How teaching has changed me

Our first semester is pretty much finished. Last day of classes was Friday and this week we are administering finals. Time has flown by so fast! We are close to our halfway mark... hmm...weird. It doesn't really feel like it. Well, our school gives us a month-long break between semesters so we are currently planning huge trips for October. We are heading to the southern region of Thailand (the Phuket area) for a week and then exploring China for 3 weeks! It's a lot to plan for but it's exciting!

So I thought I'd take this moment to wrap up how our first semester went. If you haven't read our previous post, you can read it HERE - it's all about what teaching in Thailand is like on a day to day basis. But on a more personal note, our first semester here was pretty special. At the start, it was definitely overwhelming and rough. We were given a list of 4 bullet points as our assigned curriculum to teach for the full year. We were thrown for a loop when we were assigned to teach different subjects than what we were originally told. We had to pull lesson plans out of nowhere with next-to-nothing materials. We had no idea what was going on from one day to the next (and still do!) and after I got over the original shock of it all, it started to become frustrating and hard. However I do need to say that I have learned so much about myself and hopefully have changed for the better in the process.

 

For those of you who personally know me, I'm naturally an up-tight character who always has to know what is going on, when and where, and it usually has been written down on my calendar for weeks. Because I like to be on top of things and ultra-organized, this has historically made me very effective in school and at work. [I don't want to sound too proud, but I do have a point.] I have usually excelled in these areas of my life and I relished that. I like to be busy and I like to get things done in the most effective way possible. You might say that is my strong suit. So although I had never done formal teaching in a school before, I wasn't too nervous about this Thailand experience. I thought I would be able to handle it well. Boy, was I wrong!

If there is one thing I've learned from this experience, it is humility. This is definitely a 'fly by the seat of your pants' kind of job experience and I failed at it, at first.  All of my natural qualities that had made me effective and successful in the past were really my downfall. I had to plan for 3 different subjects, at 3 different grade levels, with literally nothing to go off of, and no materials at my disposal. I tried to over-do it. Making powerpoints for each lesson, putting together quizzes and projects, and trying to teach the kids as much as I could. However that led to some frustrating days. Classes would get canceled, half of my students would be absent for some reason, or they were all too tired or preoccupied with the next school activity to really listen to my lessons. I became not only frustrated, but angry at the system, and disappointed with myself that I wasn't good at this.

Then around midterms, I realized I just had to let it go. (And no, this is not a Frozen reference). A bunch of my students weren't performing well and I knew that a big part of the problem was me. I was trying too hard to teach them too much. I was trying to instill in them what education is like in America - it's rigorous, requires self-motivation, you can't turn in work 3 weeks late and get full credit, and no matter what anyone says, you can't just keep re-taking your final until you get above a 50%! (A 50% is passing here... and the school system makes everyone pass). However, me trying to be too over-productive was coming at the expense of my students' learning experience.

So what if Thailand is academically ranked the lowest in Asia? That's not something I can control or something I can single-handedly change in a meager 11 months. What really mattered were my students here and now. I want them to enjoy my classes. I want them to want to learn. So I had to change myself. I had to take it down a notch and learn to not care about how ineffective I thought Thailand's school system was. I needed to give my students not the most education possible, but the best education possible - which (I had to accept) would be different than education given in the States. I focused on less amounts of material, but incorporated more games and activities (they LOVE games, almost too much haha) and I tried harder to get to know them personally. I have to say that it is working! For my students and for me. I'm actually enjoying teaching, it seems like my students are more eager to learn, and therefore are actually learning more. I hope so. If not, at least they are having fun.

I am so happy that we decided to extend to a second semester. Although we really do miss our families, I feel like I've just gotten settled and things figured out. We still have so much to see and do, and I don't want to leave our students yet. They really are a BLAST and I have come to truly love so many of my students.

