Nice Things

For all the complaining I do about my job, I rarely talk about the positive things that happen. It's not all bad:

1) Tonight a parent brought me cheese tamales since I'm a vegetarian.

2) This lady told me she wanted me to come and stay with her family at their home in Guanajuato, Mexico. Her son's in my class.

3) On Valentine's day, the principal made all the kids write an essay: "I love my teacher because..." and while I thought none of my students would write about me - they loved their teacher last year and were allowed to choose who they wrote about - all but two of them did - and most of my class from the previous year chose to write about me too. The things some of these kids wrote absolutely made me want to cry!

4) I busted this girl skipping school with older boys (really, these were likely men), and called her mom to tell her where she was and how to find her. On Valentine's day, her mom brought me flowers.

5) Since starting my job, I've been to Costa Rica, Mexico three times, the Bahamas, 14 states and next week I'm going to Guatemala and Belize. I've been able to do all of this because I have so much vacation time.

6) I have no less than 15 families in various Latin American countries who would put me up any time and treat me like a queen (teachers are actually respected there).

7) I'm getting paid to learn Spanish.

8) I've got some students who are so incredible that I know years from now* I'll still talk to them, and they'll be in some great college with a bright future. I'd love to be rich and pay for all of them to go to school.

9) I got to do all the projects I loved doing in school all over again. Having my students sweep the sixth grade science fair felt as good as when I won the science fair in eighth grade.

10) Really, though, my favorite thing has been getting to truly know Mexican culture. I've loved all the 15 parties, birthdays, First Communions - all of it.

*Edit in 2011. This happened. I'm still really close with so many of my students (viva Facebook!) and a bunch of them are in excellent colleges, right at the doorsteps of super bright and shiny futures. I couldn't be more proud of them.