frozen yogurt after you stop by the local ice cream parlor

-sucking in helium from balloons to make your voice squeaky

-seeing a certain youth pastor walking in the neighborhood late at night, reversing a red Isuzu Rodeo, and rolling down the window to inquire what a lady such as her was doing outside in these parts

-fun, open-minded friends

On Middle Schoolers and Microwaves

Lunch duty is not my favorite time of the week. I enjoy the conversations I've had with students during lunch, but it's hard to banter about soccer with the boys or to talk one-on-one with a struggling student when there are only a few pairs of adult eyes watching a roomful of 300 gangly adolescents. There's always something up the sleeve of these mischievous middle schoolers, whether they intend to wreak havoc or not.

I was on duty with middle schoolers one day this past spring and had been chit-chatting with some students standing in line when a curly-haired sixth grader cut in front of me, breathless.

She could hardly spit out the words. "Miss! The microwave's on fire!"

I was about to ask her to wait her turn to speak when her words actually penetrated my thoughts. I looked at the far corner counter where the two microwaves sat and spotted some smoke. Quickly, I walked over to the microwaves, where already students had gathered to rubberneck.

Gently I shooed them away and opened the door to the microwave. Puffs of smoke blew out, but no fire.

On the rotating glass, I saw the culprit: a taco wrapped in aluminum foil.

The curly-haired girl, at my shoulder, breathed a sigh of relief. Turning to her, I asked, "Hey, do you know what aluminum foil does in microwaves?"

Her eyes opened wide as she exclaimed, "It wasn't me, miss! She did it." She pointed to a tiny girl next to us who squealed shrilly (as if on cue) and ran away in fright as suddenly as she had appeared.

It's in moments like these I have to resist the urge to start laughing aloud. Slowly, I strided toward the girl (whom I'll call Samantha), whose head I saw finally poke out amongst a field of ringlets and ponytails.

"Samantha." I was being gentle. I swear.

Her head popped back into the sea.

I walked up to her.

"Samantha."

A head timidly popped back up and slowly turned to face me. Then a torrential confession spilled out.

"Miss I didn't know that's what happens if you put foil in the microwave I swear I didn't do it on purpose so I got scared and that's why I ran away I'm sorry miss I'll never do it again."

There. It was out.

I put a hand on her shoulder. She held her breath, waiting for my next move.

Finally, I spoke. "Hey, it's all right! Next time, just let a teacher know when something's on fire, okay?"

In the corridor...

I'm currently sitting in the lounge of the Shepherd School of Music at Rice, which used to be one of my favorite places to read/study. (I decided to stop by a little earlier to finish up some homework for class this afternoon.) It has been decidedly quiet for the past hour or so, with only the sounds of a piano tinkling-- and the occasional wail of a French horn-- breaking the silence.

However, the half hour has passed, and the little ones in the music class in the corridor have been let out for the afternoon.

Well, that's that. No more work for me...

It's Summer...

...and for many reasons besides having time, I am going to start blogging again.

What's in an Appendix?

After a series of events last week (which included a myriad of experiences I've never had before), I no longer have this funny little part of my body.

Silly thing. Why did you cause so much trouble? What is your purpose? I'd like very much to know, as I've missed nearly a week of school and spent a night in the hospital because of you!

Ridin'

The cause of all of my bruises this past week.

Mi Familia

I miss the family I met (or was re-introduced to) while I was in Korea last summer. Having tiny cousins is like having nieces and nephews, and I really enjoyed getting to know my mom's and dad's siblings, as well as my mom's mom (my only surviving grandparent). I went to my cousin's school music performance right before I departed back for the States, and immediately afterward I realized that I wouldn't have another chance (at least for a while) to see four generations of family together.

Above are: me (obviously), my budding violinist cousin (my cousin's daughter, which makes her my first cousin once removed?), my wee grandmother, my cousin's wife, and my mom's eldest sister (my cousin's mom).

I wish I could have more time to spend with them. It was hard for me to decide not to go back to Korea this coming summer, especially as my grandmother gets older and more ill, but maybe I'll get to see all these wonderful people again, one day soon.

Eeeek

I really should be sleeping by now, and it's not just because I have to be at school early tomorrow morning. At 8am I will be donating blood for the first time, and I'm utterly frightened. My veins haven't really been friends with needles, ever, and when I lost a bit of blood during minor foot surgery in high school, I passed out, so we'll see where tomorrow takes me.

I might be shaking in my shoes, but I am also amazed and thankful for the students and staff giving blood at this blood drive, and I'm grateful for the people who organized it so that I didn't have to do a lick of work (props to Leigh Anne and some fantastic seniors).

Maybe you can be praying for all of those people giving blood tomorrow.

Lose Sight of the Trivial

Today was not about subscribing to a particular political party. Today was not about engaging in petty disagreements.

Instead, it is always about this:

"Help us...remember that we are Americans, united not by race or religion or blood, but to our commitment to freedom and justice for all." (from Rick Warren's invocation)

and this:

"...our power alone cannot protect us, nor does it entitle us to do as we please." (from the inaugural address)

I cried unashamedly in T's office this morning when I saw our 44th President stride in. I had never thought this day would happen so soon in my lifetime, but it did. It is.

Encouraging Healthy Eating

Bringing food for your students does not mean that you have to buy pizza, load on the Doritos, or arm yourself with two-liter Cokes.

I brought in bunches of red grapes for my 10th graders one morning last year, and I was pleasantly surprised by their reaction: "Oooooh. Grapes! Thank you, miss!" Not a single one complained that I hadn't brought in candy or doughnuts or chips (or any of the other crap they usually eat), and each filed in line to grab some to take back to their seats.

I wish that we could encourage healthier eating in our students. It starts with the way we eat. So often curious kids will peek in my office to ask me what I'm eating ("Hummus? What's that?"), but they see me drinking a Starbucks chai latte or eating chocolate just as often. It makes me cringe to think that I (and other adults) model the things we probably wouldn't want our kids to do.

What if we brought our students hummus and flatbread instead of chips? What if we took our students out to dinner to try the bold flavors of vegetarian Indian instead of encouraging them to eat a 10-piece McNugget meal? We complain that our youth are rapidly becoming overweight. If this is the case, then we should be doing something about it instead of idly flapping our gums.