The Thais love extracurriculars. Like to the point where they surpass academics in importance. Don't get me wrong - I am all for supporting the fine arts and sports. I participated heavily in orchestra, choir, dance, and the tennis team when I was in school. I think it is very important not only physically, but mentally to receive a balanced education. However, you would not believe the extent to which the schools here take it. They literally shortened the school day by almost 2 hours, every day, for a month in preparation for something they call 'Sports Day.' And even though the students were given extra time at the end of the day, they would still miss class and ask for free time. School was basically a joke for a month and a half. But they committed to this ... and it showed! The Sports Day activity took place over 2 days and it was more like a mini-Olympics. The student body was divided into 4 teams: blue, green, pink, and yellow. You would not believe the banners, billboards, t-shirts, cheers/chants, dances, costumes, and parade coordination that went into this! And it was all done by the students. It was legitimate and I was impressed. Here are a few pictures of what the students put together.

 

The first day they spent the whole morning doing a parade, more like opening ceremonies. They even had a torch which was run around the field and set flame to a fuse which lit up the Bowl of Fire (whatever it's officially called in the Olympics) which then set off an impressive amount of fireworks. Haha, it was awesome. Then, they turned the football field into a track and started the actual sports. They had competitions in sprints, relays, tug-of-war, and basketball, among others.

I felt like we were back in medieval times. (I'm referring to both the historical time period and the popular dinner & tournament experience.) We teachers got to sit in a fan-cooled booth on the sidelines and eat free school lunches while we were entertained by the students competing in the hot sun for two days. Ha, I kind of felt like royalty. Here we are in the 'president's box!'

The next day, the games continued! Here is my personal favorite: the 15-legged race. This was hands-down the most entertaining event to watch. I think there was only one team that actually made it to the end in one piece. Hahaha!

One of the most highly-anticipated and most-practiced event was the cheer competition. Which actually turned out to be more of a 'let's sing, chant, and clap' competition. It was a bit anti-climatic, but still entertaining. Plus, it was fun to see what 2+ months of dedicated work from the students yielded. (I can't help but wonder if they were this dedicated to actual school work! Oh well...)

To finish off the craziness that was Sports Day, they put together a football match (soccer for us, Americans) between the teachers and Jonathan was asked last minute to join! He rocked it even though like none of his teammates spoke English. [See awesome shot of Jonathan below] It was super fun seeing all these older teachers, running around and having a ball while their students cheer for them on the sidelines. Best 2 days of school!

 

So I guess that is what happens when you let go. You embrace everything about the culture, even the things that you don't necessarily agree with, but you end up having an incredibly fun experience and fond memories to keep with you forever.

Simple Gifts: A Countdown to Turkey!

The past month has been a battle in the Osorio household. The source?
Christmas music.

I know. Christmas music is a magical and joyful thing! But for me it signifies the start of the Christmas season, and that didn't start until after Thanksgiving dinner while I was growing up. But that's besides the point. Anyways, many people say this as a reason to listen to Christmas music right after Halloween, "Well if there were Thanksgiving songs then I would listen to those but there aren't."

Well world, I am here to tell you that there is a Thanksgiving song! (At least in my opinion.)

'Tis the gift to be simple, 'tis the gift to be free

'Tis the gift to come down where we ought to be,

And when we find ourselves in the place just right,

'Twill be in the valley of love and delight.

When true simplicity is gained,

To bow and to bend we shan't be ashamed,

To turn, turn will be our delight,

Till by turning, turning we come 'round right.

Well, doesn't that just capture the Thanksgiving spirit? When we take the time to slow down and really think about all the blessings (or 'gifts') we've been given, we will literally find ourselves in the "valley of love and delight." There it is. Being grateful for the simple things is the secret to living a happy life.

Happiness should NEVER be placed on things. Material things, or even non-material things! If it is, it's not true happiness. And it won't last.

The bottom line is, true happiness is never conditional. Not on anything. 

However, my favorite part of "Simple Gifts" is this line: when true simplicity is gained, to bow and to bend we shan't be ashamed to turn... til we come 'round right. We all make mistakes in life. I have found myself a time or another, turning and turning. Running around in circles, trying to figure out my life. Figuring out how to make it better, and how to make myself better. I'm human; we all are. So I'm not perfect and making mistake after mistake is very frustrating. But the lyrics of this old folk song give us the answer! Turning will be our delight once true simplicity is gained.

True simplicity. Well, I don't know how to gain that or what it would really look like, but in light of my blog post last month, I've been trying to be more grateful. (With Thanksgiving here, it's perfect timing, right?!) But especially be more grateful for the simple things. So I know that everyone and their dog has done this, but every single day for the past month, I have found one thing I was grateful for each day. Thought I would share.

