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

And so it is

The time has come to close another year of school. What a year it has been... so much growth, and so much learning. This year was not so much filled with new cultural experiences as last year, but more so on challenges and breakthroughs in teaching. It was another year of self-reflection, new learnings, and defining of who I am and what my purpose is on this Earth, and here in Chevak.

As I sit here and think about the year, I think about how I always feel "at the end." I feel mixed emotions of sadness and happiness. I will miss my kiddos. The ultimate goal was accomplished-- I built another classroom family. We laughed, we shared, we cried, we made memories. I don't have children of my own, and I am just so thankful that I get to be a part of so many children's lives. I get to be a part of something big-- of molding, shaping, and watching my students grow. I am proud of each one of them for the accomplishments they made this year, and I am thankful that I got to be their teacher.

It is wild for me to think that I will be going on my third year of teaching in the fall-- so, so cool! With each year brings new memories, new learnings, and a better Miss Nelson. The students don't know it, but I grow and learn with them. And, it is awesome.

Chevak is such a special, unique place. I think about people that stand out to me and I think about what they have said and done to be so profound in my memory. There have been people have been patient and taught me to Eskimo dance (that took some time, but boy did I dance with pride once I got it). There are people who offered me steams, and oh how those humble you. You are completely nude. Stories are shared, laughter is had, and a physical and spiritual cleansing occurs. It is a time to share and be totally naked (I mean that more than in the literal sense). I think about people who invited me out to camps and out fishing... how great to be in the fresh outdoors. There is a fresh air you get in Chevak that you can't get in the city. One of my favorite smells is walking about town and smelling a maqi starting up. So, so nice. I also think about the gals that invited me to play ball with them... the gussuk with no skill or experience prior, yet they encouraged me to play and I even scored! Very, very cool. I think about the ladies who call me up for Pictionary nights and how much better I've gotten at that game! :) They do it different here... we act out the words, rather than draw. Try acting out orbit or Ireland... we have our moves. lol.

All of these experiences have been so big for me. They have shown me what it is to love without walls, to encourage and take someone in without reservation, to try new things and have a healthy confidence in doing so. I have always been known as a risk-taker... pretty audacious... but, still. There are things that I would not have done if it weren't for the people out here that were willing to take risks with me. For that, I am really, truly thankful.

What a journey it has been thus far.

Next year, I am fortunate in that I will be teaching second grade again (YAY!). This will be my fourth year with this grade group and my third year teaching solo. It will also be my first full year of my grad classes. I will get to study more in-depth Cross-Cultural Education. I am excited to see how that will unfold before my eyes. Every experience I have had in Chevak will contribute to my research project... I am confident that, slowly, it will narrow down and my focus will become very, very clear.

Chevakers, thanks for another year and enjoy your summer. As for me, I will be in Anchorage for most of the holiday, but will make my way to Colorado and Costa Rica, as well. Looking forward for some downtime and seeing my family and city friends.

Thanks for following my blog,
Misty

"If" by Rudyard Kipling

One of our high school seniors read this poem at his graduation on Friday. So glad he found such inspiring words to share... definitely spoke to me. I think I have heard it before, but still, gotta love it. CONGRATS c/o 2010!!!

If you can keep your head when all about you
Are losing theirs and blaming it on you;
If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you,
But make allowance for their doubting too:
If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,
Or, being lied about, don't deal in lies,
Or being hated don't give way to hating,
And yet don't look too good, nor talk too wise;

If you can dream---and not make dreams your master;
If you can think---and not make thoughts your aim,
If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster
And treat those two impostors just the same:.
If you can bear to hear the truth you've spoken
Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,
Or watch the things you gave your life to, broken,
And stoop and build'em up with worn-out tools;

If you can make one heap of all your winnings
And risk it on one turn of pitch-and-toss,
And lose, and start again at your beginnings,
And never breathe a word about your loss:
If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew
To serve your turn long after they are gone,
And so hold on when there is nothing in you
Except the Will which says to them: "Hold on!"

If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,
Or walk with Kings---nor lose the common touch,
If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you,
If all men count with you, but none too much:
If you can fill the unforgiving minute
With sixty seconds' worth of distance run,
Yours is the Earth and everything that's in it,
And---which is more---you'll be a Man, my son!

Cultural Heritage Week 2010

Akutaq

Whew. What a year. We are very close to the end of the school year. There are only a couple of full "real" school weeks left. SBAs are over, and Cultural Heritage Week is next week! Really looking forward to that, especially since my best friend will be visiting again.

For the past two weeks we had interns from UAA visiting (as I did in 2007). My students and I really, really enjoy reading Berry Magic by Teri Sloat and Betty Huffmon. The story is about a little girl named Anana and she sees that three elderly women are displeased because there aren't enough good berries for the Fall Feast and they need them to make akutaq (Eskimo ice cream). So, Anana uses her crafty hand and goes out on to the tundra and magic happens! In the end, the berries are plentiful and the women happily have their akutaq.

