Today I remembered why I love teaching adults. I like
teaching my students everyday but teaching my colleagues English brings a new
level of enthusiasm to my lessons. I started English training for the teaches
and used fun exercises like tongue twisters, “mistake of the day”, dictations
and something I call “what comes to mind.” You may doubt my ability to make
dictations fun but believe me, we were laughing. With adults, teaching can feel
more casual and therefore relaxed for all participants. You can develop
friendships. You can crack jokes and laugh at yourself. That is why I enjoy it.
My battle over the differentiation of l’s and r’s in Rwanda
had one small victory today. I taught my colleagues the word “lice” during our
dictation today. Never again will those 14 say, “last night we ate lice.”
Things are good at school, despite the fact that most
students and teachers are sick. The weather has been so damp and cold that we
were all susceptible. HOWEVER, RWANDA HAS A FRICKIN SWEET HEALTH CARE SYSTEM SO
IT’S NO BIG DEAL. For example: Today I rushed home to pierce Alice’s ears but
my great relief, her mom had done it this morning. She wanted me to accompany
her to the clinic to get some medicine for her ears. I begrudgingly grabbed my
wallet and went with her. To my great surprise, all medicine at the clinic is
free. She didn’t even need to show her health insurance card. Crazy. Oh and one
last thing. Health insurance is required for all Rwandan citizens but it only
costs $2 a year per household, from what I’m told. Unlike me, Rwandans have no
fear of going to the doctor and being able to afford medicine. When I tell them
I am sick, they essentially shrug and say, “well did you get to the doctor and
get medicine?” To them, it is that simple. Another wonderful sign of development
in Rwanda.
Last weekend, Christine, Tressa and I visited Musanze and
Tressa’s town. It was a fun break and I enjoyed Christine’s beautiful Rwandan
nieces and nephews. I brought Richie a harmonica and to my delight, he was
playing like Bob Dylan within the hour. Tressa learned how to carry children on
her back like a Rwandan but I wasn’t ready to try. (One reply when I told my
students we carry our children in front of our bodies was, “Jesus Christ!”) On
Saturday, we explored caves and maybe somehow listened to “Bagritney Spears”
with Tressa’s colleague.
I want to share my daily routine with you.
5:55 Wake
up and try to be a morning person. Sometimes I play some pop music and feel
awesome. Somedays Christine and I run.
Coffeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee
and eggs that a farmer delivers every so often.
7:30 arrive
at school, sometimes teach medium-sized classes with students ranging from age
16-25.
10:00 Tea
break. This is my favorite part of the whole day and my bad habit #1. The tea
they serve has at least two tablespoons of sugar per 8 oz and oh boy, is it
good. If I loiter, I can have two cups.
Throughout
the day, teach, chat with Christine in the library, hang out in the Teacher’s
Lounge and feel like a balla (when I say teacher’s lounge, just picture a concrete
room with tables, chairs and a chalk board).
12:00 walk
home to eat lunch, read. I’m generally cranky by this time so if people say,
“reba, umuzungu, reba!” (look, a white person! Look!) while I’m walking, I mock
them and say, “where? Where is the white person?”
12:10 Bad
Habit #2: giving small Rwandan children friendship bracelets. If you give one
child a bracelet, you have to give 50 kids one. Whoops…
1:30 return
to school to the teasing of my colleagues. They like to recreate the fantastic
lunches they imagine I eat everyday. We chat and then get back to class. My
colleagues are wonderful people.
4:00 Teach
English classes to the teachers.
5:15 Return
home. If it is a good day, I take the short cut through fields of corn, cabbage
and grass. If I’m feeling nice, I walk through the primary school and am
escorted home by 50 kids.
5:15
Sometimes Alice and I have tea. She is my 12-year-old neighbor and sometimes
serves as a body guard or market escort.
5:30 bad
habit #3 I begin eating nutella out of the jar with a knife. This is a bad
habit because one day, I will probably cut my tongue.
6:00 Maybe
start a charcoal fire and bathe. This is bad habit #4 because I bathe rather
infrequently. It is an extra bad habit because I bathe in my living room instead
of in the provided outdoor spider. Did I say spider? I meant to say shower.
7:00 Some
tasty slop with lots of fresh produce and spices. I rotate between lentils,
rice and beans, potatoes and pasta. I recently made killer carrot ginger soup
and wheat bread. This meal serves as lunch for the following day.
8:00 lesson
planning but mainly reading or computer time. Drawing or journaling too.
9:00 Bed.
Nice day, eh?
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