I need to learn Korean

As many of you know, my class of kiddos is quite diverse.  I LOVE it.  I love hearing them talk and going back and forth between English, Spanish, Korean, back to English, some more Spanish, etc...all in one sentence.  While I enjoy hearing it and think it's quite adorable, I get lost when the Korean words start coming.  I can handle English and Spanish, but Korean is another story.  I don't understand it at all.  So, when there was an "incident" the other day on the playground, I was "up a creek without a paddle" as my dad always said.  Here's what happened.

Student 1- "Miss Rigel, Student 2 called me a bad name in Korean!"
Miss Rigel- "Student 2, what did you call Student 1?"
Student 2- "I called him a lajdflkajoiiwehfoajkdjfweoa."
Miss Rigel- ".........."
Miss Rigel- "Ok, Student 2, don't call Student 1 a lajdflkajoiiwehfoajkdjfweoa again, please.  Jesus wants us to be kind to one another."
Student 2- "But Miss Rigel, it's not a bad name!"
Student 1- "Yes it is! A lajdflkajoiiwehfoajkdjfweoa is a akldjflwjeeaoeijf and a oiwejojfalkjaldflk and that's not nice!"
Student 2- "No it's not!  alkdjlajklwjeoirjealkfjakd is a bad name, but lajdflkajoiiwehfoajkdjfweoa is not.  weioruialjdlkfakflwefjlweoijflakfjlwajoeijaoijeiwawoaijfowejioajfowjowfaojidfa....."
(At this point, I was beyond lost, so I had to end it.)
Miss Rigel- "Ok, Student 1 and Student 2, please just be kind and maybe take a little break from each other right now." 
Students 1 and 2- "Ok, Miss Rigel."
Miss Rigel, walking away defeated- "I need to learn Korean."

And just for kicks, an adorable picture of some of my Korean loves...these were not the ones arguing, by the way.  :)

They are too cute, I could just eat them up!  :)

Sign-less (is that a word??) streets and Starbucks

The title of this blog is brought to you by my roommate, the one and only, CeCe.  :)

I consider myself to have somewhat of an ability to know where I'm going, how to get there, and stay on the right course (we're talking driving here, people, not life....that part I have NO CLUE about).  Today I got lost.  Of all things, I was leaving Wal-Mart.  I've left Wal-Mart many times and gotten home perfectly fine.  The problem is that, today, I parked in the parking garage underneath the store because it was really busy.  So when I saw the sign that said "Salida a Periferico" I took that exit because, well, I wanted to get on the Periferico.  Assuming (we all know what happens when you do that!!!) that the road I would come out of out of Wal-Mart would be the Periferico, I started driving.  I quickly realized that I had no idea where I was.

After a brief moment of internal screaming, I calmed down and prayed.  "Ok, Lord, please help me get back to where I need to be.  And please help me find a retorno!!"  A retorno is a break in the median where you can make something like a U-turn and go the other way on the major road.  There was no retorno.  See, Guatemala has this one problem...okay two.  If you start going the wrong way on a road, you are TOAST.  There is no place to turn around, there are streets going this way and that, nothing is straight, and you basically just end up crying.  The other problem is that there aren't street signs, usually.  I don't even know what road I was lost on.  BUT, I passed over this bridge that I remembered from a few weeks ago when I was with some friends (I was not driving at that time or I would have known what to do at this point!!).  So I called them a few times and did not get an answer.  Then the "major" road turns into a "not major" road going into a little town.  I made a few turns, hoping and PRAYING like crazy that it would get me back on the "major" road going the other way, eventually running into the Periferico.  I made it, only by the grace of God!  The good news is, I'm sure this will help me in the future.  At some point, I will go that way again, and this time I will know where I'm going...all because I got lost today.  :)

Mom, if you're reading this, you can stop breathing out of the brown paper bag now, I'm OK.  ;)  

While I was gallivanting around the city, my roommate texts me.  "Hey, the Starbucks is open at Oakland Mall!  Let's go this afternoon!"  Sure, sounds good, IF I ever get home!  But I did, so we went.  Apparently, I was bad luck to her because we had to turn around several times because of road blocks on our way to the mall.  We made it to the Starbucks and had a great photo shoot...I mean, we enjoyed our drinks.  :) 

"Sisy" and "Jenny"...whoever they are, I'm sure they enjoyed these...how do you get "Jenny" from me saying, "Amy"??

Yum.

Missionary quote of the day- I won't say her (oops) name to protect her identity:  "Oh, I like this one...and that one.  Let's get out of here before I steal something."  (We were in a shoe store at the time.)  :) 

I laughed so hard.    It was a good day.

Holy Guacamole!

I'll save you the excuses as to why I haven't blogged and just say that I'm here now!  Let's get started...this might take awhile.

