A Foggy Day in a Virginia Town

This morning, I look outside my window and all I see is a white/gray cloud of fog. No trees, no buildings, just a white/gray cloud that seems to go on forever and ever. The whole day is gray. It could be quite a downer if I let it, but I’m trying not to let it.

Have I said how happy I am to be going back to teaching? On Tuesday night, I volunteered to help with registration and placement testing for the ESL classes and the whole thing was just so energizing to me. I had the opportunity to talk to amazing people from Chile, Venezuela, Ghana, Honduras. I love hearing their stories of where they grew up and what they did in their home country and why they are here. We get a lot of people who work for their home country’s embassies or military and are stationed here for a while and they want to improve their English while they are here. These are people who have been here 2 months, 6 months, speaking better English than I could ever speak Spanish after being in a strange country for 6 months. I also talk to others who are not so well off, people who left their children behind with relatives to come to this country and try to make some money so their kids can have a better life. I am humbled in their presence and I want to teach everyone as best I can.

It has been a long week, but next week classes begin again and my life will get much, much busier. I think I like being busier – I feel like I’m out in the world DOING things – and just being a home after a full day at work is just . . . depressing in a way. I’ve certainly got enough sleep these past few weeks, that’s for sure.

So tomorrow will be a day of art for me and of grad school class for Mr. Random, Sunday will be a day with my grandmother out in the Boonies, and then next week the fun begins in earnest.

I will take a deep breath . . . then dig in.