As I wrote this, the long table in the Foreign Language
office, with it’s plastic flowery table cloth, was splattered with a feast of
spicy papaya salad (Som Tum), sticky rice (Kao Nee-ow), fried chicken, curries,
coconut milk treats and other delicious Thai foods. Usually once or twice a
week there is some large shared feast between the 8-10 English teachers that
populate this office. My belly was full and my mouth was on fire from the spicy
chilies as I began to write this post.
Today is Day 81. Eighty-one days ago, on an early Thursday morning
I finished packing my bags and headed out on this journey, mom & dad in
tow, giving me big hugs in the Logan airport. Anxious, but excited I arrived
with an open heart ready to take this adventure by the horns and learn as much
as I could throughout this amazing opportunity.
Happiness is a choice, but it also comes from accepting love
and acceptance for oneself and the rest of the world. This is something I have
finally come to accept and realize as I grow more into myself and discover new
aspects of my identity; and additionally recognize that I am always growing and
learning. I am eager to live. Really live. Live each day to the absolute
fullest.
Never in all my life have I felt happier and more of a
purpose than I do now. Each day is an adventure that I am open to, each evening
as I lay my back against my brick mattress I am reeling with new Thai vocab,
new ideas, for classes, my future, life, philosophies, beliefs – new findings
of my day or week run through my head as I try to relax and sleep. My days and
evenings have left me with ample time for self-reflection, philosophical
musings and goal setting. Though, despite the amount of ‘free time’ I still
manage to have a lengthy to-do list that is ever-growing and is never complete.
My days are different; yet follow a semi-distinct routine.
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| I'm on a staff board! |
An Average (Week) Day
of Jessye in Thailand
6:03am: The loud rooster fights outside my window awaken me
as they squawk their morning
tunes. This also occurs at 1:00am & 4:00am approximately. I doze
back to sleep.
7:15am: My favorite Ghanaian hiplife songs rudely awakens me
from my sleep in the post-
rooster rouse mood. Wake-up routine begins.
7:50am: Walk the 2 minutes from my house in the back of
campus to the English office, drop off
school bag and go downstairs to the morning assembly, until 8:30am.
8:30am: Teach first class.
9:30am: Teach second class.
10:30am: Read book/write in journal/lesson plan/talk with
Thai teachers/practice Thai
11:30am: Lunch time! Sometimes complete with coconut ice
cream with black beans. A time of
great fun and laughter. My favorite time of day to get to know the other
teachers.
12:30pm: Teach third class.
1:30pm: Shadow other classes/edit worksheets/lesson plan/talk
with Thai teachers/edit friends
essays back home/read books/online class work/philosophize with another
Westerner
3:30pm: Teach 4th class! TEACHER CLASS (Tutoring
5-6 Thai teachers)
4:30pm: Drop off bag at home, change out of work clothes and
into exercise clothes
4:45pm: Play badminton/volleyball with my host teacher or
students
5:30pm: Either catch bus (sorngtaew) or a ride 3 miles into
Maejo area (a university near me).
Walk around, interact with
my local friends & make new local friends
6:15pm: Decide on something to eat, pay about $1.50 for a
full meal, sometimes only $1.00.
6:35pm: Catch a bus back to my house
6:43pm: Confront the guard dogs that guard me from entering
my own house.
6:49pm: Safely in the house, lock the door, turn off the
lights downstairs, grab a bottle of water
and head upstairs.
7:00pm: Shower
7:30pm: Get in bed, read/surf internet/talk to
friends/online school work/research Phd
programs.../watch a movie (rarely)/meditate
9:30-10pm: Asleep.
Life is pretty wonderful. Though through this ‘average’ day
schedule, it is important to recognize that Thailand is anything but average.
There have been days that finished with impromptu trips to the city to see a
friend, or markets or parades or festivals or dinner parties at friends houses
or being ‘thai-napped’ to rooftop restaurants and other such crazy adventures. Each
day something new happens. Each day I challenge myself to further analyze the
world in its’ complexity and discover my purpose, goals and desires. Each day I
learn something new.
But, I don’t
dance...I don’t even KNOW the dance!
Tuesday before Thanksgiving, the day before I flew to Bangkok,
I had the afternoon free and was fully planning on relaxing, packing and
getting myself ready for the Thanksgiving adventure with Fulbright friends.
