End of the year

So it’s been a week since the last day of school—this means my first year of teaching successfully finished (!), but it also means a goodbye-exhausted heart.  Sometimes, especially recently, I wonder why I allow myself to go through this so frequently when I know how much I hate it…but who am I to say no, eh?  If He is calling me to a place and giving me the strength to go through it, I can’t say that it’s too much goodbye-ing, too much transition so I don’t want to do it.  Though I know this process well, it tears a bit on my already hurting heart with a new set of people I have grown to love and appreciate.  God has truly blessed me in so many ways this year in His wise and unexpected ways and the sadness right now is right and good because of how He has worked. 

As I’m sitting here wondering what words to use to try to explain what has happened this year, it seems there is so much to say that there is nothing to say…when the thoughts are rushing through your mind but none of them are full thoughts so they probably wouldn’t make much sense to anyone—that’s what is going on.  J  So I will just say that looking back lots of it looks like a blur, but a blur with clear pictures of beauty throughout.  The blur comes with the job of being a music teacher, comes with being busy, it comes with phases of adjustment in our lives.  But I have seen amazing growth and change in my students this year.  I have seen them think certain thoughts for the first time.  I have seen the transition from confusion to understanding in all kinds of situations.  I have seen students recognize talents they didn’t know they had.  I have seen kids shine as they selflessly use the abilities God has given them.  And those of you who know me well know that these are the things that make my heart smile…as I take time to rest and reflect this summer I pray to understand and see more.

I will be in Phnom Penh during our break from now until the beginning of August, so I will have more time for skype-ing and emailing and would love to talk to you.  Also, if you get the urge to visit South East Asia this summer, you are more than welcome to come by and stay with me! J

Godspell!

Well, it all happened and I am so thankful! :)
It seems like much more than a week and a half ago since the performances, I think life just drastically slowed down afterwards...no Godspell and we went on our April break.  Anyway, my kids were amazing, and I was and am so so proud of what they did!  People were impressed and surprised by what they produced.  Even my band was made up of all students, who only had the music for 2 weeks and were able to keep the show going!  I really have no words to explain what it was like, but it was just beautiful to see the kids on stage, using the talents God has given them, working together and creating something so creative and so excellent. :)  It was a powerful experience and thinking of it will always make me smile! 
Thank you for your prayers for me and for the students~

Here are some pictures for you to enjoy from the show!

It is way past time for a blog update, and I apologize for that.  I have gotten into a better routine this semester so I guess I just need to put regular blogging into that routine. J

My 3^rd set of grades were turned in this week, which means that my first year of teaching is ¾ done!  It doesn’t seem real, it is all going so fast.  But I am no longer a “new teacher” at school, which is nice.  Recruiting for music activities this semester was much easier than at the beginning of the year when I had no idea who the kids were and they didn’t know who I was.  J I am still enjoying my students and have been learning so much about teaching, about Cambodia, about people…it’s hard to explain.

We are less than 2 weeks away from the performance of Godspell! Yesterday we had our first rehearsal where things gelled and it was so great!  My cast is wonderful—many of them have never been a part of something like this and it has been beautiful to see them do new things and grow in confidence.  There are still details to take care of and last minute organizing to do as well as some intense rehearsals yet to go, but it will happen and it will be good. J I will post pictures after the performance!

Another exciting thing happening at the same time is that my sister Hannah is coming to visit for 2 weeks!  I am looking forward to spending time with her and to showing her my life here. J And she will be here in time to see Godspell~

Things at school this semester have been a little chaotic and difficult.  There are many changes happening—more than usual at an international school.  The biggest thing right now is that the high school will be moving to a new location in August because we are short on space and the prices were raised on the rent for the buildings we are using now.  The new school will be on the other side of the city and many people will have to adjust, but it is a necessary move.  This will change things for teachers of course—for me mainly that I will no longer be working together with Youjin, and that I will need to take on some other classes in the high school to fill my schedule. 

Along with that, here’s a little advertising...If you are reading this and looking for a place to work next year, Hope School is in need of new teachers as well as office staff—it could be you! J Check out the school website: www.hopeschool-cambodia.org and let me know if you have any questions!

That is a lot of what is going on right now—lots of things to do, I find myself gliding through days, which isn’t my favorite thing to do, but God is faithful in providing glimpses of His beauty that bring me back to reality and keep me going. J

Please pray for the next 2 weeks of crazy preparation for Godspell and for my cast, that this would be a great experience for them and a powerful experience for the audience. 

