busy

I know we all really hate it when people complain they are busy, but last week felt like one of the busiest weeks of my life (though I keep thinking, during transplant, I'm sure I thought that EVERY week, so the cumulative stress is certainly not what it once was). :)

Suffice to say, the school year did finally draw to an end on Friday. I was pleased that during my meeting-crazed week, I did have a few moments to accomplish two "good deeds" before the end of school:
1. I introduced one of my students, an undocument migrant from Guatemala, to the public library. To see him marvel at books--all free!--was a joy. "Estas segura?" he kept asking ("are you sure"). Since this student needs to repay his coyote for his trip to the U.S., and so cannot continue in school despite a shining future in education, I was happy to at least set him on a road to further independent learning.
2. I attended World Refugee Day at the Boston State House on Friday, watching two of my students--a Somali Bantu from my first days of teaching ESL, and a more recent Iraqi refugee--speak. I was so proud. And especially happy that I had managed to get one of these students to the front page of our newspaper that morning...a tribute to him, and to all the refugees celebrating World Refugee Day on Friday.

Also, I finished two GREAT books this past week while waiting for meetings to start and while lying awake too late into the night.
1. Enrique's Journey. The true story of an undocument Central American migrant searching for his mother in the United States. So conflicted, and of particular interest to me as a couple of my own students are undocument and traveled in the same dangerous ways that Enrique did.
2. They Poured Fire on Us from the Sky. The true story of 3 "Lost Boys" from Sudan. Not as compelling as What is the What, but also truer. A painful and hopeful read all at once. Since I have many students from Sudan, I'm always interesting in reading about the refugee experience there.

Saturday was our 11th wedding anniversary! We're going away to New Hampshire to celebrate this weekend...we are very excited!

This week holds VBS for the boys, a few curriculum meetings for me, an opportunity to speak at Camp Cherith for a few hours on Thursday night and Friday morning on writing mission statements...and LOTS of time playing with our puppy Kobe, who is pretty much the smartest and cutest dog EVER.