Sunday, September 16, 2012

I have been walking to the airport the past few days to watch the afternoon planes come in.  I always begin my walk alone but by the time I get to the airport there are 3-5 kids following me and talking with me.  I am the change in their routine, something new, their entertainment for the evening.  Most of them I have never met before but their attitude will mirror my own.  If I am talkative and light hearted  they will be.  If I stay to myself so will the children.

Yesterday evening I looked out my window to see what the sunset was going to be like and I had a feeling that it was going to be an amazing sunset.  Although I was already in my pj's I decided that it would be nice to see the sunset from somewhere other than my apartment.  I threw on some warm clothes and boots and found my camera and headed outside.  I thought it would be nice to see the sunset naturally, without any buildings in the the way so I headed to the west side of the village by the processing plant and the dump.  I ran into a few kids on my way there and they stayed with me the rest of the evening while I walked.  I was able to get some incredible pictures and let a few of the students take a couple of shots with my camera.  They were so excited to be able to use it!  And they were able to take some pretty good pictures with it as well!  What a good evening!  The pictures from yesterday's post were the ones from this walk.

What follows is me being on my soapbox in response to the messages I have been getting about "my poor students"

I am in an ironic place.  My students are poised in between immemorial culture and the western culture.  This is something that most from my culture would believe happened hundreds of years ago, not in the present day.  These children do not have plumbing and some have never left the village.  However, at the same time, they almost all have satellite TV at home and can do incredible things when given an iPod or computer.  Most would hear this and there would be cooing noises accompanied by comments about how sad it is for "those poor kids".  This couldn't' be farther from the truth.  My students get to be outside all day long and enjoy the freedom of an unstructured life.  From an incredibly young age they are toughened as they remain outside, playing in the sun and rain and even snow.  As long as the thermometer reads above zero they are outside.  They are well rounded and they are loved and nurtured in the home by doting mothers and extended families, most of whom live a few houses from each other.  My students can take care of themselves much better students in the lower 48 and they respect the importance of being responsible. 

My students have incredible imaginations and are usually well-adjusted. They are close with their peers, whom they have played with and remained friends with since they were little.