I went back to Indianapolis from June 2-July 24.  I had a wonderful time seeing all (most) of you!  My boyfriend, Daniel, also came to the States with me for the first 9 days I was home.  It was his first time there, so, he was fascinated with things like carpet, dishwashers, garbage disposals, cheap prices (on certain things), safe driving, the lack of tinted windows, and FLAT land.

I arrived back home on July 24 and went straight to language school in Antigua.  I spent 2 weeks filling my brain with as much Spanish as possible.  I lived with a Guatemalan family and walked a mile each way to the school and back 4 times a day.  The family was so sweet and I really enjoyed getting to know them.  This is me with my "mom" Irma.

 This is the view from my school...BEAUTIFUL!!

I had so many wonderful cultural experiences in Antigua (not the least of which included me falling on the cobblestone streets).  Living with the family and speaking Spanish 6 hours a day was a difficult but very rewarding time.  I wish I could have stayed until I was fluent!

I left Antigua on August 6 and went to my new apartment!  I love my new place and my new roommate, CeCe.  We get along great..except...she forgot to tell me that I could flush the toilet paper at our house!  I just assumed we couldn't since you can't almost everywhere else.  6 weeks and I've been throwing the TP in the trash.  Sheesh... :)

School is going great.  I LOVE my kids and am so glad I have the same class from last year.  We did lose a couple and gain a couple, but I am so happy to see them every morning.  I spent quite a bit of time painting and fixing up my new room...I know you're dying to see the finished product!  ;)

Would you call the color on the walls "smurf blue" or "ocean blue"?  Be careful how you answer that!!  The real color is Azul Rivera with a can of white added.  That's exactly what you would have called it too, right??

Of course, I can't post without showing you pictures of my little people!  They are rotten sometimes, but I love them ALL the time.  :)  I have more to share, but I think that's enough for one post.  Look for another one coming soon!  I'm pretty sure I'll post before 3 months has passed...

The end and a new beginning...

On Friday, May 27, I said goodbye to my sweet little loves that I have adored since I first met them on August 23.  I don't know if I can even explain to you how much I love them!  It's a good thing I will be their 3rd grade teacher next year; I just can't give them up yet!  They stole my heart in a way I never thought was possible before this year.  :)

chapel is so fun!

all of the elementary teachers after an afternoon of Mary Kay treatment

I'm excited to go home for the summer and see family and friends, but I sure will miss my kiddos!  The next time I post, I will be in the States!  Leaving on a jet plane tomorrow.  Please pray for safety traveling!  :)

Good Grief

I know, I know, it's been more than 2 months!  Certainly unforgivable, I'm sure.  I can't even lie and say I didn't have 15 minutes in the last 2 months to update.  I can say that I have been pretty busy, but alas, that's no excuse.

Let's see...I last updated February 19...the week after that, I went to a missions conference with other missionaries in Guatemala.  It was a refreshing time of worship and getting to know other missionaries.  However, on the way home as I was driving with 2 other friends in my friend’s car, we came upon some construction and ended up with a flat tire.  Praise the Lord we were safe for those 2 hours on the side of the road; 3 white girls and a carload of valuables!  Praise the Lord also for Randy and Brenda who saved the day and came to help us!  2 days after I returned from the conference, I moved out of Randy and Brenda's house due to some safety concerns, and into a house with 2 other teachers from CAG.  It was hard to move out, as R and B have become like my parents while I'm here!

Tabitha and me in Panajachel for the conference

The following week, (March 7) a dear friend, Rachel, from Indianapolis passed away from leukemia.  The Lord provided a very cheap ticket and the ability for me to come home for the funeral.  It was nice to be able to be home and see family, as well as spend time with Rachel’s 2 young daughters.  Through it all, God has shown himself faithful, even in the midst of these trials.  I even had an incident recently with the gas stove in my house that caused an explosion so powerful that it blew the kitchen rug off the floor!  Never a dull moment with me. 

My students are doing so well.  I know that God gave me the perfect class for being a first year teacher here.  They were so kind and flexible as I left in a hurry to go back to the States for Rachel’s funeral.  My class had been praying for Rachel since she was diagnosed in October.  When I told them she had passed away, they were pretty upset.  It was a really neat opportunity for me to explain that though God always answers our prayers, it’s not always in the way we’d like it to be.  I am amazed at how much they’ve grown spiritually this year and continue to ask questions about the Lord.  I can’t wait to see their precious faces everyday and know that this is why God has me serving Him in Guatemala. I will also be moving up to 3rd grade next year which I am SUPER excited about!


