Hanging With The Ladies...

Today, I am in my wife's classroom again, only now some of the girls are in here. The boys had been here, getting set up for the photo part of their storytelling project, but they have departed for the great outdoors. Some girls have mover out of the adjacent classroom, because it was oppressively warm in there.

We are in the second day of the cultural week/district dance festival. Things seem to be running fairly smoothly, thanks to the effort of a lot of different people. We had dancing last night until 11 pm, and I judge it to have been a hit. More of the same tonight, with a different order among the groups. The weather is wonderful for wandering the village, and I know that my father-in-law has been taking Alice for walks in the afternoons. Although I am extremely tired by the end of the evening, this has been fun so far. Tomorrow will be the challenging day, as my experience suggests that kids begin to get a little ragged with their projects at about that point. Then again, it may be no problem at all.

A check of the calendar shows that our school and work year comes to an end four weeks from today. We both continue to react to the reality of our departure. I am just a little concerned that we may be avoiding some of the packing-related activities that we need to complete, because of our reluctance to acknowledge the end of our time out here, at least for now. We still have a lot to get done.

But now, we are enjoying this short burst of crazy for as long as it lasts, and I think that is the way that it should happen. A slow and pleasant farewell seems like an excellent idea...

Back To The Grind...

I am sitting with a fairly large group of 7th-12th grade boys in my wife's classroom. Jack Dalton, who helped us make a lovely little movie two years ago, is running a writing exercise about Yup'ik dance. I just went down to fetch a large cup of coffee when I realized that I was falling asleep in this chair. This session will last until 4:30, but my check of the evening's schedule revealed that we will be going until 10:30 tonight. I hope to get home for a couple of hours of rest and maybe a bite of dinner, and a kiss from the baby. The next three nights promise to be the same.

This would be an exercise in endurance in any case. The baby got the two of us up at 3:00 am, for reasons best known to her. So, I am definitely running on fumes here. Ergo, the coffee. It is not my usual beverage at 3:55 in the afternoon.

We have been invaded for the district dance festival, which will run through Thursday night. Things have run smoothly enough for the first day. It has consisted, in large part, of groups of students coming into our building in waves. I am helping in the carving room, in which groups of boys are making something out of antler and bone. The task has been relatively simple thus far, but the logistics will get more complex tomorrow with larger groups of boys to shepherd.

I will be interested to watch the performances tonight and on the following evenings.  And now, that the coffee is beginning to revive me, I might just make it. This might be fun...

A Perfect Sunday...And A Day Off!

Yesterday morning began late, and sleepy, at least for me. I was awakened by a smiling 13-month old, who is very happy to be walking. She loves to walk everywhere, and can get fussy in the stroller, even if we want her there for some reason or another.

My father-in-law spent the evening in Bethel, because we believed that we needed to fly him across the river. As it turns out, there were people taking trips back and forth from here on snow machines or four-wheelers. It appears that the ice has lifted, and that some of the water that had been previously present was not an issue, at least not on Saturday.

I think that it was likely for the best, as he got the chance to sleep off part of his jet lag instead of getting hauled off to midnight church services. We set it up for him to fly across on Sunday, on a chartered flight from one of the local air services. He got a chance to meet some friends of ours, and to take a stroll around the AC store and marvel at Bethel grocery prices.

We spent the Sunday taking a stroll around the village, and having a very nice Easter dinner. As a bonus, we had today off from school.

Because of this, the first thing that we did after breakfast was to take Alice to the school, so that she could play in the gym. She loves to walk around and kick a ball. We then took my father-in-law on a tour of the village store, and a walk down to the river. We also ran into Joe on the way, and he invited the two of us to steam tonight. Time to prepare the steam bag!

Pascha...

It is just after 2 am. We have taken some time to celebrate Pascha, the feast of Easter, with our neighbors. I suspect that I have described the church services before. I will probably look to see later in the day. The service makes a dramatic transition from the dimly lit and somber church before midnight. As Easter Sunday begins, the congregation leaves and makes a processional around the church three times. After a ceremony in the vestibule, we are re admitted to a brightly lit and decorated church, full of smiling, happy people in their best Easter outfits.

I could see my wife from a distance. She was in the vestibule with Alice. I was outside on the porch. I tend to let people in front of me. She was crying. One of my former students who now has her as a teacher in high school asked me if she was ok. I told the student that she was just kind of sad.

The evening was like that. Smiles and tears. I am not especially religious. But I enjoy our church here. I am sure that there are many reasons that I feel that way. Part of it has to be the sense of community that exists here. We have been taken into the bosom of this place. We have not stood separate from it, as too many Bush teachers have, and we have been told how much that is appreciated. If we find that no one loves us when we return to the Lower 48, we know that there is one place where we are loved. It makes this parting so much harder...

Springtime?

I always hesitate to use the word, especially in Northern climates. The latest accumulating snow that I remember seeing in my life would have come after the first of May. Spring is a season that flirts, and often disappoints, its worshippers.

Having said that, things are looking steadily in that direction here. It is a sunny day, and we have the windows open in my classroom. Things that can melt are doing so rapidly. Bethel Search and Rescue has strongly discouraged any traffic, whether auto or snowmachine, on the river. The superintendent of the district has forbidden river travel using distict vehicles. The Weather Service is issuing spring breakup forecasts. Soon, the peepers will be singing in the ponds. And there are lots of ponds around here.

My father-in-law is to fly in Saturday evening, and it looks as if he is not going to be able to make it here on the river. An evening flight with one of our local air services will be a necessity. The forecast temperatures for next week are in the 50s.

Easter is Sunday, and I have to imagine that we will begin to hear the calls of migrating waterfowl soon. This may be my last spring here, and I want to savor it while it lasts.

Little Bear

I have changed the picture to one from last Halloween. We traditionally dress up on that day. All of the teachers wear costumes. This year, my little family came as the Three Bears. A crowd-pleasing choice, to be sure. I get a kick out of the picture with Alice and me. I will have lots of memories like this sitting in photo files on my computers. It feels lovely...

Sleep Deprived...

Alice is definitely cutting more teeth, which leads to 4 am daddy calls...I love her, but there is not enough coffee in the world today...this could be a long afternoon.

We have a meeting of the district dance festival committee this afternoon. I am one of the two people apparently on said committee. Logistics remain to be worked out, and this is the day on which it must happen.

For now, I have a class full of giggly girls and silly boys. It is funny how quickly one can learn how to command their attention. Where will I use that skill in the future? I am not sure how transferable it is. I can, however, apparently turn students to stone with my gaze-that may come in handy with recalcitrant witnesses in the future.

(From Wednesday's perspective): We managed to make it through the day unscathed. I find that my students get a little better as the week progresses, as routines kick back into place. These kids are a pretty good bunch on the whole, and I find that I am usually satisfied with their behavior as a whole. This is not the same thing as suggesting that they are perfect. But they are pretty darn good...