Happy Saturday Y'all
A few days ago, I asked friends on Instagram to share any questions they may have about my life/ministry here in Senegal, West Africa. So I have included these in this post. If you're reading and have any other questions after this, either ask below or send me an email.
I came to Senegal for the first time in July 2009 and I’ve been here ever since (minus 1.5 years halfway through when I went back to help out with my dad).
I am the only Special Education Teacher at my K-12 school. So I could potentially have students in all grades. At the moment, I have them in all grades but K, 1st, 2nd, and 8th. And yes, it’s just as crazy and fun as you would think :)
Thankfully they are not all in my room at the exact same time. But we do often have a lot of overlap of different grades meeting at once. So I do a lot of rotation style teaching. And thankfully I have someone helping out in my room for half of the day this semester. So that helps too. Honestly, it isn’t always easy. But we make it work. And everyone is learning and happy, so all is good.
I love teaching Bible the most. Second would probably be a tie between English/Writing and History. I teach all subjects (just not to the same grades). And honestly, I enjoy it all. ...except, I may not love some things as much as others. Case in point: Higher level Math. Yuck!
As of now, I am planning to come back to the States this summer. I need to speak in a few churches and do a bit of missions support raising. I also need to get some CEUs for my education side of things, so I’m hoping to attend the MEGA Conference in Alabama this summer as well.
I did NOT have COVID. My school requires teachers to quarantine if they have traveled internationally. The requirement is 3 days. But after discussing it with my supervisor, I chose 7 days just to be extra cautious, considering the more high-risk nature of some of my students.
We are currently in-person (F2F). Here’s hoping it stays that way the rest of the school year. :)
Ceebu yaap - It's the most deliciously cooked mixture of rice, beef, and veggies. Typically, it's cooked long and slow and is full of incredible flavor. While I do enjoy all of the Senegalese dishes I've tried, this one is by far my favorite.
That’s a hard one. They’re both easier for different reasons.
The US is easier because there are certain protocols in place for teaching SPED that we don’t necessarily have here. Plus there’s Walmart and Target and all sorts of Teacher Stores to easily and cheaply buy resources I need. And in terms of finances, I get paid far more teaching in the US.
But, at the same time, it’s easier here. I don’t have nearly as much paperwork to do here. I teach in a Christian school so I can freely teach about/discuss God and His awesomeness with my students. And I don't really care about the money. That's not why I'm here.
I love Alabama. It will always be “home” for me. But, I don’t know... Some days I could see myself being here forever and then other days...
And if I’m being honest, while I do love Alabama, I could be happy living anywhere. I really could. So even if I end up moving back to the US at some point, there's no guarantee that I'll stay in Alabama.
My ankles are definitely improving and are better than when I left Dakar 7 weeks ago. But they're still not at 100%. I have done damage to the muscles in the left one (the good one). Plus, my range of motion is awful in that one. So I’m still having occasional pain/swelling in it. And then the right one (the broken one) still has the fracture that won't completely heal for some reason. But my range of motion is far better in that one. I may never be back at 100%. But at least I’m not in pain all the time anymore. And for that, I am grateful.
I am a Missionary Associate with the Assemblies of God. My primary ministry is to teach at Dakar Academy. Therefore, I am a Missionary Teacher :)
I’m currently studying the book of Romans.
Help me pray for continued healing in my ankles. Help me pray for peace of mind, as well.
Today, I'm joining Erika and Andrea, for their weekly Friday Favorites linkup and sharing a few questions about my one of my most favorite parts of my life... my job and my life in Senegal. A few days ago, I asked friends on Instagram to share any questions they may have. And these are the ones in this post. If you have any other questions after this, either ask below or send me an email and I'll be happy to answer them for you. I'm basically an open book, after all :)
And yes... I do realize it's Saturday. I fully intended to post this yesterday (Friday). But I ended up staying in bed most of the day, taking full advantage of my last day of peace and quiet in quarantine, with very little screen time. So blogging was definitely low on my list of priorities.
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