So, I got together with my LT sub-aide, Cody Ferguson, and we were able to make akutaq for our students. Unfortunately, the interns had to catch a morning plane and they didn't get to taste it... and our first batch had to be redone, but they afternoon class did enjoy this Chevak dessert! As many times as we have read this book, this was our first time integrating the akutaq recipe into our classroom. It was such fun! I have to say if we didn't have these weird testing weeks, we wouldn't have had the "time" to do this. And, if I didn't have Cody it prob wouldn't have happened either. I loved how he tried to remember how his mom, Lena, made akutaq. This is just one of many examples of how much of the teaching and learning in the Cup'ik culture is through watching and doing.

Traditionally, akutaq (ah-goo-duck) was made with white fish, seal oil, berries, and sometimes meat. Today, many people use Crisco, oil, sugar, berries, and mashed potatoes, though many families make it each their own way. In C/Yup'ik, akutaq means "mix them together," which makes perfect sense! I have to say that when you hear the ingredients, and see them being mixed together it doesn't seem so delicious... but, after you have had some you begin to have your favorites and it is one of the reasons I like to get in line at potlucks :)

"Tamarpeci Nerluci"... all of you eat. Yup'ik saying found at www.ankn.uaf.edu by Frankie Jordan.

More pics to come...

Determination

"Determination is born out of purpose...knowing that you are gifted for something and this something must be attained. It is never enough to rely on luck or natural talent. You must, above all, believe in yourself, face your goals, and then fight as if your life depended on it." ~Unknown

Honey Buckets and Then Some

Well, I believe I have been initiated into the rural Alaskan lifestyle! Last week our sewer/water plant was out, causing school to be cancelled due to lack of functional restrooms and kitchen facilities. So, the ENTIRE village was on honey buckets. This meant not only no toilet, but also no shower, no laundry, no dish-washing... and no school. So, I was forced to relax and focus on UAF school work :) This also means I was getting pretty smelly and so was my house by the end of the three or so days! lol Kidding... kinda.

Funny, because this was a first for many of my students and also for all teachers out here. But, for many of the locals this just meant going back to the way things were just six or so years ago- using honey buckets and taking steams. My sister asked if I would be blogging about this experience, I told her I would... sans pictures :)

At the beginning of the month I was given the opportunity to attend the AAEYC 2010 Conference in Anchorage. It was SO great to run into former colleagues and professors, and also to make new friends. We have some wonderful people in the Early Childhood field. What I enjoyed most about this conference was the focus on birth through third grade. I had worked for an Early Head Start for three and a half years, and this is my second year teaching second grade. When you get to elementary things become all focused on standards and testing. The focus of the "whole child" and such seem to dissipate, which is quite saddening. The Early Childhood field always brings the focus back to the child- learning through play, music, movement, and art. Building relationships with the child and the family. These are the things I love most about working with children so it was good to be surrounded by this energy, if you will.

Also, I did give my two hour presentation on "Creating a Safe, Successful, and Engaging Learning Environment" and thoroughly enjoyed it! I had worries- would more than three people show up? Will they walk in and say they'd been teaching longer than I was born and walk out? Would I be able to give information that would take up the whole two hours? BUT, it all went well. I've almost always known that I love public speaking and the early childhood field, and to combine my passions and speak about what I love makes me ecstatic! I am hoping to present at and attend the 2011 AAEYC Conference so stay tuned ;)

Last, but not least, my wonderful mother likes to send holiday gifts for my students. It is so thoughtful and such a treat to watch the kiddos open their surprises. For Valentine's this year my mom sent some model airplanes, boats, and race cars to paint and build. My students really got a kick out of this! They were so focused and "into" their work. Thanks so much Mom!!!

The year is all downhill skiing from here. We are just finishing up Terra Nova testing (blah!) and March will be here before we know it. I am looking forward to April when, hopefully, my best friend will be visiting again AND we celebrate Cultural Heritage Week!

Blessings,

Misty Dawn Nelson

Home for the Holidays: Anchorage

I've missed the trees!

It looked like a winter wonderland... Alaska sure is beautiful.

Making gingerbread houses at Christi's house... Henry LOVED this.

Our family minus Andrew.

Me and the Bestest

Me with my older sisters Lisa and Tina

Lisa and our brother Ricky

A limo ride to look at Christmas lights with Juna and Zori :)

A much needed dinner with my Claire Bear

Auntie Lisa and Henry get matching tats

"To Infinity... and BEYOND!"

BIL Andrew and Tina

lol We were doing "Senior" poses