aprovechar

My apologies... I have been busy busy busy aprovechar-ing (taking advantage of) my life here in Spain. I don't know how many times I can emphasize the fact that I am living in a surreal state of mind. With each day that passes, it seems to be less and less noticeable that I am a foreigner. Needless to say, walking the streets that crisply freeze my eyebrows during the morning, and, three hours later, melt away all specks of early morning dew, has become old hat.

I see people---a LOT of people. My place is small, dry, and strewn with a person on every street corner--not impacted, rather, laced. Laced with the elderly who remember a time when rivers of wine filled the streets and they rode their worries away on boats of cheese, driven by legs of ham. Now, the up-and-coming new families of my small space have escaped the toxic distance of metropolitan air to settle within the comfortable edges of this quaint town. The overwhelmingly dry air (a facet I am slowly adapting to, while my allergies find it difficult to follow suit) is compensated for by the sweet aroma of oranges and the vibrant green trees that enliven the picturesque scene around me. It is difficult to see where the farm ends and the rest of the world begins...

But, that being said...My students are nothing but intelligent, eager, and beautiful. Those I work with are nothing but caring, helpful overly helpful, and genuine. I can't help but smile when I walk into the room upon faces beaming with grace and sunshine. Children who didn't know where the United States was...who only know colors, food, and random processes, such as, photosynthesis, digestion, and nutrition in English. Nevertheless, they are no different from you or I. In fact, they are luckier. They are  immersed in a language in a way that I never received. But, for this, I do not lament. Because, now, I am here to help them by applying all that I have learned, while, unintentionally, they teach me an endless amount...Things I could have never learned as a 5-year old in a Spanish immersion classroom...

I spend twenty minutes with each of my 12 classes...two-times a week in science and once a week in english.

Yes, I just said twenty minutes...

But, poco a poco, I am learning how to breach the gap between a standardized U.S. education and apply all that I have learned as student to assume the role of teacher.

"Teacher, may I use the toilet?!"

"Teacher...aldkfjdalkfjdaosfj (something indiscernible in Spanish in a soft, timid voice...)"

"Teacher. Ah! No me entiendes! Tú no entiendes español! Ay. Madre mía!"

But, then, I get to teach my 1st grade science classes...There, the flashcards hold the power to elicit one of the most simplistically enjoyable twenty minute classes life can offer. As I switch quickly between a picture of butter and a picture of sausages, the timbre of the class escalates quickly to a frighteningly loud chorus of spanish pronounced english...

 "BUDDEAR!!!" and "SAWZEGES!!!"

Then, as I quickly run down the stairs, and 25 paces across to the next building, I approach the silent class of 8-year olds sitting upright and attentive and follow the proper English cues. They are learning about muscles (yes, muscles--involuntary AND voluntary) and joints. My lesson plans is no plan. I am given the same worksheets as the children and that is my guide to information and enlightenment...as how to proceed for a 20-minute session...in a foreign language...while they learn words like "masseter," and "The heart is an involuntary muscle because you cannot control it."

Just last year, they were learning the word "dairy" and phrases like " I have a fever..."

Giant steps between 7 & 8.

But, all it takes is that one student to remember "biscuits" when I hold up the corresponding ambiguous flashcard or the child that pensively stares at the blackboard when I ask them to circle where the bicep is on the diagram. And, after 10 seconds of silent gawking, they gradually approach the upper arm and circle the bicep.

The more I am here...the more I learn the importance of my teachers...the importance of my role...and the importance in not placing importance on everything. Just doing what comes natural. I was afraid at first to enter into a room without the guidebook, the prompt, the lesson plan. In the US, school always teaches us to play by the rules. In Spain, no hay reglas. Five-year old girls run around with their t-shirts revealing their stomachs, while teachers comment: "Que linda! Que guapa, chica! Tu eres famosa, no?" You don't need a bathroom pass to go "to the toilet"...Yet, you do have to ask. Nothing is formal...however, it is far from a chaotic mess. A lax attitude vive aquí. Hay maestras que creen en stimulating all students and expecting more. Y hay otras que solamente quieren a recibir salario y enseñan los básicos. It is simple--children are left behind.

But, in the US, we pride ourselves on instilling difference. Everyone is good at something...just find your talent. Here, it is why do you have to be good at something? There is no competition...there are no grand expectations, besides the bare minimum. Just, be happy. Meet your friends, eat good ham, and do whatever you feel is your calling--go to university, if you wish, or stay on the farm if it suits you. You choose what you want--pressure-less and equally as rewarding.

I am readjusting my form of thinking...Although, I am sure I will never lose my competitive bone, break it, or what have you, the slow departure of the pressure is more natural than the relentless sensation of constant impact.

We have the power to choose.

Never forget that.