And there was a time that I was pretty sure that I would never be in a position to say that...during the dark days of despair and confusion that I am told that all teachers go through in their first year of teaching, I was just trying to hang on long enough to finish what I had started. I honestly had no intention of returning. Now, lo and behold, I am coming back. I wouldn't have it any other way.
The youngsters were kinda flaky today, as befits a Monday, but not up to their standards of last Monday. We are all kind of hanging on at this point, trying to get done, to get things wrapped up, just to get to the end of it all. Plans are already being made for the next school year, for all ot the new initiatives and imperatives that we will be asked to master and implement to some semblance of perfection. New math, new class management systems, new philosophies of addressing the test scores...even as we stagger on towards the end of this year.
We still await the onset of breakup down here on the river. There is a good deal of open water in the slough, but the main river is still iced over. There are flood warnings further up the river, but I haven't heard a lot more on the subject at this point. As they used to say on the TV, "Stay tuned for further information." Our departure is a week from this upcoming Sunday, and it looks increasingly that we will fly, not boat, to Bethel. There are a number of communities along the rivers of Alaska that hold contests to predict the date of breakup. Some of them are pretty lucrative. There is one in Bethel, and I believe that the prize is several thousand dollars. I might have to enter next year.
Life here has its variations, but on the whole is so endearingly goofy that I am not really sure how I would give it up. I recommend it to anyone with a serious sense of humor and a taste for variety.
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