Here are some of the things we are getting ready...painting philosopher busts and having a table built for the set. :)

Back to my new home...

Second semester has started full on, bringing lots of new things with it. I am now teaching a middle school math class which I am really excited about, I am moving with my housemates to a new place because the people whose house we are living at now are coming back from furlough in a week, and I get to start directing my first real musical, Godspell, that will be performed at the end of March! J

Here are a couple of pictures from my Christmas concert.  It turned out really well, I was so proud of my kids!

Time is such a strange thing—being back here in Cambodia now it feels like I never even left, like things are just continuing, but I know better than that.  And when I was back in the States with my friends and family, it also felt like I was just continuing my life from before…like no time had passed but it had!  But I am thankful that distance and time passing doesn’t seem to matter so much anymore in continuing relationships.

Over Christmas break I got to go to Iowa to be a part of my friend Joy’s wedding,

I got to see friends who are living all over the world,

and to see family,

I got to see my little brother get married to now Meagan Lingenhoel :) ,

and just spend time with the people I love.



Just to catch you up a bit on life… J As I am getting back into routines and trying to keep the momentum from last semester, I would appreciate your prayers for transitions happening among staff and students at school and for the process of starting Godspell- I am really excited for the product and for what God will do in these kids' lives through being involved in this show, but also a little nervous. J





Thankful

I’m thankful for my ceiling fan,

And for the coffee 50 cents can buy.

I’m thankful for my friends afar,

And for the kids that make me cry.

Yes, a very poor attempt at poetry. J It’s been so good for me though this week, thinking about all the things that God blesses us with and remembering to acknowledge that—not just breeze through not taking notice of anything.  Especially now with the craziness of getting ready for the Christmas concert, it takes effort to stop and reflect, but it is so important for me to do it. 

At the beginning of my time here in Cambodia, I was frustrated by the lack of resources we had for music, and by the broken piano that was being used for everything.  When I was telling my mom (who is a music teacher in Hungary where I went to high school) about all of this, she decided to have her middle school musical be a fundraiser for our music program here.  The students and administration agreed, so that is what happened!  Two weeks ago they did their production of “The Princess and the Pea”, which I’m sure was wonderful, and raised money for us by selling tickets and collecting donations.  They are sending us around $1500 to put towards our music program here at Hope!  We are get to use this lovely piano that you see as a result of this, which both myself and my students are enjoying, and we will be purchasing some music for our choir and band that we wouldn’t have had the funds to get.  I am so thankful, and just wanted to share with you about this beautiful blessing and support we are experiencing all the way from Hungary! J

It is getting down to the last few weeks of school.  Two weeks for me, three for the students… I am learning so much about how to do things as a music teacher and how to do things as a music teacher in this country through getting ready for this Christmas production.  How to be efficient, how to be clear about what I want, where to buy paint and wood, what paint not to get, how to organize rehearsal schedules, how to order pizza… I could go on.  I do love the process though, I love the challenge, I love the way that my students get excited, I love seeing the pieces come together and the kids succeed in an amazing way. 

Besides all of this, my highlight of the week was my Year 7/8 classes this week.  We are finishing up a music history unit, and started the Romantic Period this past week.  They were supposed to be “music critics”, analyzing what they heard.  We finished the class period with Liszt’s Hungarian Rhapsody No. 2, and they loved it!  It is so fun to hear them get excited about classical music and see and hear things they have never heard before. 

Please continue to pray as we get close to the end of the semester, for good time management, organization and team work in the last 2 weeks before the concert, and also for my coming trip to the States, that God would prepare my heart for that- Thank you!

November??

It’s hard to believe that it is nearly the middle of November.  My housemates and I have been wondering where the months have gone, it seems like this semester has flown by.  It also doesn’t feel like winter here, where we are still sweating every time we walk outside—that may be part of it. J  I am continually amazed by God’s patience with me and His provision of energy, conversations, emails from friends, ideas and words to speak right when they are needed as the time is going by and the newness of this life is wearing off. 

