I'm Baaaaack

My moods and emotions are so up and down that sometimes I get lost in my own thoughts.  Sometimes I love what I do, sometimes I don't.  Sometimes I am super confident, sometimes I am just ...NOT.  Sometimes I feel like I have life all figured out, sometimes I am confused about where the next day will take me.  I took a break from blogging simply because I hadn't felt like sharing much of anything.  No particular reason, just nothing to share.  However, as my thoughts become like a computer with multiple browsers opened at the same time, I think it is time to start again to release some of the things that linger inside of my head.

Where do I start?  I have been back in the sandbox for a couple of weeks.  A lot has transpired before my transition back and afterwards, so keep up.  If you've read any previous posts, you know this one will be all over the place.  LOL.

America
Going home to America was a well needed trip.  However, I think I invested a little too much time into "home."  I felt pulled all over the place.  I traveled from state to state trying to make sure I was able to visit most of my family and friends.  After weeks, I was still unsuccessful.  I saw many people, but disappointed a lot of others.  I feel spread so thin when I come home now that it doesn't really feel like a vacation or a relaxing trip.  Nevertheless, I was thankful for the opportunity to visit with those that I did see and get a little taste of the American things I miss the most being out here.

When I first arrived I was finishing the Ramadan fast.  I participate this year by choice.  It was a wonderful experience that gave me the opportunity to reflect and rejuvenate.  My participation in Ramadan proved to be a lot easier in UAE than in America with my country family always eating.  LOL.  However, I persevered and completed the entire Ramadan fast.  It was truly one of the proudest moments of my life.

After completing fasting, I split my time between South Carolina, Savannah, Atlanta, and Florida.  I squeezed in as many people as I could along the way.  I enjoyed the trip but it was exhausting.  Next year, I will travel a bit more, spend less time actually in America, and limit the number of people I go to visit.   Next year, I challenge my friends and family to travel with me, catch me where they can in America, or see me virtually.

High School Friends

College Friends

Friends

Friend turned Family

I love Zoie

Family in Florida

Me in Florids

Closest I have to a Sister

Andre 3000 Exhibit

After the Andre 3000 Exhibit.  Yes, they have on the same shirt.

Charleston Emmanuel9 

Charleston Emmanuel9 

Wall Climbing

Out and About

Friends

Former Students

Cambodian Brother

Paris
After leaving the states, I decided to visit Paris before returning back to the desert.  My aunt on my father's side has been living in Paris for over twenty years and I have only seen her a few times in my life.  Therefore, the purpose of this trip was twofold.  I rarely travel alone, but I decided to take this trip to try to not only see Paris but also establish more of a relationship with my other side.  Paris was a wonderful experience.  It was not a typical tourist trip.  Instead, it was more of a French immersion trip as my aunt introduced me to many native French speakers and allowed me to explore France through their perspectives.  Being that I know very little French and foreign languages have proven to be my achilles hill, I found this a welcomed but interesting challenge.  Nevertheless, France was wonderful and I am glad I got a chance to visit my aunt.  She is very inspirational as she works independently teaching French speakers English and serves as the president of an international foreign language organization.  Hopefully this was the start of us building an actual relationship.

School's In
Going back to work was bittersweet.  The majority of my coworkers from last year transferred to the city but I was excited to see my kids from last year.  We spent the first week meeting all of the new teachers and answering their questions.  The second week we met our students.  At one point, the principal discussed me looping (moving with) my children from last year to KG2.  However, being the only returning KG1 teacher, I remained with the babies.  As a teacher I am very territorial when it comes to my children.  I wanted to loop with them because I really didn't want anyone else to teach them.  I know it sounds a bit crazy, but I often get attached to the children I teach.  Hence the reason I still communicate with eighth and ninth graders that I taught in first grade and their parents.  Regardless of me not wanting to let go of my previous students, staying in KG1 gave me the opportunity to work with my coteacher again, and I found out she actually fought to keep me in her class.  We really do work well together and I am so thankful that we do.  It is not easy to have two teachers working side by side in the same classroom, but we do it well if I have to toot the horn for us.

