Me Being a Teacher

I'm unofficially graduated. I barely have money and I need it so badly. So I signed up for a contract job at the district education office and guess what, I've got the job as a substitute teacher at a primary school, it's been 2 weeks already. So I teach English, Maths and Visual Arts for the pupils of Year 4 and 5. Yeah, I know, laugh all the way. Arts, huh? I can't even draw a tree properly. Lol. But surprisingly, I don't have to teach them how to draw or make DIYs, because they're really good at it. 

I once believed that I won't be a teacher because I can't teach people, I didn't know how to do it. But really, it's not that bad at all. Especially when they're much younger than you. Well, I have 11 nieces and nephews, so I don't really find it difficult in dealing with kids. So far I can keep the kids at school in check for the most part and I'm feeling confident in my ability to lead them. If I have to discipline a kid for bad behavior I don't even think twice. Modifying lesson plans also is not a problem. 

I think my strength has always been in being flexible and being able to adapt to whatever situations are thrown at me. This is helping me in the classroom. One of the perks of being a teacher is being exposed to the logic of young children. It's fascinating to watch them learn, think and talk, you know. Most children are so creative and imaginative and sometimes come up with the most profound or funny things to say. At the end of the day, this is what puts a smile on my face. I know I'm gonna miss them when the contract is over. I'm feeling good and that's all that matters to me now. I'm going to relish in this feeling that lately has been hard to come by. 

I Loved You Enough

I loved you enough to ask where you were going,
with whom, and what time you would be home.
I loved you enough to be silent and let you
discover that your new best friend was a creep.
I loved you enough to stand over you for
2 hours while you cleaned your room,
a job that should have taken 15 minutes.
I loved you enough to let you see anger,
disappointment, and tears in my eyes.
I loved you enough to let you assume the
responsibility for your actions even when the
penalties were so harsh they almost broke my heart.
But most of all, I loved you enough to say
NO when I knew you would hate me for it.

I found the poem somewhere on tumblr. And someday I might give it to my future children. Because I want them to love me the way I love my mum. 

my lovely mum

Once upon a time, mum insisted on knowing where we were at all times. She had to know who our friends were and what we were doing with them. She insisted that if we said we would be gone for an hour, we would be gone for an hour or less. We had to wash the dishes, make the beds, learn to cook, vacuum the floor, do laundry, empty the trash and all sorts of chores. She always insisted on us telling the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. By the time we were teenagers, she could read our minds and had eyes in the back of her head. Mum didn't let our friends just hoot at the gate when they drove up. They had to come up to the door so she could meet them. 

Now that most of us have left home, got education and jobs..my siblings and I are really grateful for having our mom. She's our 1st teacher and the best one. Without her, we wouldn't know how to deal with things now. So we have planned a special celebration for her tomorrow. I hope she'll love it. ^^

mum at work ^^

Dear Mommy

Dear mommy,

Everyday I watch you so busy running the house. It's fun watching and trying to copy you on your every move. You laughed when I try but I guess that's normal for a baby. I get so curious with everything. It's like the activities at home are never ending.

One of my favorite activity is hovering the carpet with a machine called vacuum. At least that's what you call it although I have no idea what vacuum means. I just know you'll be rushing to the hallway, opening a huge door and inside there is was. A huge machine with 2 wheels and a very long tail. Sometimes I made you mad by playing with the door and going inside the store room where the machine is kept. You said it's dirty but I just thought it's fun. When you're ready to vacuum, you pulled a long cable from the machine and plugged it on the wall. Then I know which button to press next. But every time I press a loud noise come out from the machine and it freaks me out I'll be running to you for a hug. Then all would be alright. You said there are a lot of vacuum cleaning types and styles sold here at John Lewis.

Another one of my favorite activity in the house is cooking. The house smells heaven when you cook. I hate baby food. I want curry and lamb. Oh yes. You heard me. It amazes me how you can cook in a very short time. You said you used another loud machine that makes your life easier. I know because I can hear it miles away. The machine can chop onion or whatever and it won't teared your eyes. And you love it. It saves time too. I think it is called chopper or food processor and it's essential for mom who wants to save time. You said food processors are easily available online here waiting to find a home.

It's fun mom. Everything seems new, exciting and I want to explore all. But for now I think I'll just eat my toes to find out what they taste like.

With love,
Your little baby.

Source

I wish I can write a letter like this to my mom when I was a kid. 

Happy Mother's Day. ^^

Me and Mom :)

RIP Young Lives

Can't believe what I was hearing about the school shooting in Connecticut that killed 28 people, including 20 innocent children. My heart shattered to pieces. I'm still so angry inside that someone would ever want to take life from any human at all, let alone human as innocent as those kids. It's even harder to be grasped when I read the profile of suspected killer, Adam Lanza. You can read it here:

Adam Lanza: Profile of suspected US school shooting gunman

He's a nerd! A smart boy with major issues. And he's also said to be an autistic. How could an autistic boy kill people? And out of everyone, why children? I mean, they're just kids, for God's sake. 

Adam Lanza was truly insane, or maybe he's hallucinating or didn't comprehend reality. Whatever. Kids were killed. We've been saddened enough by the dead children in Palestine, now another tragedy came up, it's just too much. If the world's going to end soon, then be it. Can you live in a world where humanity fades and even adults kill children? 

they're among the victims. RIP.

 Deepest condolences to the families of the victims.

To Gaza with Love

A Poem for Gaza

by Remi Kanazi

I never knew death until I saw the bombing of a refugee camp

Craters filled with disfigured ankles and splattered torsos

But no sign of a face, the only impression a fading scream

I never understood pain

Until a 7-year-old girl clutched my hand

Stared up at me with soft brown eyes, waiting for answers

But I didn’t have any

I had muted breath and dry pens in my back pocket

That couldn’t fill pages of understanding or resolution

In her other hand she held the key to her grandmother’s house

But I couldn’t unlock the cell that caged her older brothers

They said, we slingshot dreams so the other side will feel our father’s presence

A craftsman

Built homes in areas where no one was building

And when he fell, he was silent

A .50 caliber bullet tore through his neck shredding his vocal cords

Too close to the wall

His hammer must have been a weapon

He must have been a weapon

Encroaching on settlement hills and demographics

So his daughter studies mathematics

7 explosions times 8 bodies

Equals 4 Congressional resolutions

7 Apache helicopters times 8 Palestinian villages

Equals silence and a second Nakba

Our birthrate minus their birthrate

Equals 1 sea and 400 villages re-erected

1 state plus 2 peoples…and she can’t stop crying

Never knew revolution or the proper equation

Tears at the paper with her fingertips

Searching for answers

But only has teachers

Looks up to the sky and see stars of David demolishing squalor with hellfire missiles

She thinks back words and memories of his last hug before he turned and fell

Now she pumps dirty water from wells, while settlements divide and conquer

And her father’s killer sits beachfront with European vernacular

She thinks back words, while they think backwards

Of obscene notions and indigenous confusion

This our land, she said

She’s 7 years old

This our land, she said

And she doesn’t need a history book or a schoolroom teacher

She has these walls, this sky, her refugee camp

She doesn’t know the proper equation

But she sees my dry pens

No longer waiting for my answers

Just holding her grandmother’s key

Searching for ink

Oh Allah, free the Muslims of Gaza, loose their chains, heal their sickness, uncover their torture, and replace their fear with safety. Oh Allah, save them..

Ameen....