Around 2pm, my friend P’Jan told me “Jessye, dance rehearsal at 3pm.” Thinking
we would rehearse the dance we had minimally learned the week before at an hour
long rehearsal, I happily brought my school bag to the dance room to rehearse
for an hour and calculated I would be in my room by 4pm, happily eating peanut
butter sandwiches for dinner. P’Jan was a bit late, having to attend a teacher
meeting, so I practiced once with the dance teacher and then read my book.
“Jessye!!
We put on your make-up and costume!! Okay???” The dance teacher, Kru Jum
announced to me around 3:45pm, when I was ready to go home and shower &
pack.
“Huh?”
was my tactful response.
“We
perform the dance tonight!! It is the Assistant Director’s going away party! So
we dress up and put make up and then perform the dance, okay?”
My heart rate quickened instantly and my palms became
sweaty. I like dancing in front of the mirror and occasionally at a party/bar,
but dancing in front of a crowd, on a stage? Not my thing. Not to mention, I
DID NOT KNOW THE DANCE. I had practiced all of three times and am possibly the
most uncoordinated person alive. I panicked.
I scolded myself internally: Jessye, you are here to
experience new things and go outside your comfort zone! With a deep breath,
drying my palms on my skirt, I smiled at Kru Jum and said “Great, what time do
we perform and what am I wearing?”
In the following three hours I had: two fake eyelashes,
three inches of make-up, flowers in my hair, a traditional Thai costume,
borrowed jewelry, and done three dance run throughs. I was anything but ready, but that did not matter as I was escorted to
the large assembly hall where all the teachers were seated around large white
circle tables feasting.
“Oh Jesssyeeeee!!! So beautiful today!” the teachers oohed
and ahhed, several taking selfies with me or pictures of me. I nervously picked
at some som-tum (spicy papaya salad) and drank a bottle of water before P’Jan
tapped me and said, “it’s time!”
Waiting behind the stage, I could hear the beginning of our
song playing. Mind over matter, I told myself and willed myself to remember the
moves. Six teachers in matching costumes, myself included, stepped carefully
onto the stage in line with our formation. Quietly moving our hands and fingers
to the allotted dance routine. When I began to forget a move, I would quickly
glance to my left at what the others were doing and copy with a semi-seamless
transition. In the back of the large hall I could see my host teacher, Kru Toi,
smiling and dancing along to the dance. I willed my nervous heartbeat to slow
as I looked around the familiar and unfamiliar faces around the room and
silently prayed that the dozens of clicks of the camera in front of me would
not end up on Facebook (they did, of course).
Within a few minutes, our dance was done and I sashayed off
the stage (on the wrong side I might add) and breathed a sigh of relief. Yet,
at the same time I was happy and grinning. I cheered with my group of dancers
and we all took a group picture once outside. I did it.
Sometimes, you just have to do it and the result will be
better than you hoped. This dance story is how much of my life here in Thailand
is, taking chances and becoming comfortable with being uncomfortable. I am not
always in charge of the plans, I might get to bed to late or miss a Skype date
or have a class canceled that I’ve been laboring over a lesson plan for, but in
return there is excitement, culture and experiences that are unforgettable. Let
your guard down and live a little.
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| With a student dancer |
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| With P'Jan, my girl! |
Teaching Teachers and Big Changes
Most recently I started a teacher’s class where I teach Thai
teachers who have signed up for my course for an hour a week, (I teach three sections).
I quite enjoy the different pace of adult learners and small circle style
learning. The class period goes by quickly and I enjoy it immensely.
My partner, Ryan has just arrived to Thailand and this will
definitely change the alone time I’ve happily breezed through in the past 80
days, but I look forward to the new change and challenges that will arise as a
result.
Thanksgiving in Bangkok was a blast and two weekends ago I went to Chiang Rai to see my friend Francesca and we visited this strange Narnia-esque Temple with underworld undertones... very strange.
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| Narnia aka White Temple |
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| Strange hell images? |
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| Real sweet turkey |
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| Me & the Exec Director of Fulbright @ Thanksgiving in BKK |
Hope everyone has a very happy holiday season and is booking their tickets to Thailand as soon as possible! :)
