The lesson

The lessons I've learned: There has so much that has happened in the past few months, I'm not even sure where to begin. The school year is now winding down and the students have stopped showing up to school and we still have a few more weeks to go before the hard earned summer break begins. Ok, so I know that the non teachers out there think we've got it easy with the summer break but do you spend your nights grading papers, half your weekend making resources and planning for the upcoming week? Not to mention the time spent on report cards, p/t conferences etc.,etc.,....this summer break is so duly earned and necessary and if you still don't get it, well then spend one week teaching and you'll get it soon enough!   Over the past few days, the thought that keeps running through my head is the fact that we never stop learning. Here are some very important life lessons I have learned in the past 8 months of living and working in the UAE. 1.  I certainly learned how important it is to be humble and gracious here no matter what. It's ok to be confident but it so much more valuable to be modest in all that you do. You need to be a good listener and observe carefully how things are done and go with the flow. 2.  I've also learned the importance of surrounding yourself with a few solid positive friends. I have learned that not everyone you meet is going to be your best friend. Before we arrived here, many of us had connected and chatted on Facebook and I somehow thought the group I  had arrived with in October and stayed with in the hotel with would be my close group of friends. In retrospect, I suppose it was an unrealistic notion. I have had to work hard to surround myself with positive people and learned to let go of the ones that drag me down. Friends certainly come and go but a solid few will stick by you. I also learned it's good to stay away from ranting on fb. 3. We all make mistakes and all you can do is learn from them and get over it. A perfect example would be today: I  thought I was supposed to be moving the items from  my old classroom into the new classroom, but that teacher had not finished packing up his room so I had to move everything back to my old room. I was very embarrassed and a bit confused. After a long chat with another teacher who has lived here for a few years, I felt much better. 4. Standing up for yourself:  There will come a time when this becomes necessary. It is not something that comes easy to me. I still struggle with it because I always worry about hurting people's feelings but sometimes you have to do what is right for you. 5. Never forget that you are a guest in this country. Yesterday I had to learn a tough lesson at the hair salon. I had wanted to get my hair cut AND highlights but the hair stylist told me he did not have enough time. I had a suspicion that it may have been because there was a  lady that arrived just after me insisting that she get her hair done too. I felt very frustrated but focused on the fact that I was able to save the money that I really did not need to be spending. 6. Sometimes it is best to keep a low profile, keep your mouth closed and stay busy. This lesson has helped me a great deal this year. 7. Swimming helps everything. 8. Pedicures are necessary. 9.  Driving around traffic circles will always be insane. 10. You must wave frantically to waiters and waitresses at restaurants before they bring you your bill.  Top moments at school: 1. Asking students about their breakfast and learning that they apparently really like to eat ice cream for breakfast. 2. One day, A student asked me if I had a stick to hit the students with. I had to explain to him that no, I did not. 3. Being called Mr.Maila at the beginning of the year. 4. While learning about kinetic and potential energy we had good times dancing the freeze dance in the classroom and some even on top of the tables.......that's when I hit the stop button on the cd player. 5. Scissors  are for haircuts: the first time I assigned a cut and paste activity, the boys decided to cut each others hair....the assignment quickly transformed into ' intro to scissors 101'. 6. Learning the benefits of not bringing an electric sharpener to school because students will break the pencils on purpose in their teeth just so they can use the electric sharpener. 7. Jewelry box with pencil sharpener. 8. The wheels on Ferrari go round and round. 9. When M. Started talking and A read a sentence on the board for the first time. 10. Playing around the world and watching the students get excited about math.