Sunday, December 16th:
Went to school this morning and helped out with the Humanities midterm. I answered questions for the ninth grade class, then graded their midterms and helped other teachers grade their classes' tests. I was done by 1pm. Walked home, ate some fruit for lunch (I am on a cleansing diet for the week) then around 3pm, I took a new friend to the second-hand market. She will probably move here in January to work at an English institute. We had fun buying her a new wardrobe. The lights went out, which made it a memorable experience. Everything gets really quiet (no TVs or music playing) but life goes on as usual.
After I took her home, I went to Andy and Lisa's to "borrow" their wifi for my Skype call with the family. I had a really encouraging talk with Mom. Jaden always has something new to show me or tell me. This week he told me about playing in the snow at Grandpa's house. Eithen wanted to know when I would be coming home. It is hard to believe that it will be another six months before I see him.
I walked home after our Skype, and crawled into bed.
Monday, December 17th:
Walked to school this morning to help with the Science midterm. Mr B. put me on the schedule to monitor the second grade class as they took their test. They finished their tests fairly quickly - trying to keep them quiet after that proved to be a challenge. The science teacher came in to answer questions. Even though I would consider her mild-mannered, she ended up yelling at the students to get them to settle down. It made me thankful for the relationships God has given me with my students, where they have come to expect that I won't yell and will now quiet down without it. It isn't easy to overcome what they have been trained to respond to.
I helped grade midterms afterwards. It is mentally exhausting, but a good way to demonstrate love to the other teachers. They were very thankful and appreciative. As I get to know them better, I am able to joke around with them. I can also learn a lot about their culture and language by just observing their conversations.
When I got home around 1pm, I packed up my things, and taxied over to Andy and Lisa's for the night. They told me I could crash at their place for a little break and use their wifi for itinerary planning. I had a relaxing afternoon and did a lot of research on things to do in Greece. Curled up for the night on one of the couches, noticing that their neighborhood is much quieter than ours.
