Tundrafest 2010 yuraq practice at the sod house

Blogging behind....

I have had all good intentions to blog several times over the last few weeks... however, they remained just that... intentions :) Our internet is currently out in teacher housing and by the end of the school day, I really want to get out of the work environment and into comfier clothes and be at home. BUT, I must, must write! I have such a terrible memory and these blog entries are truly part of me documenting my life in VAK. So, write I must.

I'd like to give a shout-out to Chet from Dillingham :) I had the pleasure of meeting him while in Anchorage at the end of my summer break. He told me that he follows my blog and his one complaint is that I don't write enough! That was a super awesome compliment and it definitely was nice to meet someone who follows my journalings. So, thanks Chet!

Also, Allison B. from South Carolina has been following my blog for a time now and has encouraged me to keep writing. Thanks! It is motivation to kick my butt into gear and get writing because before I know it, another year of school will have flown by!

Alrighty...

we had our first full week of school this week. My kiddos were shown no mercy and we jumped right into the Smart Start of our reading program. Vocab, phonics, flashcards, dotting i's, capitalizing the first letter of our sentences, characters/setting, beginning/middle/end.... you got it... Miss Nelson's class is back in session! Lol

I feel like I learn so much each year... it is always different from the previous. And, I love that in some ways. It definitely gets old starting from scratch when it comes to saying things like, "Do we need to yell Miss Nelson over and over again?" or "Do we need to yell out when we are finished?" :-) These things are part of training little buddies for second grade... it comes with the job. They are already learning so quickly though. I hope to see great gains with this group and that I will give them everything I have as their teacher. Children never fail to give you a challenge, and those are what I live for.

This semester I will be taking two grad courses through UAF. One is an independent course and the other will meet weekly. This means... I am poor! Lol. I really wanted to earn my master's without taking out loans, and so far that has gone well for me. But, this year I will take two classes in the fall and two in the spring, as well. It will be a tight year financially, but worth it in the end... right?! ;)

Though I am excited for my readings and the papers to come, I am enjoying my last week of no real due dates for me. A colleague loaned me a book about one family's experience with Hurricane Katrina. It is a book completely worth recommending and is titled, Zeitoun by David Eggers.

Also, last night I got together with a close friend of mine and we built a fire last night not too far from teacher housing. It was great! Every fall I tell my co-workers that I want to have a good ol' campfire, but it never happens. Though it was a pretty sad fire, we did it and invited some neighbors to join us. Good times were had and Becky's coat totally smelled of fire today... it was worth it :) The only lame thing was that neither one of us had a camera to take a pic of our little spontaneous adventure! Next time, next time.

Alaska has not had the best of summers this year... and, Chevak is no exception. We have had about a day and a half of sun since I returned here two weeks ago, though I hear Anchorage is finally getting its sumer.

Hope you all enjoy the pics and I hope that I will make it a point to post again soon so that my writings are not so far and few between, and so that the postings will be a tad shorter...

Cheers!

Misty

Summer of the Runs :)

10K Classic. August 2010

Women's Run. June 2010

Skinny Raven 12K. June 2010

Back in VAK... Fall 2010

What a wonderful feeling to be home! It has been so great to sleep in my own bed, eat dinner at my dining table while looking out at the lake, and be back in my own routine. My first night home I came up to the school and got my classroom nearly all set up... I am very excited for the new school year.

Yesterday I slept in all the way past one in the afternoon! :) That was great. I awoke to my former students knocking on my door, wanting to hang out. So, I made some good ol' Kaladi's coffee and we headed out. First stop, the post office where I had beaucoup mail awaiting me. Then, we headed out past the old airport and went berry-picking on the tundra. Really, we just ate the berries and spent some fun time together... it was great. We even got lucky with some sunshine and clear skies! Afterwards, we had some popcorn on the porch for snack and then I headed up to Priscilla's mom's house for some bird soup and tea. This was good fellowship time... her family sure is good to me. We ended the day with watching a little yuraq (Eskimo dance) practice and then went to Morris' house for some gospel singing. What a great day!

Needless to say, I got home pretty late... after midnight... and decided it was time to make dinner :) And, I made soft tacos!!! Yes, this is a first for me :) They were super yummy! Well, Bavilla and Misty saw my light on from the basketball rink and sent me a text. So, I had some company for my late night dinner... loved it! We ended the night with some Wii karaoke and chatter... bedtime... after three in the morning! Lol.

