A Day in the Life

Well, I've been here eight weeks and am finally feeling a bit settled in.  I am living in an apartment that will eventually be shared with it's original tenant, Sherry.  She is currently on furlough in Canada and is due back at the end of this month.  I look forward to meeting her as I understand from those who know her that she is quite nice.  Let me introduce you to some new friends and take you through a typical school day and on into my evening.

This lovely group are the teachers from GDQ.  Such a great group of people!

Now let me introduce you to a few of the students with whom I have the pleasure of working.

Hi, I'm Emily.  I am 10, my sister Nicola is 7 and my brother Sebi is 4.  I am the oldest in the family except for Mum that's 44 and Dad that's 36.  I have 4 cats. Tiger's one month old, Chocolet is 6 months old, and 10 is younger than Star.  My birthday is on December 28.  I have dark brown long hair and light brown eyes.  I like listening to stories, climbing, running, leaping, and dancing.

Hi. I am Rea.  I am 12 years old.  I have a sister which she is 10 years younger than me.  I like pizza and Coke.  I live in Albania and I am from Albania.  I live with my grandparents.  I like Facebook.  I like to wear fancy clothes.

I'm Nicola.  I like to play that I am camping out and I like to spy on my brother and sometimes I scare him.  My sister's called Emily and my brother is called Sebi which is short for Sebastian but he likes Sebi.  I was born in a car in England but the person driving us to the doctor was a nurse so it was okay.  My mum is English and my dad is Albanian.  My mum is a missionary and my dad makes videos.

Meet Anna and Karin.  Anna is from Germany and is one of four children who attend GDQ.  Karin is from Brazil and is currently working to add Albanian to her repertoire of three other languages: Portuguese, Spanish and English.  These two third grade girls are full of energy and giggles.  They are also natural leaders because no matter what I plan to teach, they always end up telling me a better way to do it.  So I have relinquished the teaching to them.  Here they are at the board giving each other words to read with the patterns I have given them for the day.

And then there's John.  John is seven and in the first grade.  John is Korean and currently does not speak much English.  This bright boy is full of mischief and one of his favorite games is making mistakes on purpose and then sniggering when I "catch" him.  He is taking Tae Kwon Do and loves to play chase with the girls at recess.

 

 

 

Here's a daily schedule for me here in Tirana.

5:45     Wake up and have QT with God

7:10     Meet Jane for ride to work

7:30     Arrive GDQ-get ready for the day

8:00     Students and staff assemble on field for morning announcements and prayers

8:45     Literacy with Nicola

9:30     Literacy with Anna and Karin

10:10   Maths with Rea

11:20   Literacy with Emily

12:15   LUNCH 

1:00     Literacy with Rea

1:30     Planning time

2:30     Literacy with John

3:15     Dismissal duty

4:45     Begin walk home

5:30     Arrive home; head to market for dinner

6:15     Cook and eat dinner; watch a little Albanian TV or a few episodes of Spooks (British TV series on DVD)

10:00     Bed time

 

 

But never fear!  There are plenty of opportunities for fun and fellowship with friends.  Oddly enough, they all have to do with food.  Hmmm

Dinner with Granny's Chicken and Ham Pie

Making Chicken Pilaf with Sarah and Yunna

Staff Luncheon

So, life is good.  I have recently begun singing with the worship team and the Instituti.  We meet on Fridays and rehearsals  are remarkably similar to the ones at home in Raleigh, and just as much fun.  I have made many new and wonderful friends and I am feeling more and more sure about and blessed by this move every day.  Please continue to pray for me as I continue to adjust and work on my Albanian.  Zoti të bekoftë! (God bless you!)