Toilet Paper
My last post was kind of dismal. Luckily, progress has been made in my search or my journey, however you want to phrase it.
When I was little my mom always carried a roll of toilet paper in her bag while we were traveling in Sri Lanka. I always thought it was so that we could have an infinite amount of tissues or a mini sized paper towel roll. It was a multi-purpose tool. Now I realized it's because Sri Lankans don't use toilet paper, that's why there are ass washers in every bathroom and water hoses and buckets next to each toilet. I wanted to gain something out of this trip and the thing is I had to equip myself with the tools necessary to make that happen. I can't just hold my pee in all day because there's no toilet paper (I did that already), I have to supply the toilet paper myself. I have to adjust my comforts and my needs to the best of my ability to the surroundings I find myself in. Adapting, it's a useful survival skill. So does adapting mean I shouldn't use toilet paper? I have no idea. The reality is I'll adapt, that's what people do, we adapt to our surroundings or at least we have to be open to it.
Earlier today, I had time to organize my current life. There's usually so much going on that I tend to get lost in the capacities of my own brain that I usually need to just write it all out in a format my physical self can manage to grasp. So that's what I did today- Lists, calendars, to-dos. Organize. I have exactly 41 days left in Sri Lanka, the 42nd now finishing. I prioritized what I needed to do in order to achieve the results or get closer to the place I want to be in at the end of my trip. Find my own nirvana.
Today was the last Tuesday at Aquinas, in the coming weeks the students have exams so this is my last week teaching them English. In my Foundation B class this morning, they were their usual "dunga" (rowdy) selves. At the end of the class, I had finished my lesson and surprisingly the bell hadn't rung but it was basically 10 o'clock. My students asked me to sing for them. Why you ask? For their first lesson on prepositions, I started off by singing the preposition song to teenagers. So I sang "I've Just Seen A Face" by The Beatles and "The Longest Time" by Billy Joel. So by the end of the class, we took our class picture and out come the phones. I stayed after the bell for 15 minutes because each of them was taking pictures of me and then with me. Afterwards they told me they would come on Friday to say good-bye on my final day. Just as I was leaving the classroom my students came and kneeled at my feet as a sign of respect and gratitude. It's hard to grasp whether or not you're making an impact, but that moment for me was unthinkable that anyone would look up to me in that regard. In my Final B class, they always make jokes because my hair is down so today I wore a ponytail for them. Ask anyone, I NEVER wear ponytails- that's when you know it's a bad day. This case was different. In Sri Lanka, my rules are out the window. They gave me a farewell speech at the end of the class. I had talked with them about politics, NGOs, corruption, various things that they brought up in our discussion. Their class spokesperson, stood up and said "We'll miss you very much. You were a great teacher, and we know that you will bring pride to Sri Lanka and be something great in this world. One day we'll see you on T.V. and see the great things you have done and we can tell our children that you taught us." These last days at Aquinas are going to be fulfilling because I already feel so fulfilled from just 2 hours today.
I realized that I need to take initiative to be in the environments where I can make a difference. As my time at Aquinas ends these next few days, the possibilities for my 41 days left in Sri Lanka are endless. Next week, I'm going to immerse myself into the day and the life of a Sister of Charity by helping with their daily chores and taking care of the elderly and the sick. I want to test my boundaries. I witnessed sick, homeless, diseased and dying people at a young age. The poverty and illness of this world aren't foreign to me, and most that haven't witnessed it can't fathom how these people live. I've become immune to it, they aren't diseased or sickly. They are people, that have experienced much more than I, but because we're both people and I have different capabilities I'm able to be that person that can be there for them. Remind them that we're all only human.
When I was little my mom always carried a roll of toilet paper in her bag while we were traveling in Sri Lanka. I always thought it was so that we could have an infinite amount of tissues or a mini sized paper towel roll. It was a multi-purpose tool. Now I realized it's because Sri Lankans don't use toilet paper, that's why there are ass washers in every bathroom and water hoses and buckets next to each toilet. I wanted to gain something out of this trip and the thing is I had to equip myself with the tools necessary to make that happen. I can't just hold my pee in all day because there's no toilet paper (I did that already), I have to supply the toilet paper myself. I have to adjust my comforts and my needs to the best of my ability to the surroundings I find myself in. Adapting, it's a useful survival skill. So does adapting mean I shouldn't use toilet paper? I have no idea. The reality is I'll adapt, that's what people do, we adapt to our surroundings or at least we have to be open to it.
Earlier today, I had time to organize my current life. There's usually so much going on that I tend to get lost in the capacities of my own brain that I usually need to just write it all out in a format my physical self can manage to grasp. So that's what I did today- Lists, calendars, to-dos. Organize. I have exactly 41 days left in Sri Lanka, the 42nd now finishing. I prioritized what I needed to do in order to achieve the results or get closer to the place I want to be in at the end of my trip. Find my own nirvana.
Today was the last Tuesday at Aquinas, in the coming weeks the students have exams so this is my last week teaching them English. In my Foundation B class this morning, they were their usual "dunga" (rowdy) selves. At the end of the class, I had finished my lesson and surprisingly the bell hadn't rung but it was basically 10 o'clock. My students asked me to sing for them. Why you ask? For their first lesson on prepositions, I started off by singing the preposition song to teenagers. So I sang "I've Just Seen A Face" by The Beatles and "The Longest Time" by Billy Joel. So by the end of the class, we took our class picture and out come the phones. I stayed after the bell for 15 minutes because each of them was taking pictures of me and then with me. Afterwards they told me they would come on Friday to say good-bye on my final day. Just as I was leaving the classroom my students came and kneeled at my feet as a sign of respect and gratitude. It's hard to grasp whether or not you're making an impact, but that moment for me was unthinkable that anyone would look up to me in that regard. In my Final B class, they always make jokes because my hair is down so today I wore a ponytail for them. Ask anyone, I NEVER wear ponytails- that's when you know it's a bad day. This case was different. In Sri Lanka, my rules are out the window. They gave me a farewell speech at the end of the class. I had talked with them about politics, NGOs, corruption, various things that they brought up in our discussion. Their class spokesperson, stood up and said "We'll miss you very much. You were a great teacher, and we know that you will bring pride to Sri Lanka and be something great in this world. One day we'll see you on T.V. and see the great things you have done and we can tell our children that you taught us." These last days at Aquinas are going to be fulfilling because I already feel so fulfilled from just 2 hours today.
I realized that I need to take initiative to be in the environments where I can make a difference. As my time at Aquinas ends these next few days, the possibilities for my 41 days left in Sri Lanka are endless. Next week, I'm going to immerse myself into the day and the life of a Sister of Charity by helping with their daily chores and taking care of the elderly and the sick. I want to test my boundaries. I witnessed sick, homeless, diseased and dying people at a young age. The poverty and illness of this world aren't foreign to me, and most that haven't witnessed it can't fathom how these people live. I've become immune to it, they aren't diseased or sickly. They are people, that have experienced much more than I, but because we're both people and I have different capabilities I'm able to be that person that can be there for them. Remind them that we're all only human.
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