Anyway, would like to write more but am gonna go for a run with Emily on the old airstrip. Ciao!

Thankful for Beautiful People

‎"The most beautiful people we have known are those who have known defeat, known suffering, known struggle, known loss, and have found their way out of the depths. These persons have an appreciation, a sensitivity, and an understanding of life that fills them with compassion, gentleness, and a deep loving concern. Beautiful people do not just happen." - Elizabeth Kubler Ross

Thanks to all the beautiful people who I have crossed paths with. A friend of mine also shared the following quote, which I think ties well with the one above: "People are in your life for a reason, a season, or a lifetime."

The Kids From Nowhere by George Guthridge

Either during or right after college, I read a book called The Kids from Nowhere by George Guthridge. It tells the story of a white man from the states who moves his family to Gambell to teach in the Yup'ik Eskimo village. Many of the struggles that the author encounters are what many teachers in rural AK face even today.

I recently came across a blog of another teacher that works in Tununak, AK. She shared some quotes from the book that really spoke to her, and as I reread them I thought, "Oh my goodness. These quotes resonate with me so much more now that I have been in the village for a few years. Wow." Thanks for sharing, Monica! Beautiful, powerful, and familiar words by Mr. Guthridge:

1)
“The breeze blows my hair and chills my cheeks. I feel alive, here at the edge of the world, and realize a terrible truth. My heart belongs here, where I can never remain forever, for my people are of another place, my ancestors and relatives scattered and ultimately unknowable.” -George


2)
“You a good man, but you troubled,” he says. “You know what your trouble is? You half Eskimo, George. Somebody forgot to tell you that,” stated a Native man from Gambell.

"My trouble is that I’m a man without a culture,” responds George.


3)
“Going home for the summer?” asked the pilot.

“No, leaving home for the summer.” answered George.

Stand By Me

Such beautiful lyrics...

How Full Is Your Bucket?

Costa Rican sunset. Photo courtesy of the Hoke family.

Dinner group in La Fortuna. Photo courtesy of the Hoke family.

The Infinity Pool! Photo courtesy of the Hoke family.

Awesome water slide at Baldi Arenal Hot Springs. Photo courtesy of the Hoke family.

Taking it all in... farewell night in San Jose, Costa Rica.

I had the pleasure of spending the evening with a Yup'ik friend of mine, Ossie from Pamyua. He shared many stories and thoughts on his views of the Alaska Native cultures and on the commonalities of the Inuits in Alaska, Canada, and Greenland. I have found this to be a new fascination of mine... I am very curious about the people of these places and the ancestry that they might share. Anyhow, being able to have such great conversation about culture has inspired me to write.

I just returned from a ten day trip to Costa Rica... AMAZING!!! I truly had the time of my life. Antonia and I were blessed with a fantastic group of people, including our tour guide and driver. We zip lined through the jungle, woke to the sound of howler monkeys, danced to Calypso music, stayed at a 5 Star resort, ate wonderful food, and best of all... had many hearty laughs and made new, beautiful friendships. I learned so much about the Costa Rican culture and cannot wait to share it with my students. Also, it was so great to be among the many different travelers, all with a different story to tell. I fell in love! My heart was more than content... my bucket was overflowing!

As the summer's end is fast approaching, I am getting back into teaching mode and really looking forward to the upcoming school year. In preparation, I am reading a book called How Full is Your Bucket? The adult version is written by Tom Rath and Donald Clifton, and the one for kids is written by Tom Rath and Mary Reckmeyer. The whole idea is that we each have a bucket and with every interaction we have with others, our bucket is either being filled or emptied. Along with that, with each interaction we are either filling or emptying someone else's bucket. The thought is that each time we talk to someone, we stop and think, "Am I taking from or giving to their bucket?" It is very simple, but it is such a beautiful philosophy of which I will be emphasizing in my classroom this year. Even if you are not a teacher, I would highly recommend both the book for adults and the one for children.

So, I challenge you to start thinking this way... are you helping to fill buckets or empty them?

Pura Vida,

Misty Dawn

Bananas and Fish. Phuket 2009.

Oh, how I love quotes!

"Never interrupt your enemy when he is making a mistake." ~Napoleon