The END is in sight!

With less then 4 weeks left in the school year, I can finally say that the end is in sight. This realization brings both feelings of joy and feelings of sadness. I am sad to say goodbye to the students I have been teaching all year. We have all grown to know each other and understand each other, and pretty soon I will not be seeing them everyday. It is also sad to see the end of the year approach because I will not be teaching in Middle School next year. Instead, I will be moved down to the Junior School teaching grade six. This will mean a different program, different schedule, different co-workers, younger students...and the list goes on. This was not my choice, but a choice the Administration was forced to make because of an increase of students in grade 6 next year, and a decrease in grade 7. I was disappointed with the decision because I totally love my placement right now, but there are some positives to moving down to grade six. I will also also be packing up my apartment in a few weeks because I will be moved to a new apartment after the summer break. Along with all of these changes is the regular stress of the end of the year, which why I am looking forward to the end of the year.

Considering my lack of blog-posts lately, it is probably fitting to look backwards to the past month in addition to looking forward.

This past month I was blessed to have my parents come and visit me. They spent a little under 4 weeks here in Asia. They arrived just before my spring break, which was an awesome opportunity for us to travel together. We headed off to Thailand for the 10-day break.

Our first destination was Koh Samui. It is located in the Gulf of Thailand, just east of Phuket, but on the other side of the peninsula. Samui island is surrounded by several other beautiful island. We spent one day on a boat tour of the Anthrong National park where we kayaked, hiked to a view point, checked some caves, and enjoyed the beautiful beaches. I also got to spend a day diving in the gorgeous waters around some islands nearby to Koh Samui, while mom and dad toured Koh Samui. The rest of our time we did some shopping, exploring, zip-lining and relaxing in the sun.

Destination number two was Bangkok. We were able to spend 4-5 days with my Auntie Lisa, Uncle Jeff, and their four kids. It was great to visit their missionary base, swim in the pool at their complex, visit the girls' school, and shop at the market and the mall. We were also able to take the public transit into the city one day and visit the Grand Palace, which is a beautifully ornate Buddhist temple. It was a short visit, but it was so good to re-connect with my extended family here in Asia.













Mom and Dad spent the next week here in Lippo Village where they relaxed, but also explored the city of Jakarta. I sent them off on the day trips that I went on when my grandpa and grandma visited. They had a fun time getting their pictures taken all the time and seeing interesting sights. They even got into the practice of taking ojeks to the mall and school. I am pretty sure they know the Super Mall better than I do now! It was so great to have them here with me and sharing in my life.

They next week they went to Bali on their own, and then i met them there last weekend. Saturday we took a sailboat to an island close to Bali and did some fun water activities there. It was a great day out on the sea in the sunshine. Our second day we relaxed at the pool and then went to Ubud to visit the monkey forest and do some shopping. While we were at the monkey forest, a monkey attacked me by jumping onto my purse. It was screeching and grabbing at me, so I swung my purse away from my body. Finally, I took the purse off and swung it all over to get the monkey off. It kind of freaked me out! We ended that evening eating some yummy Indonesian food at a restaurant that overlooked some beautiful rice paddies. It was a great weekend away in Bali.

Mom and Dad flew back to Canada on Tuesday morning, and I have been settling back into normal routines this week. I am really grateful for this morning because I did not have anywhere to go, but to sleep in, read and get some work done.

This year I have discovered how important it is to just slow down sometimes, even if I don't really have time for it. I sometimes let my work run my life because it is so demanding, but I am starting to discover how to balance things a little more, because there will ALWAYS be work for me to do. :)