Now let's get to the children.  Usually, KG1 children are a bit perturbed by the EMTs.  We are uncovered and people that they have never seen before.  This is their first time away from home and they are placed in front of a teacher that speaks their language and another that neither speaks their language or looks like women from their culture.  It's a bit frightening for a three or four-year-old.  However, last year my children only stared at me for a few days, and then got used to me and the whole school experience.  We moved quickly last year with minimal tears.  Not so much this year.  I am thinking that this year's class are four-year-olds that are closer to three whereas last year's class were four-year-olds that are closer to five (hope that makes sense).  At this level, a few months age wise makes a big difference.  Soooooo, this year's class are screamers.  They scream for mom, they scream to communicate, one screams and sets off the others.  In my eleven years of teaching I have never really had criers.  This is a truly new experience.  However, they aren't scared of me and don't look at me strange.  I guess they figure they will cry to any big person that is in the room.  A couple won't even go to the Arabic speaking people at the school when they cry, but will instead hang on me (a part of me wonders if I make them comfortable because I look like their nannies).  Through it all, they are another sweet bunch of children.  They will just have to be loved differently than the children last year.

Surgery
Just as we got the children a bit calm, I dropped a bombshell on my coteacher.  I was going to be out for a couple weeks to have the other side of my thyroid removed.  In 2005, a growth was discovered on the left side of my thyroid.  I took steroids for a year to try to shrink the growth.  However, nothing worked.  Therefore, the growth was removed right before I began my careers as a teacher.  Years later, a growth was discovered on the left side of my thyroid.  I knew the process so I visited doctors in America to make sure it was benign.  Since it was, I was told it didn't need to be removed.  However, over time, the growth enlarged.  I visited an endocrinologist here that didn't like the size of it.  My mother agreed.  It had become so large that it was very noticeable in my neck.  I noticed it more in pictures and people asked me about it in public places.  However, I was reluctant to accept the fact that it needed to be removed because not having a thyroid gland is quite scary to me.  Your thyroid controls most of the hormones in your body.  Without the thyroid, a person becomes hypothyroid and must take supplements to maintain control of hormones that deal with depression, emotions, weight gain and loss, and many other important bodily functions.  Despite my reluctancy, I chose surgery because I didn't want the growth to get any bigger and crush my trachea or worse become cancerous (if that is possible).  Therefore, on September 8th I underwent surgery here in the sandbox.

Surgery was smooth.  Eveyrthing went well.  I asked my mother not to be here during the surgery because I want her to visit me when she can enjoy the country rather than taking care of me.  Plus, I have desert family that were willing to help me through this.  I didn't tell many people here about the surgery, but those that knew really came through more than I expected.  It is amazing how one year and a similar experience can build bonds so strong.  I love my desert family.  People were in the hospital when  I came out of surgery, people stayed with me almost all night the day of surgery, people opened up their homes to me since I live so far from the city, people came from out west where I live to bring me groceries, drove me back to the hospital when I had an allergic reaction to the meds, and more.  I feel like I got more love and attention this surgery than I did when I had the same surgery in the states.  I am now in the process of recovering and I am a bit excited about having a "normal neck" again.  It may be a little scarred now, but the disappearance of the big lump in my throat might make for better pictures.  Maybe I can pursue that modeling career again.  LOL.

It's hard for me to sit still but the doctor is making me stay off work until September 21st.  September 22nd starts a holiday here so I won't return to my babies until the very end of the month.  Believe it or not, I am not a fan of working but I hate missing work.  As a teacher, I think it is harder to miss work and make up for it than to just go.  I am afraid that when I return they will be back to crying because they won't know me.  But, we have plenty of days to make up for the lost times.

BEFORE

AFTER

Year two in the sandbox!  Let's get it.