My Countdown of Thanks:

1. My husband doing the dishes

2. My little nephew Daxton. I cannot stand how cute he is!

3. Sunday dinner with the family

4. Recorded TV - NO commercials. That's the only way to watch TV.

5. Early shifts at work. I can come home when it's still light out!

6. The miracle of Skype. It lets me see my family who are afar, including my adorable nieces, Kyrah and Sydnee!

7. Yummy new recipes from my co-workers. Shout out to mini chicken pot pies!

8. Our bed. It's awesome.

9. Modern medicine! I would die from migraines without it. (How did people survive before??)

10. Movies. It is amazing how much time and effort goes into an epic production! Also, I love popcorn.

11. Instant comfort that comes from prayer.

12. Sweet and fun co-workers that make working worth it. Well, that and getting paid...

13. Instant communication. Email, phone calling, texting, endless possibilities.

14. Science. It's amazing what truths we have been able to discover! I like to believe that when we discover truths of the universe, it's like peering into the way that God works. 

15. Central heating

16. Instant cereal. My favorite food. Whoever invented cereal is getting a HUGE hug from me in heaven.

17. Primary. I love that the church has a place for beautiful children to go and learn about the Gospel and feel of the Spirit. They have such faith and are so close to our Heavenly Father.

18. The crisp cool feeling of the air in Fall. I will never get sick of it.

19. Restaurants. Delicious food, ready to eat at a decision's notice! And you don't even have to clean up.

20. Modern transportation. Lets me take a much-needed nap on the way home from work.

21. Incredibly grateful for my husband! And that he's my best friend. And that he can make me smile and laugh, even when I'm feeling sick, exhausted and grumpy. Oh, and that he still loves me despite all of that.

22. To have a job! (I have to remind myself to be grateful of this one frequently...)

23. That I have family living so close!

24. Fingernail clippers. Seriously, how did people trim their fingernails before?

25. The holy scriptures and words from our modern prophets. They will never lead you astray! Isn't that so amazing?! And such a blessing.

26. That clementines are in season. That means Christmas is right around the corner!

27. My ancestors and everyone who has come before me. My parents, my in-laws and my whole family. They have taught me so much and have loved me unconditionally. I love them all with my whole heart!

28. And of course, my Father in Heaven and His Son, my elder brother, Jesus Christ. Their guidance and companionship is what gets me through this life and I know it is only through Heavenly Father's plan and Christ's ultimate sacrifice that we are able to live with Him again for eternity.

Lesson I've learned: If you want to happy, be grateful for something simple each and every day.

Everyone have a Happy Thanksgiving!

Courtesy of one of Jonathan's students while he was substituting teaching at an Elementary School :)

Sometimes change requires Patience

Fall. The BEST season of the year! Maybe it's my favorite because I can roll out of bed and wear my sweatpants to work. Or maybe it's because jackets and boots are my favorite items in my wardrobe! Fall is my favorite because it's the season of warm hot chocolate, delicious harvest vegetables and caramel-apples, and crisp nights watching football. Or more often, warm cozy nights on the couch watching football. (We are poor lazy bums.)

Perhaps it's the season rubbing off on me, but I am finding myself to be incredibly impatient lately! I am wanting change. And I want it now. Maybe it's because I've been so used to consistent change. In college, I took different classes every semester, moved to a different apartment about every 6 months; there were things to look forward to that were planned out. Whereas now, I don't know what's going to happen! But I want it to happen quick, because I hate not knowing.

I still haven't heard back from about four of the PA schools that I've applied to. So far, all the ones that have responded have been rejections. That's always fun. At first, it hurt. But then after a while it started to dull and then it became an expectation. Each letter would come through the mail and I'd think, OK, onto the next rejection. In fact, a part of me is expecting not to get into any of the remaining schools. I guess that could be a bad thing in some people's eyes, but I think it's a mindset that is preparing me for something different in case this whole PA school thing doesn't work out. Rather than being devastated, I will have a plan to move forward. And in fact we do have a back-up plan! There are plenty of other exciting things we can do with our lives. And we are still just starting our lives together! 

The world is our oyster! - a quote I hear quite often from my husband.

Here is a new change. Jonathan has created his own business!

