i hate banks

Life is a war and each day is filled with many battles.

There are too many opponents: students, parents, bosses, banks, rules, traffic, taxi drivers, line-cutters ...

I guess it's important to remember that although we're fighting THEY aren't the enemy and winning isn't always what it appears to be.

But I want to win my fight against the bank and get back the money that was stolen from me. It's on Banco Atlantida ... you thought you could deny me with so little effort. Think again. I'm not quitting until you make a deposit!

la playa

Today I spent a wonderful afternoon at the beach with friends!

Yes, I have friends! :)

We went to a beach just outside of Sambo Creek where all the gringos have their big, beachfront homes. Several people raced their ATVs on the beach and a few played with jet skis

It was all so wonderful. Rosie, Rosie's friend, Hiromi, Alandino, Micah and I played in the waves and took lots of photos. Afterward we swam in una piscina. Then I laid in a hammock and relaxed until I was dry.

Dinner was a delicious seafood soup. Afterward we all crammed into Rosie's friend's (I can't remember his name) truck and drove back to La Ceiba ... just about a 12 minute drive.

I need to go to the beach more often!

educators

"Education is a companion which no misfortune can depress, no crime can destroy, no enemy can alienate,no despotism can enslave. At home, a friend, abroad, an introduction, in solitude a solace and in society an ornament."
~Joseph Addison, English essayist and poet

Lately I've been thinking a lot about education and the role I should play in my students' lives as their teacher.

Although my life has been relatively short, I've been had many titles: daughter, sister, friend, tour guide, reporter, editor, contributor, intern ... etc., but so far 'teacher in Honduras' has afforded the most challenges. One unexpected factor that surely contributes to the difficulty of my current adventure is the fact that many of my students come from broken families.

Every one of my "problem" students lives separate from their birth father. In a recent assignment about their childhood at least a third (about 30) of my students wrote that the one thing they regretted about their childhood was the fact that their parents split up. Here's what one male student wrote:

"My infancy was a little sad. My parents split up when I was four and because of that my life changed drastically ... It has been hard for me and for my mom. For my mom because she has to fill that space, the space that not even a step-father can fill."

Behavior isn't the only challenge with my students from split parents. A lot of them also have enormous amounts of anger and resentment toward their fathers.

Divorce isn't new to me, but for the first time I see exactly how detrimental divorce is on kids. I don't believe that every divorce is going to irrevocably screw up the kids involved, but it definitely has an effect. And this is where the world's education problems start.

It is my young, inexperienced opinion that the world expects too much from teachers. Teachers today are expected to teach not only their subjects but also discipline, respect and manners. These last lessons aren't supposed to be learned at school. They're supposed to be taught by parents! Teachers are meant to reinforce what is being taught at home.

More than anything I think the world needs more people who are dedicated to being good parents. Teachers play an important, necessary role in society, but they will only be able to accomplish a fraction of their potential in the classroom if parents don't do their job at home.

inspiration

Inspiration: n. an inspiring or animating action or influence.

12 things that inspire me:
1. Big waves
2. Coldplay performances
3. Pictures of faces
4. People whose lives confuse society (i.e. homeless, circus performers, motocross racers, etc)
5. Drinking coffee on a stormy day at the beach
6. Dancing for joy
7. Documentaries about Africa
8. Soundtracks
9. Song lyrics
10. Sunsets
11. Church services at Journey
12. People who are passionate

WHAT INSPIRES YOU?

Got money and you know it, take it out your pocket and throw it ...

OK, so I'm not 'Lil Wayne and I definitely don't have loads of money to wave this a way and that a way ... but I did pay rent in cash this week and goodness I look rich!

i found jesus in guatemala

See, I told you I found Jesus.

I went to Guatemala. I'm not supposed to be home yet, but I got sick and then got my credit card stolen, so now I'm back in La Ceiba recuperating.

With all that said, Guatemala is fantastic. The amount of art and culture in Antigua is amazing. Not only were there boutiques and classy cafes on every corner, but bands were performing live music every night. Wednesday night Micah and I stumbled upon a place called La Sala and heard great latin jazz. The next night was Cuban Salsa night.

However, Guatemala has much more than arts and culture. About an hour and a half away from Antigua is Volcan Pacaya ... one of several active volcanoes that people can climb. After being dormant for about a century, Pacaya erupted in 1965 and has been erupting continuously since.

Some photos from my trip:

February 3.

I hung out with my new friend last night. Her name is Hiromi. She speaks Japanese and Spanish, and a little bit of English.

Sometimes it's weird because neither of us can communicate with each other in our native language. But we manage ... she has an awesome mini-computer thing that lets us look up words in any language ... this helps a lot. She teaches people in a textile factory. Talking to her about this job has given me a lot more insight into maquilas (sometimes known as sweatshops).

There are several maquilas here in La Ceiba. Honestly I don't know much about them, but today in my Sociology class I learned a little more when my students debated whether sweatshops were good or bad for workers. I was really proud of their work and interested in hearing their perspective. It would be awesome to take my classes on a field trip to a local sweatshop, but getting permission and money to do that is probably impossible.

In conclusion, we have a week off of school. Micah and I are going to Guatemala!! YAY!!!!
We're going to climb an active volcano near Antigua, then we're going to split up ... he's probably going to Copan and I'm going surfing along the South-west Coast. I can't wait. Guatemala is supposed to be AMAZING!!