Fading into playtime

I feel like tonight is the calm before the storm. Now that I'm counting down the hours instead of the days until my tribe arrives, they're slipping away like sand. I have felt literally buoyant with anticipation and excitement all day. This is better than Christmas Eve, to me!

The last week has passed in a blur... I danced my heart out at the Derek Trucks concert on Wednesday. The venue was so small, just an oversize tent, really, that could fit about 800 people. Only 300 showed up. The stage was circular and in the center of the tent. The majority of the concertgoers were the kind that like to sit down right in front, meaning that we, the dancers, had the rest of the circumference all to ourselves! I was completely blissed out the entire time. I love how expressionless Derek's face is when he plays. You can hear him channeling every last drop of his energy through his guitar. I can't wait to see him again.

Friday was my last day in this kindergarten class. Schools are going on break at the end of this week and I think I'll visit a different school in January. I've thoroughly enjoyed my time there and it has reaffirmed my interest in teaching at that level. I love the notable differences between mainland schools and Kauai schools. Shoes are optional inside the classroom. Most students leave their slippers (flip flops) outside the door. The school lunch serves the Hawaiian favorites, pork laulau (spinach layered on top of pulled pork) and poi regularly. I also got a first hand look at the Hawaii State Benchmarks testing process. We had to test every child and it's done on the computer. I sat in between two students and read the questions to them. This was a math test and questions included terms like above, below, left, right and asked students to match shapes and determine amounts of more or less. Mrs. Godsill said the state doesn't use these tests to determine funding, so we don't really care how well the kids do. The benchmark tests are just statistic generators, basically.

Sunday, the weather finally grew warm and sunny again! I didn't know how much I missed the sunshine until it came back. I spent the whole afternoon sleeping (not even reading!) in the sand at Salt Pond Beach. Last night I wrote my self eval for fall term and wrapped up my studies. For the next month, it's all play! Today, I worked at the gallery. I've never in my life held down a job through winter break and I don't know how I'm going to manage this time. Jeff, of course, wants me to work far more than I want to, but I know I'm the only person they have to do the job. The problem with these non-corporate jobs is the personal investment I find myself making. I love the work and I absolutely love being around all the beautiful art. It's just that.... family is more important.

Ohana comes first. And they start arriving tomorrow!