Bear River Media is a social media managing company where, you guessed it, Jonathan manages your social media! That means facebook, twitter, pinterest, instagram, blogs, you name it. As well as coming up with other advertising efforts and campaigns. It's pretty smart, considering that's where all business is going anyways (if they haven't already gone there). Mostly everyone's audience is on social media. But no one likes to keep up with the million of social websites out there. There are way too many and it drains your time by the hour. That is why hiring someone else to do the work for you is so wise! Not to put in a shameless plug in for my husband's business, but I just did.

It is super exciting! I don't think this is going to be our sole future, but it is something that Jonathan is trying out and hopefully it brings in some side money, as well as such great experience! I am so proud of him, doing something so hard and brave.

I want to do things like this.... things that help us move onto the next chapter in our lives. I feel like we are still in this limbo-phase. My life is seriously this one tragic cycle. I wake up, snooze for 10 minutes, leave for work in a rush 5 minutes later, WORK, come home, eat, shower, turn on the TV, fall asleep on the couch and then go to bed. I totally get it now when older people used to tell me that work becomes your life! It truly does. I feel like these people sometimes.

Expressionless. No hope, no excitement, nothing to do with life but go to work. And I guess if you love your work then you don't feel like this! If you are passionate and feel like you are making a difference, then that is living life. Unfortunately for me, I fall far from that. I am a college graduate earning 10 bucks an hour and getting rejected from nearly every graduate school I've applied to. And if I'm not going to get into PA school, then what am I doing? I'm pretty over this whole work thing. I am wanting to move on! NOW!

However, that's not how life works sometimes. Sometimes change requires patience. 

I've had to remind myself recently that the point of this life is not to get to the end. It's to enjoy the journey. How many times have I heard that?! Like one too many. But it's true! And enjoying the journey means that sometimes we will have to patiently endure. Wait for what we want with a huge smile on our face and trying to be grateful for everything around us. And perhaps during that waiting, what we thought we wanted wasn't really what we needed in our lives. Patiently enduring can often take us on a different path. That may be happening to me right now. Who knows?

We will have to patiently wait and see........

Simple Resolutions

January has pretty much come and gone and as is tradition, we are to make resolutions. I hadn't made it a priority this New Years and kind of forgot about it. Didn't feel like it was a big deal. But then I realized that changing and resolving to be better is the point of this life, right? And it doesn't have to be anything big. Let's go with simple.

Better late than never.

My (not-so-grand) Resolutions for 2013:

1. Exercise 2-3 times a week
2. Reach $10,000 in savings
3. Apply to PA grad schools

All growing up, I was taught the importance of exercise ever since I can remember. Sincere kudos to my Dad! However my workouts have usually consisted of mainly running. And now I've decided that it's high time to start including strength training to my routine. I know that it is super important to include weight-bearing exercise especially for us women who have osteoporosis running in the family (woop, woop). So here is to vamping up my work out and pumping some iron! Cardio + strength training = best exercise.

For those of you who are familiar with Dave Ramsey, you may have heard of his "baby steps" to financial success. The first one is to get out of debt. Jonathan and I have been so blessed to graduate from college, both debt-free! Thank you to both sets of parents :) The second baby step is to put aside $10,000 worth of emergency savings. That way you are not only secured in case of an emergency, but you can get away with health insurance that has very low premiums. Although the deductible is a bit higher, you have the $10,000 saved and you are basically self-insured! If you aren't planning on having a bunch of medical bills in the near future, this will save you bunches of money on your premiums.

So that is what Jonathan and I are working towards now. $10,000 doesn't sound like too much money in today's terms, but when you are trying to save that amount of money, it is a lot! It will take us a while, but I think we can reach that goal within this year. A special thank you to my parents who gave us the online videos of Dave Ramsey's lectures from his "Total Money Makeover" bestseller! I felt so dumb when it came to grown-up stuff like insurance, premiums, deductibles, 401Ks, mutual funds, etc. But Dave explains it simply, shows you the math and how to save the most money! It was best to learn now so that Jonathan and I can start our lives together making good financial decisions.

P.S. I HIGHLY recommend everyone to either read this book or sign up for Dave Ramsey's online "Financial Peace University" program. It's all the same material. He is so much fun to listen to and it will honestly change your life!

