pages after pages

Revelation: Teachers deserve it, I deserve it.. !

pagesafterpages — Tue, 26 Oct 2010 07:18:37 +0000

I am a teacher for how long?? I can’t remember.. half my life has been consumed of planning, writing reports, talking to parents, turning my brains upside down to find solutions and solve issues within my classroom and so much more. One of the hardest things I face everyday as I come and step in my classroom is the pressure. I am a teacher for children with learning disabilities. So everything that I do with each of them, is tailored and refined to suit their skills and needs in all areas – cognitively, physically, psychologically and emotionally. It pressures me when dealing with big tantrums, typical whines, lesson plans in all major subjects and report deadlines (daily case notes, and progress reports etc. ) for my home school program. Sometimes, its just too much too bear.

At the end of each teaching day, I somewhat feel a remarkable feeling of accomplishment ,however, alongside with it, is the feeling of mind and physical exhaustion.

Teachers wish for a looooooooooooooooong and undisturbed holidays as well- may it be just staying at home and surf the net all day reading, blogs, books (books that are not teaching/work related of course) celebrity news, play online games, etc.. lay down and sleep till sundown, wake up and eat and sleep again or watch old movies in a row or just watch tv. ,
- or may it be going for a trip somewhere away from the constant sound of whines and children footsteps.

When I was an ESL teacher for Chinese children in China, I create my own “day off” meaning I will take one or two (or some months even 3 or 4) days in a month to just lazy about. I believe I deserve it. And these two days refresh my whole system to survive till the next month.

What I do? Before that “day off”, I stuff my fridge with food (mostly chips), I get dvds, and series (the simpsons is my all time favourite), I clean my apartment, and finish the laundry that piled up, and then make a call early the next morning informing them that I am not feeling well. (of course with a sick voice)

Then that’s when my holiday starts. And it feels good because its a not a common perk I get.

Teachers deserve it. I deserve it.

Ordinary Day

pagesafterpages — Wed, 28 Jul 2010 11:10:28 +0000

It was just another ordinary day in my classroom. When I say ‘ordinary day’, imagine a little boy running to my room and explore the toys, books and blocks in my shelves, imagine the sound of the radio playing ‘Tommy Thumb’, ‘Itsy Bitsy Spider’, or this Teddy Bear, Teddy Bear’ nursery songs. Imagine a sweet girl focused on her maths and a constant sound of her sigh and my sigh. That’s how my day goes. But it’s my ordinary days that give me fulfilment in what I do, and it’s also when wonderful moments occur.
In my ordinary days, there are things that just happen that it usually ends in laughs. Today is one of those super ordinary days to count.
My last kid came a bit late. He is always jolly despite of his physical defect. He had a stroke when he was a baby. First time I’ve ever heard of such, but it happened to him. He is smaller than normal boys of his age. His head is even smaller. I actually thought his condition is microencephaly because he has the features of this condition.
He settled to his chair and with his high pitched voice narrated to me “Teacher we were late because of the traffic jam. “ Then daddy tried to turn to the next lane but he couldn’t go, then he said ‘oh shit’.. I almost burst out laughing. But held myself and explain as much as I can not to say what his daddy just said.
The story doesn’t end there…. As we were doing our activity on arranging the jumbled letters of the word T-H-I-S to get the correct spelling, he actually arranged it to the word S-H-I-T… Then I just realized that we can actually make s-h-i-t out of the word t-h-i-s… 
Another ordinary day…isn’t it?

Morning Prayer

pagesafterpages — Mon, 22 Mar 2010 23:15:39 +0000

Morning Prayer

(The Power of Your Words… Walking With God)

By: Don Gossett and E.W Kenyon

There is a miracle in my mouth because _______________

I see the invisible, I would do the impossible

I touched the intangible, I would believe the incredible

I hear the inaudible, I would have the unimaginable

Of me, my family will not know poverty

I would go in and out of house in PEACE

I will not struggle to be recognized

Those who laugh at me will laugh WITH me

God shall take me to my greatness and destiny

Every closed door begin to open on their own accord

God will remember me for good

I shall enter into my rest in JESUS NAME

Amen….

Crossroads

pagesafterpages — Mon, 22 Mar 2010 23:14:51 +0000

Crossroads

Life is fun, life is great

Waking up to see the sun rising to give light…

And relaxing at night to watch the stars twinkling, is such a wonderful delight!

