A Day in the Life Of: (A Medley of Days, Rather.)

How much more I appreciate teachers since I've been one.

My day really begins the night before when Jamie asks, "Lizziey, what time do you want up in the morning?"

"5 am"

"Lizziey, what time do you actually want me to wake you up."

"6:50 am"

True to the conversation, my first alarms rings at 5 am.  I get up at some point and turn the water heater on. Jamie eventually finds some way to drag me out of bed by 7. Yesterday she did it by starting a pilates work out. Yes, the idea of working out in the morning makes me excited to get out of bed. I don't really understand it either.

I then take a warm bucket shower and get dressed for my day. Getting dressed is way easier here than at home because I really only have 5 outfits to choose from. By Friday, getting dressed takes no time at all.

I grab some hot water and mix in my Starbucks' Via packet. I thought I could wean myself off of coffee here in Ghana. Instead I find myself coveting my mom's weekly packages of caffeinated goodness. My body officially thinks caffeine is a food group.

I glug down my coffee. This saddens me frequently as I feel like this is a drink that should be savored...but there is no time for savoring coffee. I rush up to the computer room, print out whatever I need for the day, and hurry off to school.

What goes on at school?

Well today I went to morning assembly. This is the time when our students say their prayers and sing the national anthem amongst other tunes.  My kids actually march back to their classes. It's pretty cool. After assembly I graded some papers, fixed the jam in the copier, and headed to the dining hall.

When I was little (this may sound weird, but I was a weird kid. Let's face it. ) I used to put on my sister's cool roller skates, and skate around the kitchen cooking "strongonof" or rice and cream of mushroom soup. I used to pretend  that I lived in an orphanage and that my mixture of soup and rice was all I would have to eat for the day. Now I have absolutely no idea why I used to play out this scenerio in my head because I was a very fat child with lots of American food to eat.  Nevertheless, I had some notion about how great it must be to live in an orphanage and eat only rice and soup while riding around on roller skates.

So today while I was scooping (sans roller skates) 40 cups of goopy, sticky, somewhat chocolaty porridge, I was taken back to my childhood memory. I smiled as I realized that being in Africa really has been a lifelong dream. It was a reassuring thought that even hot porridge could remind me that this is an opportunity of a lifetime. Then I spilled some on my hand and it burnt me. Oops.

After breakfast, I went to teach 2nd grade. 2nd grade frustrates me a lot because they are never ever on time. That's not true. They are rarely on time. But today they were definitely NOT on time.  Long story short, I ended up taking just a few of my 2nd graders into the computer lab while the others finished up their math homework.

Teaching 2nd graders to double click is harder than it sounds.  Teaching 2nd graders who do not have computers at home how to double click is harder than it sounds.  Teaching special needs students who do not have computers at home how to double click is harder than it sounds. Doing it all at once is.....totally achievable.

R is my favorite kid. I shouldn't have favorites but I do. He is slower than the rest.  Today it took him longer than anyone to finally master double clicking.  I had helped R several times and then went on my "rounds" helping another student.  Almost as soon as I had turned away to move on, R finally figured out how to double click an icon and open it on the computer screen. He jumped up and yelled, "HURRAY! MADAM LIZZIEY I DID IT! I DID IT! I DOUBLE CLICKED!"

I have never been more proud of someone in my life.  All of the other students came over and gave him high 5's. In the middle of a very hectic, frustrating, culturally different day, I was so excited to see R achieve this skill. I was even more excited to see him so ecstatic.

I'm not sure where God is taking me down the special needs path, but I have the feeling that the work I am doing here not just with R, but with others, is leading me somewhere. We shall see.

After R's cheer of excitement it was time to teach English to 4th grade.  My 4th graders cannot keep their mouths closed and stay in their seats. I love them, but my punishment currently is giving them tons of homework and making them do jumping jacks. The jumping jacks I can handle. While I am excited that my 4th graders now know how to use a comma, I am sad that I will be grading papers all night tomorrow. So goes life.

I ate lunch, organized some books in the library, and taught a final period to 4th grade. Then Jamie and I stayed after school to help a few students with their homework. This is so my favorite time of the day. Sure, I can kick out any kid who isn't serious about his or her homework, but I feel that this is my time of building relationships with the kids. It's fun figuring out our homework TOGETHER (because let's face it I had no idea what a pepper is called in Twi [mako] and I didn't really remember how to write the year 1978 in French [mille neuf cent soixante dix huit]) So together we learn. I like this.


After library Jamie and I come back to the house and eat dinner. Lately we've taken up running and pilates followed by a shower, lesson plans, and talking about all sorts of things. I really couldn't handle being here without her. :)

So that's a peek into our life. Every day is so completely different mind you.  It's so exciting to know that today will be an entirely new set of experiences. And if today doesn't suit you, it will change tomorrow. My Ghanaian adventure is teaching me to hang in, hold on, and enjoy the ride.