Spring break was great!  Here in Guatemala it was Semana Santa (Holy Week) which is the week before Easter.  It was a busy and exciting week!  We painted one wall in my classroom and I love how it turned out.  I spent some time  in Escuintla (where it was HOT), Rio Dulce (beautiful), and Peten (gorgeous).  There's nothing quite like standing at the top of  a mountain in Guatemala and seeing the beauty of God!  Let me tell you ladies, if you're looking for volume for your hair, I have your answer.  An 8 hour trip in a van/bus with all the windows open and humidity is approximately 90%.  When we stopped to go to the bathroom, I almost screamed when I saw myself in the mirror.  My hair was the biggest tangled frizz poof ball you've ever seen!  Alas, the trip was nice.

Peten

Castillo de San Felipe in Rio Dulce

That pretty much sums up the last 2 months.  Here are some random pictures of my little loves!

 Hat/Scarf Day-April 8-one of our 4th graders, Leah, had brain surgery and had to have her head shaved.  So, when she came back to school, we all wore hats and scarves in her honor!

 Gaby and me on Hat/Scarf Day

 Spring concert-April 8-ADORABLE!!!

coloring Easter eggs-April 15

Book Character Day- March 2

I won't even promise this time that it won't be forever long until I write again.  :)
Have a wonderful day!!

LOVE

I love what I do.
I love listening to Spanish music while having the windows open and feeling the breeze.
I love hearing the neighbor kids splash in the pool...in February.  :)
I love 70-80 degree weather...in February.  :)
I love Guatemala.
I love the people in Guatemala. 
I love the kids.
I love seeing 15 beautiful faces every morning, faces that need me and are counting on me.  
I love Hamin calling me mommy. 
I love Hamin saying, "Can I give you something, Miss Rigel?"  I say sure and she says, "a hug!" 
I love Sophia squeezing me so hard and saying, "Miss Rigel, I'm never going to let you go!"
I love Gaby giving me a kiss on the cheek and saying, "I love you, Miss Rigel!" after I have to discipline her.
I love how all 15 of them will jump out of their seats and give me a group hug...just because. 
I love hearing them pray.
I love hearing Nico say, "Thank you Jesus for our wonderful and beautiful teacher." 
I love hearing Sofia say, "Thank you Jesus for bringing Miss Rigel to us to teach us this year."
I love ministering at the Kairos House, where I can forget about my silly problems and focus on little kids with leukemia.

I love holding Josie's little hand and begging God to cure her of this terrible disease and let her live.

I love going to the zoo with friends.

I love singing in the praise team at church.I love God for bringing me here....among other reasons. 
I love Skype for keeping in contact with family and friends back in the States. 
I love what I do. 

Shall I go on?  ;)

1 Spider, a half-birthday, and driving in Guatemala

Let's start with the spider.  The other day, I was typing on my laptop in my classroom while the kids were in Spanish class.  I took my hands off of the keyboard for a moment, and while I did that, I looked down.  This is what I saw.  

I'm not really sure if the picture shows you just how large it was.   Once the students came back, I asked for a brave boy (I was taught that you let the men be men when the men are around!)  I had one brave soul who tried, but quickly freaked out when the spider ran away.  As far as we know, he's not dead, and still roaming the classroom somewhere.  Yay.

Next, the students (with the help of my super sweet room mom) threw me a "half-birthday" party last week.  Since my birthday is in the summer and we wouldn't be here to celebrate it, they did it for my half birthday, January 16!  It was so much fun, as I've never celebrated my birthday in January or during a school year for that matter.  However, the weather was exactly the same here in Guate as it would have been during my birthday in July, so that was nice.  The only down side-the reminder that I'm halfway to 27.  Oh well.  The kids were SO cute and generous!  I got WAY too many gifts, in addition to a little party during lunch. 

(For those of you who know that I haven't had chocolate in a year; I found a good home for the Snickers and 3 Muskateers bars on the door.)  :)  

No pictures of this one, but I had another unforgettable driving experience here in Guate yesterday.  I was going to ride with a friend from school over to another friend's house.  She asked me to drive because she was very dizzy and didn't think she should drive.  As it turns out, I'm not sure who was more capable at the time!  I won't even try to explain it because it was one of those "had to be there" moments.  But, I will say, that I'm glad Becca's brakes work and that my reflexes are fast.  I'm not sure Becca was any LESS dizzy by the time we finally reached our destination.  Sorry, Becca.  I have some practicing to do before I get my own car and start driving here next year. 

Lastly, a fun picture.  If you come into my room after 3:30 on any given day, you may find this.  If it's been a really bad day, I may be right there with them.  I have the desks set up nicely for us as teachers to lay on them after the kids leave.  

Shelly is on the left, she teaches first grade.  Becca is on the right, she teaches fourth grade.  She's the one I unintentionally tried to kill with my mad driving skills yesterday.  

Happy Saturday!!