And my final goal for this year is to apply to Physician Assistant graduate school. There are many great programs all over the country so I have been doing a lot of research- and still have much ahead of me. Little nerd like me, I am making a table to compare program length, cost, application deadlines, prerequisites, and other important info. Gosh, I forgot how much work applications take! That's why my goal isn't to get accepted to grad school necessarily (although that would be fantastic), but just to apply. Again, start simple.

I think that is what I have learned most from this past year. It's always the little things that we need to be consistent with in our lives that end up making the biggest difference. Here is a quote that I see multiple times everyday outside my boss's office:

"The secret to success is doing common things uncommonly well."

I don't know who said it, but I think they are right. It would be fantastic if I could invent or discover something revolutionary that would greatly impact humankind. But chances are, that's not going to happen; not that I'm not going to reach for that or dream big. That, I will still do. I think it's important to have faith and push yourself to the limit. Never shortchange yourself. But rather than measure my success on whether I do something extraordinary with my life or not, I would rather strive to be extraordinary. I am sure that I would look back on my life at that point and be much more satisfied with who I came to be and feel like I made my time on this Earth worth it.

I guess what I'm saying is, resolve to be extraordinary this year.

Trying Something New

Unfortunately I have always been really horrible at keeping a journal. (And you will probably be able to tell this by my rough writing skills...sorry for that in advance). I was just so busy with school and so I used to justify it by saying that I keep a good record of my life through pictures! The miracle of facebook, right? But now that I have recently gotten married, I now feel responsible for keeping all of my new family's memories recorded! And even though a picture is worth a thousand words, I believe writing down your thoughts and recollections of events is a good habit to get in.

So I am trying something new...a blog.

Here we go. I've never been really good at coming up with amusing commentary or executing a good joke. And I am not the best story-teller either. Those are actually fortes of my adorable husband! He graduated in Communications with an emphasis in Advertising- even got on the elite creative track as a copywriter. So he definitely should be the one doing this. However, seeing as he does this all day for work, I am going to probably head up most of this blog's writing. Plus it will improve my skills. Yay.

Hm, what to tell? Well, Jonathan just started his first "grown-up" job! Salary and all, baby. He is the new Social Media Guru at an advertising agency called Friendemic. Haha I love that his title actually says Guru. It's up by Murray, UT so he does have to make quite a commute everyday-- NOT his favorite part of the day. He manages all the social media (Facebook, Twitter, Youtube, etc.) of a bunch of Fiat Dealerships all around the nation. Not the exact dream job he was hoping for, but that is a pretty big client and we are very grateful!

Now as for me, I have assumed most of the typical "wife" duties around the house. Cooking, cleaning, laundry, and most recently- blogging. Now that I've graduated from college and the wedding is over, I am able to do things now that I couldn't ever get to...

Like reading for fun. I can't remember the last time I actually did that! School just pounds you with the books so hard that whenever you DO have spare time, you definitely do NOT read. You start to despise them. I feel kinda like this girl.

But now that time is my friend, I have since found much joy in reading! I have actually made it one of my goals. I even got a library card. Talk about commitment. I figured I would start out with something fun and light- I am currently in the second book of the Eragon series. It is quite a fun read! It also allows more for Jonathan and I to talk about which is really fun as well. I'm trying to read many of the books that he has already read so I have a LONG way to go. He is quite the bookworm.

Having all of this time has been very relaxing! However, as more time passes, I am finding myself quite bored. So now I cannot put it off any longer.

On to the notoriously dreaded job search...

Wow. It is draining. Filling out the same information over and over again until you realize that 3 1/2 hours just passed by and with the exception of your fingers, you haven't moved one muscle! That's the worst kind of exhaustion. When your body isn't exhausted at all but your brain feels like it's going to melt. I guess that is how school is too, but with this you work and work and you have nothing to show for it.

Persistence is the key. Something is bound to come up. That's what I have to keep on telling myself anyways.

But until then, here is to trying something new! Making new goals, trying things that you have never done before, or maybe things you just haven't done in a very long time. Starting a new family, living in a new place, looking for a new job, basically changing my lifestyle has been one big adjustment. But one that is so exciting and fun! And the thing to remember is that you don't have to have big life changes to force you to try something new. You just make the decision and go for it.

Do it.