Life is like a journey of the unknown, without a time-frame but with a destination.

It’s filled with lots of hopes, desires, and uncertainties, of what the destination holds.

It’s a journey that can only be taken ONCE, with no second chance since

we all just have one life to live.

No matter how much we try, we often find ourselves at crossroads.

Crossroads of, What to do… Where to go… Who to trust.. Who to love…

What to believe in…and lots of the “W”-letter questions.

Any choice made at such times could make or mark the dreams of a lifetime…

Crossroads…!!!

can they be said to be a true test of life?

Well, think about it and possibly make references to your past choices

and consequences.

For every time we make a choice at crossroads, we’re either right or wrong,

and must face the consequences of such choices.

Some fill us with accolades and encouragements,

others fill us with regrets and regrets,

yet we have to keep moving on!

Some crossroads get linked to the main path much later,

while others never get you anywhere near the main path.

If, by grace, you find yourself at the crossroads of whom to serve..

..or where to go…

Always, choose the path of life.

And this life is in JESUS CHRIST Our Lord,

for HE IS THE WAY, THE TRUTH and THE LIFE.

He is that single path that links all crossroads.

And as long as you stay and remain on His path….

SUCCESS, PEACE, SUFFICIENCY, and LOTS MORE are assured….!!

Rain

pagesafterpages — Mon, 22 Mar 2010 23:07:03 +0000

I hear the splash of your drops
As you gently touch the green grass
The way their tiny leaves move
For every fall you make..
Rain…

I listen to your plit plat on my window pane
As you knock to wake me up from a deep slumber
The fast but careful sound your droplets make
Awakened my sleepy eyes
Rain…

I linger on the silent cool breeze you bring
As it sweetly kiss the softness of my skin
How my heart dances as it goes through within
And how my mind wander as it dreams
Rain…

I watch the world as it glistens
As you completely bathe the meadows,
the plains and the mountains..
And the little boys and girls who have long waited
for you to come
The joy the world claims for quenching its
thirsty soul
Rain….

I let go a sigh as your drops get fewer
For it only means goodbye
But as you go, you have left a hope
and a promise
To us all living who would always wait for your next rain drop…

Kill That Fear

pagesafterpages — Mon, 22 Mar 2010 23:06:10 +0000

At night before we hit the sack, we imagine great things. Everyone of us wants to achieve the best things that life could ever offer. Sometimes we even get so consumed about our dreams we don’t wanna wake up anymore. However, when morning comes, when we step out of our doors and face this reality in front of us, we tend to step back and get a little afraid. For some reasons, that is just normal. We are not super people with extraordinary powers. Life then would be meaningless if we no longer have to worry about everything because we have special or magical powers to change things and situations in one blink. I believe, it is really normal for us to feel scared because we have goals to achieve. Sometimes we have set many goals that achieving them seem to be very risky and scary.

Yes we are capable of doing and making changes but it requires no mystic or magical powers. You have a vision of what you want to get tomorrow or what you want to be, a grand vision actually, but you can’t just sit down by the window and just watch everything that passes by. A small step and a second to start the journey towards that vision makes quite a big difference. And along that journey that’s when we encounter hundred situations wherein we need to make wise decisions. That is, if we pick this choice, it will lead us to this way, and if we pick that choice it will lead us to that way. Either way, we should always welcome the outcomes in a positive way.

Readiness to take a flight in reaching those grand visions and dreams can somehow kill that fear inside.The Lesser the fear the better we can make good decisions and definitely the stronger we become. A fear that is IN FACT doesn’t exist at all. It doesn’t exist because its NOTHING until we start to entertain such feelings. We are vulnerable to feelings of fear because we are not armed with all the knowledge,strength and efficiency. Therefore we are whipped by what we think stronger and bigger forces around. For some of us, they remain strong and fearless on their ground despite all the negative forces. While for some they stay behind closed doors. The instance we step back, that’s when all those dreams remain dreams and those visions remain visions. There will be no open roads for those goals.

As what I was saying, being afraid at some point or another, is normal. In spite of that, we can always bring out our inner strength. We all have it! And we have to keep our faith in our inner strength telling us that we could always make it through by shoving off those forces away. Surely then, a clearer path towards our goals would appear.