Well, this week has been quite a busy week! I come to a remote village of 400 people and I have never been so busy in my life!
This week, my friend Nichole had a crazy day in her kindergarten classroom. Two of her students ran away. So, she and the principal set out to find them. In the meantime, I took over the rest of her class and mine. (Usually the Special Ed teacher does this for her, but she was at a conference.) Everything was going well. We all practiced walking down the hall in a straight line and sitting in our seats.
We were about to sing songs when the two kids that ran away burst into the room soaking wet and covered in mud. They started running around the room throwing chairs and screaming. Soon after, Nichole came in and told me that the principal was calling their parents. However, it was too late. Those two students stirred up the entire class… Within a split second, we had 8 students running and screaming around the room, throwing chairs, ripping down posters, kicking each other, running and jumping on the tables, hitting each other, and climbing up the cubbies. Nichole and I looked at each and I said, “Divide and conquer.” I immediately told my classroom to all get in one corner of the room and stay there so they wouldn’t get hurt. Then, I gathered the kids that were not running and screaming and put them with my class.
After giving instructions to the students that were running around, we quickly realized that we would have better luck getting a brick wall to listen and obey. The two muddy kids ran out of the room before we could stop them. They ran up the stairs to the high school classrooms and screamed up and down the halls disturbing everyone. I called the office and said we needed at least six adults in the kindergarten classroom asap. The two secretaries were substitutes and came to the room with the cafeteria staff and janitors. The cafeteria ladies and the janitors are all natives to the village and kept saying that they have never seen these kids act this way. One janitor walked in and immediately walked out saying he would rather be face to face with a bear than in that classroom. A cafeteria lady got out her Holy water and began sprinkling the kids saying that they had demons in them. Nichole, three cafeteria ladies, the two substitute secretaries, and I eventually got every child off the tables, quiet, and still. We then returned them to their parents. It took us an hour and a half to restore order to the classroom, but we survived.
Friday I spent all day planning for the 4-8 grade cross-country race. I was the event coordinator and it was my responsibility to plan the route, assign the students classrooms for the night. (There isn’t a Marshall hotel, so the kids have to stay overnight in the classrooms.) I arranged for the kids to be picked up and dropped off at the airport… stocked and worked in the student store selling concessions… scheduled all events… made and posted all signs… and ran around like a chicken with its head cut off (except I lasted way longer than that poor chicken.) At the race on Saturday, it was 33 degrees with strong winds and raining. Wouldn’t you know something like that would happen?! So, I spent 3 hours at the finish line recording all scores/times, freezing, and soaking wet. However, as much as I could go on complaining about that, the runners had it WAY worse. Those guys were AMAZING under the circumstances! They ran 2 miles in those conditions up and down hills in tank tops and shorts and did not complain. I could not believe it. I wanted to put them up against anyone else in the lower 48. The fastest time was 12 or 13 minutes and some seconds. I was thinking to myself, “If I had to do that, I would not have a time because I would be dead or crying on the side of the road about 30 yards from the starting line.” Anyway, I was so proud and amazed at what those kids could do. Maybe those kindergarten kids should try cross-country some day. They are really good at running in the mud while soaking wet….
Sunday I recovered from the previous three days and planned for the next week in school. It’s a miracle they are all still alive.
Monday I went berry picking after a stressful day at work. There are several berries on the tundra and Nichole and I took some of our Eskimo friends with us. We drove the school truck, the F350, to the tundra. On our way, Nichole got the truck stuck in the mud. We tried our best to get it unstuck…. But, ended up calling for help. Literally. All you have to do is call out that you are stuck and immediately there are several people there to push you out. It is pretty neat! (I drove us back without any problems! Lol- I know it is hard to believe I successfully drove that.)
On the tundra, I felt like I was in the opener of the Sound of Music singing “The Hills are Alive with the Sound of Music….” IT IS GORGEOUS! I cannot get over how amazing the landscaping is out here. You look around and see no signs of civilization. It is pure beauty. There is a God. He is alive.
Some kids snuck up behind us and scared us while we were picking berries. Then they threw themselves on the ground because it is so soft and squishy. Nichole and I thought it looked like fun so when they left, we tried it! It was fun! You just softly sink into the sponge-like ground. It also smells good because of the mix of berries and grasses. It smells like pine, sage, and berries. We came home from that day feeling quite refreshed with a bucket of blueberries, cranberries, and blackberries!
Today I received a care package from Brad! It contained 24 DVDs, chocolate, socks, 2 thermos mugs, cough drops, and fabric for a kuspuk. (A kuspuk is an Eskimo shirt for ladies. One of the natives here told me she would make me one if I could give her the fabric. It is made from cotton fabric and basically looks like a sweatshirt with a hood and a giant pocket sewn on the front. They usually have rickrack trim and can be the same length as a normal short or have a ruffle at the bottom.) Thank you Bradley!!!
I also want to say thank you SO much to everyone who has been sending packages, mail, emails, blog postings, and facebook messages! It really brightens my day!!! I appreciate all of your thoughts and prayers SO much, too! Thank you for thinking of me!!!!!
Cinnamon rolls from scratch... they kind of got HUGE in the oven
Driving the big truck... I was very poofy from all of my layers underneath my coat.
Cody wore this to the dance we hand for the 4-8 graders at the cross country meet. The kids were like "Why are you wearing a skirt? You look like a girl!"
Found this coyote fur in the pantry of one of the kitchens at school next to the wrestling mats...
Us freezing at the race
Arkansas people! Me, Michael from UCA, and Nichole
Mine and Nichole's bathroom! Fitting for Alaska!
Yes, our toothbrush holder once was a can that held green beans. We are resourceful!
Our kitchen
Our living room
Another view of the living room
the truck!
Nichole driving
Stuck in the mud
Called for help and we were quickly out of the mud!
A house in the village with husky puppies that are raised to mush!!!
The leaves are starting to change colors
View of the Yukon river while berry picking
Berry picking on the tundra with our Eskimo friends in the distance
Nichole picking berries
Me picking berries. That pot is from our cafeteria. I felt very "Little House on the Prairie"
Trust fall on the tundra. It was amazingly comfortable!
Driving the truck home
Nichole and I always forget about the stuff we put in our pockets throughout the day. This week we came home with a microphone, fake money, a domino, a letter from a game, and matches that were compensated from a kid.
Our berries from the tundra! Blueberries, cranberries, and blackberries!!!
Random-
I have worked 12-14 hours every day this week…
I had the opportunity to try smoked king salmon dipped in seal oil. (That is basically dried and smoked fish like fish jerky dipped in melted seal fat.) I had to pass on it because the look of the fish all red and still attached to the scales mixed with the smell was just too much for me to handle.