Since my last update, I have gotten to see a little more of Cambodia.  A few weeks ago, one of the year 13 students at school decided to work together with a radio show that was taking supplies out to the flooded provinces.  He asked students and parents at school to donate food, toiletries and clothes to collect, and in the end we had 350 bags of food and a good sized pile of clothes to take to Prey Veng.  I had the opportunity to go with a group of people from Hope to deliver the supplies.  For the past couple of months, the flooding in Cambodia has been very bad.  After a long bus ride, we loaded the packages onto a boat and rode for an hour over rice patties and homes that were covered in around 3 meters of water to an island where the poorest people from the 10 surrounding villages were waiting for us.  It was good for me to see the reality of village life outside of the city, but it also broke my heart.  As we were handing out food and antibiotics, I understood more of the poverty and hopelessness that is present in this country.  These people had lost the little that they had and were stuck sitting on small islands just waiting for the water to go down before they could try to start their lives again.  I’m still struggling with understanding how we, in the community I am living in, can continue living the lives that we are when all of this is going on.  So knowing how to respond and also how to think about it is a challenge.       

On a different note, our new choir and band at school had the opportunity to perform for the first time this past weekend!  It started to rain right before we started, so everything was moved to a covered area.  The kids handled it all so well, and people seemed to really enjoy the performances which is encouraging. J I am very proud of them!

Besides that, we are moving towards finishing up the semester and towards the Christmas concert.  Today I went out to start buying material for making costumes, we have started rehearsals for both the primary and the middle school plays, and are working on building props and sets.  It’s amazing how many details there are to take care of and keep track of when putting together something like this! Please keep myself and You Jin (my fellow music teacher) in your prayers during this next month—this is the first time for both of us to be doing something like this on our own.  Thank you! 

I will be in the States for Christmas this year!  I am flying into Chicago on December 14^th and driving to a wedding in Iowa, then to Ohio to be with my family, then to Indiana for Jon’s wedding and I would love to see as many of you as possible! J

Flags

We just finished our FLAG week at Hope International School, and though it was a lot of work, it went really well and much more smoothly than I thought it would. :) FLAG stands for "Forever Learning About God", kind of like a Spiritual Emphasis week other places, and the theme this week was from Micah 6:8:

         "He has shown you, O man, what is good.

               And what does the Lord require of you?

          To act justly and to love mercy

              and to walk humbly with your God."

So we explored the topics of justice, mercy and humility.  These kids have such a different understanding of those words because of what they have seen...the first day we talked about justice and as part of the worship time, the students were asked to write prayers for a justice need that they felt strongly about in response to what they had heard.  They have seen injustice, they have seen poverty.  Many of their parents work as full time missionaries dealing directly with these issues.  The kind of humility and passion that can be seen in these prayers is truly amazing.  I took a few of them from the wall...

"Praise be to you for you are the God of justice and the one who blesses us daily.  Lord, please help us to bless you by not standing down and staying silent in the face of injustice, but help up to speak out against injustice by standing up and saying it is wrong."

"Lord, everyday I see a country broken by injustice, poverty and slavery.  Only you can heal these people and this nation.  I pray for healing."

"Lord, help me to play my part and not to be overcome by fear or lethargy."

"I pray for all the street kids here.  And how they are ignored and blend into the background.  Gelop me and fellow Christians to open our eyes and see them as beautiful people you ahve created and treat them as you would.  Thank you for the opportunity to live in this country and have the opportunity to impact the lives of the people around us here."

Please pray with me for the students who understood more about God and the way He has called us to live, that what they heard would not just be a week-long thing, and pray for the staff at school that we would have wisdom in how to follow up with what happened this week. Thank you. :)

Last week for our week off from school I went with one of my housemates Kelly to Malaysia.  I am not very good at taking vacation, and by the end I was ready to be useful again, but it was a good break for my brain and much needed before the craziness of the rest of the semester started.  One of the craziest things about Malaysia was the number of flags that were everywhere there! See picture...

 

Yes, that was a normal sight pretty much everywhere we went. :)

Other pictures from Malaysia:

The highlight of the week for me was going to Port Klang to see the Logos Hope.  I got to see an old friend from Hungary, Tarissa, and I got to have dinner with my sister's friends from her year there!  To add to the great day, when we were walking through the bookstore, I ran into a Hungarian guy and got to speak Hungarian with him for a bit.  It felt so OM-ish...hard to explain any other way, but it was like a flash-back to old life.  

This past week was so full it felt only 2 days long, and I have a feeling that fullness will continue till December.  I really do love what I am doing.  The responsibility is overwhelming sometimes, especially because the things that I am responsible for don't only effect me anymore.  But my competence comes from God, and I have to remember that as I'm speaking in meetings and making decisions that I don't feel qualified to be making--it is not me who has to have the ability to do things and I am so thankful for that.  So thank you so much for your prayers, and I will try to be more consistent in my blogging. :)