Skip to main content

The Silence Has Been Broken

I know that Living the Good Life has been silent for the last couple of weeks but there is good cause for that.  Somehow, and I'm not really sure how it happened but I suspect I was hit over the head with some large object, I agreed to run an English Camp at InterAmerican the last two weeks.

Oh. My. Goodness.

To say the enterprise was monumentally stressful, would be to put it lightly.   Try to imagine 15 continually rotating volunteers from InterAmerican Academy plus 70 children from a nearby community between the ages of five and fifteen, add to that the fact that the participants only speak Spanish and the leader (that would be me) only speaks English.  What does this equal?  Complete and utter chaos.

The original plan was for the Junior Honor Society to plan and organize the entire two week, yes I said two weeks, event.  Living in a land of hopes and dreams, I believed that this would happen rather smoothly.  I made sure the kids had resources to plan the ten day lessons, I held countless meetings to go over details of the camp, and I made sure we had a enough volunteers to help out with the classroom and outdoor activities.  I even color-coded the volunteers and students!  The kids seemed to be under no stress what-so-ever.  Every time I had a prep meeting, they told me not to worry about a thing--they had it all under control.  Uh huh.

The first day, at about 2:15, with parents and children streaming through the front gates, reality hit us all with its big ol' hammer.  As more and more kids kept coming into the grounds, my JHS volunteers seemed to lose some of their assurance and just began shouting questions with voices of panic over and over.  As I was trying to reassure volunteers, organize incoming camp participants, and as the sun kept beating down on the whole mess, I realized that things might have gone a bit over our heads.  

The camp lasted two hours a day, with one hour in the classroom and one hour outside playing games.  My friend Sarah, noting that English Camp was a monster that could not be felled by only one person, soon stepped in to help.  The first three days were exhausting and emotionally draining.  Each day, more and more kids would show up for the camp and we finally had to cap the numbers at 60.  Once the numbers were at a managable level, the kids became more comfortable teaching the classes, and Sarah and I could stop running around like two chickens with their heads cut off.  The event turned out to be a success with the kids from InterAmerican and the neighboring community really enjoying themselves.  I can't say much English was taught, but much fun was had.


Popular posts from this blog

Vivo en Guayaquil, Pero Mi Corazón Está en Quito

Oh Quito, how I love thee... Dave and I needed a break from the heat and honking of Guayaquil, so we hopped on a quick flight north.   We spent a wonderful four days in beautiful Quito, Ecuador.  Enjoying the many artisan markets, coffee shops, restaurants, mountains, and cool weather.  I wore jeans and long-sleeved shirts, slept with three blankets on the bed, and never left without my jacket, hat, and gloves for the first time in months.  It was pure heaven. Quito is a very tourist friendly destination, with people from all over the world walking through the streets.  It is not uncommon to hear whispers of French, Dutch, German, English, and, of course, Spanish as you travel down its cobblestone avenues.  The people are also so very friendly, pointing out points of interest that they have discovered to any other tourist they see.  People often can be seen giving tips on which restaurants to try or where the nearest bookstore can be found to complete strangers they bump into.  Many ar

Años Viejos, Pyromaniacs, and Fireworks...Oh My

I have to admit, it has been quite awhile since I have actually been awake to ring in the new year and say goodbye to the old.  Dave and I have always been a bit more concerned about the eight hours of sleep necessary to enjoy life rather than seeing the ball drop.  But this year...is different.   It is 12:58 and the neighbor's hired band just started, there are rapid fire explosives (aka fireworks) going off in three minute intervals, and the car alarms throughout our block seem to be answering the loving call of said fireworks.  There will be no eight hours to start off the year for the Richert's this time. Nothing about our experiences in Ecuador could be classified as typical, and New Year's Eve is proving to be no exception.  The evening started out quite and low key, dinner at home with a movie.  There were the occasional firework, but that isn't anything atypical.  I was even contemplating continuing the tradition of snuggling into bed by 10:30.   Before I called

Yes or No?

A couple weeks ago, slipped in the far reaches of my mailbox, I found a note that took me back to the good ol' days of elementary school.   You know what I'm talking about. Remember how you would just be sitting at your desk, one leg pumping back and forth, pencil eraser nudging your bottom lip, as you tried to puzzle out those mind-boggling multiplication tables?  And then, out of the corner of your eye, you would see Andy passing a note to Melissa, who would then pass it on to Mark, who would then palm it off to you right before Mrs. Nelson turned around from the blackboard.  Your name would be written all in cursive and curly-q's on the clumsily folded paper.  Carefully, stealthily, you unfold the paper to find: Well, InterAmerican sent me a 'check yes or no' note, and it raised the same sensation of anxiety that those old love notes of yesterday used to inspire.  Instead of the traditional, "do you like me?" question, it was the "will you continue