La Sonya

This is a note on how to help understand the things that are going to come in the weeks that follow. In the next few weeks I may not be seeming to be my normal self. I don't say goodbye well .  When it comes to packing up I will find any and every excuse to not do it. I will put it off and wait until I am a few hours from leaving to pack. Understand that it's hard for me to leave . I haven't been able to talk much about leaving to those I love here. I change the subject so as to not allow the liquid to pool up in my eyes. Yesterday alone I almost started crying twice. I know it's coming but I don't know how to accept it. I'm a normal teacher and excited about summer break but at the same time I don't want to let go of my students. I want to keep on teaching them, encouraging them and being there with them. Cleaning up my classroom means I am leaving and saying goodbye. I just don't do it well. I'm trying to be strong and brave about this ...

I said I would share about "the husband's family" and so I shall. I was given a big brown bag/purse full of vitamins, lotion and some clothing items to schlep to Cambodia for Khunara . I was very willing to take the bag for the record! I always loved it when people sent or brought stuff for me when I was living away from my family! I was a bit nervous about making the exchange because I wasn't sure how well their English would be. I was also unsure as to what the expectations would be on both sides and what would happen. Once I was in Phnom Penh I tried calling on the cell phone RAW Impact  let me borrow the week I was there (which let's state also for the record how awesome it was that they gave me one to borrow. It had all the other people's numbers in it so in case I got lost or needed help. The were also able to connect with me to make sure I had a place to go for supper. Seriously, what a great org!). So I called the first number I had been given by K...

I was searching "Sonya in Cambodia" on Facebook and I found this legit video. Isn't it oowesome? (that's how I phonetically spell awesome in Australian) Enjoy: THE CAMBODIA from Jan Trnka Productions on Vimeo .

In two weeks I will no longer be K-2 Teacher/Principal Sonya. I'll be in-between-jobs Sonya or as others might think crazy-adult-who-has-to-fundraise-her-own-salary Sonya. I say I don't mind the change but I do. I am going to really miss being a teacher. I daily have 8 students (we are a small school!) who I am privileged to help mold and form their little personalities. I love coming up with new ideas, adventures and ways to teach a lesson. For the last 4 years I have looked at the world around me and asked myself how can I teach this to my students? For three of those last 4 years I have had some of the same students. They came as little kindergarteners not knowing how to read and now they are plowing through books better than many 2nd graders. I have had them in my care more than some of their own parents! I can't imagine someone else teaching them! I have loved sharing life with these kids. I am glad to be going to Cambodia, for sure. Only it will be a different wor...

The week I decided to visit Cambodia to interview with RAW Impact , back in November, I was introduced to my new friend Khunara, known as Ra here in Oakhurst. She is a wonderful woman who survived a horrific time in Cambodia in the 70's. She is a survivor of the Khmer Rouge. Her story of survival is not one she likes to talk about very often. She was much younger in those days, a young newly wed and during that time she was separated, by force of the Khmer Rouge, from her husband for some time. During which she didn't know if he was alive or not. After a tale that is hard to follow at times, she was beautifully reunited with her husband. With herself and one other friend being the sole survivors of her village she and her husband made there way to the city of Los Angeles, California. It was there that she was welcomed to a country she now calls home. A place that helped her to heal from a terrible time. It was in this city that she and her husband had their only son and they le...

I'm in a hard place right now. I am in the last home stretch of my school year, in fact it's something like 20 teaching days left. I want to soak up every last minute with my amazing students, revel in their awesome achievements of the year and party like it's 1999. This class has been a great one, honest. The second graders have been with me for 3 years now (2 out of the 3 students) and the other is in her second year with me. I have had them in my presence more than some of their parents! But.... on the other hand I am so incredibly excited about the next phase of my life. I find myself wanting to talk about Cambodia all the time. I want to tell people about the country and her people, how they are a strong people who want a better life. I find myself dreaming about what I'll pack in my suitcases, dividing things into a need and can-survive-without-but-do-I-have-to piles. I want to say the Khmai greetings and small words I know. I want to talk about what adventures ...

Okay, so let the blogging begin. It’s been awhile since I have regularly written things for the blog. Partly because I’ve been in America working and it doesn’t seem as vital to my sanity or the cultural updates as when I am living abroad. But with the recent decision to move overseas again it’s time. In the middle of August 2016 (a mere 3 ½ months from now) I will board a plane bound for Southeast Asia. I will be joining an amazing team of Australians and a few New Zealanders with RAW Impact. A sustainable project organization. I explain it easiest with the proverb “Give a man a fish feed him for a day; teach a man to fish feed him for a lifetime.” We’re doing the teaching part. I went over for my interview in March and instantly fell in love with everything, the Cambodian people, the volunteers/staff and the structure and mission of RAW. The Cambodian people are a very kind, hospitable people who have moved on from the past and are gung-ho about starting fresh and fightin...