 |
| View from my tent by the lake. |
What an interesting week this has been.
This week, from Monday to Friday, I’ve been chaperoning a
Week Without Walls fieldtrip, full of the Grade 8 class on a nature
adventure. This nature adventure began
with camping, included some trekking, and ended with a farm and a cave. There was plenty of bonding that came about
as well.
It’s been a very thought provoking fieldtrip. I’m watching affluent children try to rough
it (with a fully stocked bathroom) and deal with tents and nature. I’m also reading a very sharp book about
Thailand that is highlighting several of the things I’m seeing with historical
commentary about the guy in charge.
 |
| We cooked fish in this forest. |
I’ll also say that I’m in the boomerang of life
overseas. When I started with Peace
Corps, everything was absolutely glorious for a few months, but when the
holidays (read: Thanksgiving) began showing up, I began to get a bit
homesick. Thanksgiving is about that
time, when the shine begins to wear off and you start to understand the culture
more. I’m in that down slope, where I
see more of the negatives than the positives.
I’m in that place where I can see the problems but can’t affect the
solutions at school. It’s the
frustrating thing about living overseas, and it happens to just about everyone.
 |
| Our hotel was right next to this river. |
It’s not like me to find so much negativity in life, but I’m
working in a place that I’ve yet to understand.
I am finding it challenging to work within such affluence and wealth,
within the confines of overprotective behavior.
I see it, I understand the premise, but I know what made me what I am
today… and overprotectiveness is not it.
I’ve been reflecting more on what my middle and high school experience
was like, so that I can find what worked for me to make me a successful human. It was not overprotective, not ever. I spent summers with grandma, off to camps
here and there. I spent time on my own,
fending for myself after school. I
worked from a young age, in the fudge and coffee shop. I made mistakes, felt the impact of
consequences, and changed my behavior.
 |
| This cave was full of Buddhist idols. |
I want these kids to have the same. I want them to be functional humans, not
using money to solve every problem. I
saw a beautiful thing yesterday along those lines as well. We went to a school to let the kids interact
with students from a different world than them.
At first, I must say, I was skeptical of the idea. I think that these kinds of visits can go
awry so quickly. But, I was so pleasantly
surprised. Our kids played with those
kids, talked, laughed, interacted. It
was lovely. A few of them ended up in
tears, and one of them mentioned that it was one of the first times that she
actually felt as lucky as everyone said she was.
I want those emotions for all of the students. I want activities that bring that out for
them.
 |
| I greatly enjoyed the cave. |
But we are fighting such greater forces. To get to that, we have to battle
overprotective school policy and overprotective parentals. We are fighting a karma based culture, that
has entitlement written into merit from previous lives. It makes me want to hit my head on the wall
with frustration sometimes. But, slowly,
progress.
Slowly. Very slowly. And, until then, a frustration that is difficult to fight. Until then, a boomerang that is on the negative side. Until then, a hope for the different, a plan for change.
 |
The cave was next to a monkey... something. They liked bananas.
|
