Onward!

I went in to Bethel last weekend to take a test and the weather was nice and warm! They lost most of their snow and the temperature was in the 30s. I had a good time despite having a bad cold. I know my students don’t get to go into town very often so before I left I asked them if there was anything they needed or really wanted. I figured they would ask for chips, cokes, and candy, so I was surprised when the biggest request came out to be socks!

My life should be much easier next year. The district is changing the reading program and I may actually have resources and material to work with. It’s been heck trying to figure out how to teach reading with hardly any books! All new teachers in Alaska are required to take 2 courses dealing with the history of Alaska and the different cultures here. I’ve been busy trying to finish them before summer so I can enjoy a nice mental break when I fly home!

So good news on the guy that was lost between villages. They found him after 4 days. The search and rescue team found his snow machine first, then a couple days later spotted him walking. He stuffed grass in his clothes for warmth – dug way below to find the grass, and it kept him alive!

At the last NYO meet of the year we went to Goodnews Bay – no site of bears or caribou like we thought, but the view was just beautiful! We climbed a big hill but had to rush back down because of a snow storm. We stayed 2 nights at the school and on the last night they held a big feast for the coaches and chaperones. The people from the village brought in all kinds of good dishes - moose stew (my favorite Eskimo food!), salmon jerky, baked salmon, Eskimo ice cream, fish soup (whole fishes floating around in broth… interesting. The eyes looking up at me made me pass this dish up.) They had blueberry tea, actually made from picked blueberries in the fall… so good!  Goodnews Bay is south from here, and the mountains surrounding it separate it from Bristol Bay. They lost most of their snow, too, so the ride to and from the airport on the sled was muddy and bumpy. It’s all part of the experience though, so I don’t mind – just go with it and expect to get dirty and be sore from sleeping on the floor!

My leg is almost back to normal. It still has a deep bruise but it’s doing much, much better, and I’m able to go on hikes again, which I’ve missed. 

So we only have 3 more weeks of school left! This year has gone pretty fast, which, looking back, I’m thankful for, because otherwise I might have gone crazy. I feel so much more comfortable teaching with this strange system with so many different grade levels, and I’ve come along way with my students. Today my junior high class admitted they gave me a hard time this year because I’m a new teacher (no surprise there… they tested and pushed me over and over and over and over…) and in general I think I handled it pretty well, considering I’m the youngest teacher of all the 352 teachers in the entire district.

Hope yall are doing well! Thanks for reading the blog and for all your prayers.