Although it’s only mid-December, I’ve already compiled a growing list of New Years resolutions. I’ve never been a strict observer of this annual tradition, but I figure there’s always room for improvement. Resolution 1: Blog more often. Seriously. I’m not keeping a journal, so I want to have some sort of record about my experiences in Pohnpei. I’ve been writing a lot of letters—which often feels like penning a diary entry—but it’s not as if I’ve been making copies of them to save in a binder (although maybe that would have been a good idea). I do, however, keep all of the letters I receive, in a cute little travel notebook with a mini accordion folder on the inside (whoever got me this for my birthday was spot on). Resolution 2: Get more exercise (the good old standby resolution). I was running and hiking fairly regularly when I first got here, but then I hurt my arm and my ability to do physical activity was reduced to almost nothing. Seriously, I never knew how important my bicep was until I couldn’t use it anymore. Now my arm is in pretty good shape (although I can still feel tension when I rotate it, two months after the bike accident) and I really have no excuse not to resume my exercise regime.
Resolution 3: Be a stricter teacher. Now I know how teachers end up crotchety and mean—the students drive them crazy. Classroom management is definitely the hardest part of teaching for me, especially since some of my students are close to my age. Now, I’m not a strict person in general—I have a hard time saying no to anyone—but I don’t want to feel as if I’m getting walked over (and sometimes, it feels as if I’m being trampled). I yelled at one of my classes twice this week, which was unprecedented. Although I don’t think they exactly fear me (I know they don’t), I do think they were upset that I was so disappointed in them. I like teaching (okay, I tolerate teaching), but sometimes I just get tired of speaking at an elevated volume for 5 hours a day. Wears me out. So, my plan is to gain more control of my classroom so I can spend less time reining in the craziness—sometimes it feels like I’m breaking wild horses that have never felt a bit or a bridle in their life. When I wade through the empty ramen wrappers and crumpled up balls of paper on the floor at the end of the day, I truly wonder if some of my students were born in barns.
Resolution 4: Scuba dive more—as often as possible. While I’m here, I might as well. I think I’ve been on about 6 dives since I’ve been here. And, to be honest, they were all pretty crappy. I think I might have better luck diving at the outer atolls, like Ant, Pakin, and Black Coral. So far, I’ve only been diving around Pohnpei’s reef. The visibility has been poor, the fish have been small, and the coral has been bleached and broken. I’m not saying that this is all there is to find when diving here—it’s just all I’ve seen so far. I’m halfway through my Advanced Open Water course right now; we’re doing our last 3 dives after the holidays. And—feel my excitement—I’m going to Palau for winter break!!! Wahoo!! I leave on the 21st, which is only 6 days from now (saying that is scary since I have so much to do before then). I’ll be there until the 19th, which means I’ll be spending Christmas by myself in a cheap hotel room. At least I’ll be back in Pohnpei for New Years. I’m planning on 5 days of diving and then a couple of days for rest and relaxation—maybe a mani/pedi, coffee-sipping in a café, browsing of a bookstore, dining at unfamiliar restaurants (I’ve heard there’s good Indian!)… Can’t wait. But, as I said, there is plenty to get done before I depart.
Christmas is rapidly approaching and school is almost over—only 2 days left! Tomorrow we’re taking the final and then Friday we’ll party. I never quite realized that finals week is a lot of work for teachers too! Tomorrow is going to be rough—I have to lead the CPP class solo (Amber is doing Peace Corps mid-service training), grade about 100 finals, and bake at least 200 cookies for the class parties. But—presuming Friday is a half-day (a fairly safe assumption)—my semester will be over by noon on Friday. And it could be earlier, who knows. At the beginning of the semester, half-days had one-hour periods. Then they were 45-minutes long. And last week, we had a half-day with 30-minute classes—so, truly, a third-day. May I just say that it is completely impossible to accomplish anything in a 30-minute class. By the time my students wander into class and have their notebooks on their desks (a challenging process, I assure you), the bell is about to ring. I am looking forward to next semester, although I still don’t know what classes I’ll be teaching. It’s a chance to start with a fresh slate—a clean chalkboard, if you will.
Okay, two of my students are wrestling on the floor (seriously), I should go practice my classroom management. I was trying to think of a fifth resolution, but there’s no need to overextend myself. I’m off to mediate the chaos!
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