This morning we all piled into Magnum, arriving at the school a little before 8:30. By 9:15 (record time) we found ourselves at the "blood bank," giving away precious vials of our blood to be tested for contagious diseases that we may have contracted during our visits to foreign countries. Actually, I was the one being blamed by our escort, having "left for Turkey" and thus obliging everyone else (who in their travels avoided getting a Turkish stamp) to this distasteful experience.
B-positive is both my blood type and a helpful suggestion for making it through the process. The real key is to keep your eyes from wandering. Don't stop and read the poster about hygiene and how cutting your nails and swimming only in designated areas will keep you from getting worms. Don't let your eyes linger on the floor where you will notice the discarded cotton balls and the red blood stains. And whatever you do, don't look at the bottle of the antiseptic that they're using to clean your arm, or you'll notice that it is window cleaner. Glancing up to avoid all this may not help either as you'll scan the binders on the shelf and notice the one about Anthrax.
Thankfully, all six adults were finished in 7 minutes! We could hardly believe it. Hopefully, our blood tests will come back normal, and we will get our residency cards on Sunday.
The rest of the day went well, though my arm ached and I missed two of my classes. We had a good Skype call in the evening with Dave and Lisa, looking forward to the upcoming break.
Thursday, March 7th:
I have been especially encouraged in my reading of Mark by the passage about blind Bartimaeus. The people's words to him, "Be of good comfort, rise; he calleth thee" have rung sweetly in my ears. I only pray that my response will daily be as his ... "he, casting away his garment, rose, and came to Jesus."
Today we had a party at school in celebration of the upcoming Nawroz, or Kurdish New Year. We all dressed up.
Here I am in front of the Donya bakery. We use its name as the landmark for taxi drivers to get to our apartment.
It was cute to see my students in their traditional clothes. I was supposed to teach my first three classes, but that plan fell apart as the minutes passed and students had to show each other their outfits and put on the finishing pieces of their outfits.
My fifth graders helping each other tie the Kurdish "cummerbund" correctly:
With some of my fifth grade girls:
And some of my sixth grade girls:
Our "Kurdish" team pic:
The kids lined up for the "party" (the equivalent of an American school assembly):
And afterwards we had some Kurdish dancing:
It was a fun day. As Accuweather predicted, there was "abundant sunshine" which made the holiday all the more enjoyable. Since I've only averaged 5-6 hours of sleep each night for the last couple of weeks, I took a nap when I got home. I ended up sleeping for close to 3 hours! It was the first time I've felt fully rested since Sarah left. When I got up, I got some things done, then watched Facebook for updates on the birth of my little "nephew" (Jess' baby - #10!) Apart from being checked in at the hospital, there wasn't any new news when I went to bed at 10pm.
