My Second First Day as a High School English Teacher at Yeongdo!

Yeongdo Girls' High School's first ever woman principal with her ETAs from 2011 and 2013.
Missing Andrea Tang (2012) from this picture!

THE RHYTHM OF RUSHING AND SLOWING DOWN

For the new school year, my walk started from the house of my new homestay family. The path was windy - familiar in that I had traversed it by bus countless of times before, and unfamiliar because I was much lower on the ground and slower on foot, allowing me to see and notice and consider things I had not before.

I was approaching my school from the opposite direction. If I had not been rushing, I might have had opportunity to entertain such things as have from time to time fought to accompany me along the rode: Nervousness, Anxiety, Fear. 

Sometimes it's the rushing through life that saves me from so much mental apprehension. Of course, with these negative feelings come the positives: Excitement, Hope, and a Fire that grows within me with each step that leads me closer to my destination. 

Today has been a special first day being back:

1. I found out I have a new Fulbright co-teacher -  an English teacher with whom I worked last year as a classroom co-teacher. She is beautiful, sweet, and soft-spoken but has been away for a semester. I am glad to be working with her again and am excited for the new dynamic ahead of us!
2. A former ETA (2011) came to visit! Hogan Medlin, Yeongdo Girls' High School's first ever native English teacher came to say hi to the principal (who is very fond of him), the teachers he worked with (who were talking about his visit 6 months before it happened), and his students (who are now in the 3rd grade). We had communicated via email during my first year as an ETA and he had been quite generous with tips on how to ease my experience at YGHS. What a real pleasure to have met you, Hogan! You set the bar high and I couldn't be more grateful for the challenge!

English teachers and principal with Mr. Hogan Medlin, future major world-changer!