Long blog with words and no pictures

I just stopped by Yem's juice shop and sat with them as they watched the end of a Korean movie. I ate some banana and sweet potato mush (that was actually really really good) and got some strawberry juice for the way home. My first sip made me involuntarily utter, "holy cow that is wonderful," and I wanted to blog.

I wrote that last week.

This week just ended (or next week is beginning, depending on where Sunday falls in the songs you sing). I am coughing from the fizz of my (non-alcoholic) ginger beer. I imagine that it will make my stomach feel better, but it won't. I drink it anyway and I like it.

I burp really loudly, forgetting that our door is open and our neighbors can hear, and when our neighbors walk by, I act like I'm disgusted at my roommate in another room (though she's not actually here). One of the children in a nearby apartment has shoes that make a loud squeaking sound with every step(--by design, these shoes are very popular here). She can't be more than two, and she always comes to the door and shyly waves at me when she's waiting on the elevator, and today is no exception. Goodness, she makes me smile!

Last week, Erica and I joined a few other teachers in giving Caimbridge tests at local primary schools to (a bazillion) 7-11 year olds. It was fun, and tiring. I'm not sure that those tests should be given on such a large scale for such a long period of time. We only gave the tests for a little over three hours a day, but that was excessive.

For three hours I said:

"And what is this?" "Good!"

"What is this?" "A table."

"Point to the table." "Good!"

"How many chairs?" "Two, very good!"

...And very little else.

It was actually how I pictured that teaching in Vietnam would be. Beautiful, rustic, open air schools with plants hanging from the balconies. Fans giving me my only relief from the heat, cooling my sweat soaked shirt. Smelly, uniformed kids with beautiful curious, dark eyes (and some with cavities and strange rashes), waving at me excitedly, then suddenly terrified upon entering my presence and unable to speak.

Some students answered me in Vietnamese. Some just repeated what I said, "What is this." Some looked on the verge of tears. And some, sweaty from their break, dripped sweat on my papers and made them wrinkle. I was always put in the seat near the window so that everyone could see that there was a foreign teacher. I'm glad it's over, but I really really liked it.

So my point in saying all of this is that I fulfilled my hourly teaching limit for the week early. I was gone for five hours in the morning, came home, planned my lessons, then five hours in the evening every day, after meeting my friend Oanh to study together. It was EXHAUSTING. So I was finished by Friday morning and in the afternoon I left for a women's retreat with my fellowship!

This is a long blog. Are you still with me? My main goal was to make some more friends in the fellowship, and I definitely feel more connected now. Mission Accomplished, and then some. And thanks to friends who are much smarter than me, I have a much better understanding of some of these women, and more respect for what they do (that I should have had all along).

I'm still processing the retreat and what I learned and how I am supposed to apply that to my life. I'm also busy trying to ignore the fact that we must disassemble our lives soon and move again.

(pardon me while I kill a roach)

I'm back... Saying goodbyes, saying hellos. Reading the totally convicting (and totally hilarious) Prayer and the Art of Volkswagon Maintenance by Donald Miller. A couple of other issues in my life that are not blogable.

Emotionally, I'm a rock( at least about Vietnam). Spiritually, I'm pensive, stubborn, longing for betterment, but unsure which parts to prune. Physically, I have been better. Two weeks left and I want to live every day, not counting the hours, like I do on bad stomach days like today.

I would like to end with some quality quotes from the week (to reward those of you who made it to the end):

"If we cannot poop right, there is no joy." -Nancy, from the Women's retreat

"I'll beat you right now." -Phượng, when I dropped her shirt on the wet floor in the bathroom.

"I'm fine thankyou and you?" -about 75% of the students I tested when I asked, "How old are you?"

"I know you from American by your face." -student I tested

"To the most unAmerican American I've ever met." -letter addressed to me from my very cool South African roommate at the retreat.

"No one wants to leave." -Chris (my student), after the bell rang when we were still playing a game. A quote that I wrote down and will reread every day if necessary.

"If Kevin pees in his pants, his underwear will be wet. And if his underwear is wet, then his prince will be cold. -Simon (my student) during an IF/THEN lesson.

"Prince?" -me

"You know! Girl, princess. Boy, prince!" -Simon