Yesterday we had an inservice starting at 8 am. I had to drop my computer off with the IT people before then so they could do whatever they needed to do so I can connect to the internet (I guess it's like 1 home internet connection for 450+ computers at the school, the MAF base, and Wycliffe). The inservice was all morning, and then I had lunch (ordered through the school....it was nummy - rice and chicken with a few veggies and great flavor) and then Eve and I were working together til about 4:30 in the afternoon, organizing, talking through things, figuring out the schedule, etc. I'll be doing a fluency and an artic eval right away next week, plus starting helping with therapy right away. She'll do it with me, but she wants me to get as many hours as I can, which is great. After that I took a few pictures and "PK'd" the fruit I bought yesterday (so I don't get intestinal problems from eating it), then Joyce, my neighbor and the 6-8 English teacher, invited me over for tomato and cheese sandwiches for supper. Vangie, the 6-8 science/social studies teacher, was there too. I was there til about 7:30, then decided I needed to come back and get some of my personal things done. Today I'm making a trip to the store with the other teachers to get a few more things I'll need, and in the afternoon I'm going to a wedding and reception with Eve and her family - hopefully it quits raining by then! Sunday is church, then lunch at Eve's followed by planning and getting ready for Monday, then I hit the ground running on Monday morning with a hearing test at 8 am. Whew! I'm not terribly nervous about my internship - I think Eve will be a great supervisor. She wants to make sure this will be a great learning experience for me and that I'll get lots of hours in. And I'll get to do lots of evaluations, which is great because I haven't done very many of those. I'm definitely excited to get going!
A few things to pray for: health. That's a big issue here, for everyone. I'm especially conscious of it because I'm allergic to several standard antibiotics (like penicillin), and if I would get sick and have to miss out on several days, I might not get all the clinical hours I need to graduate. I got anti-malaria meds which will help, but please pray that all of the teachers and staff at the school stay healthy. Another issue is that Hillcrest International School (HIS) has several staffing needs, some immediate, some for the fall. They need a K-8 computer teacher, the kindergarten teacher is currently in Singapore for health concerns (school starts on Monday), the 4th grade teacher is still waiting to receive his visa, and they've been looking for a full-time ESL teacher for 2 or 3 years. The elementary/middle school principal won't be here next year, either, nor the PE teacher or HS science teacher.
Most of you know what a close call it was for me getting my visa on time to leave. When I arrived, Mike and Eve told me that I was the only one who'd received their visa so far out of the 4 teacher visas that were held up. The others are still waiting to get theirs. God answered our prayers in a big way! Thank you so much for praying. It really is a miracle that I'm here, and I know that this is where God wants me. I'm so exciting for my next 3 months here!
I'm including a couple pictures of the landscape around the school. The big mountain is Mt. Cyclops - HIS is near the base of the mountain. The city in the valley is Sentani. My apt. is on the HIS campus, and it's HUGE! Probably 2.5 times the size of my apt. in Vermillion, and it's completely furnished. :) The sunset last night was beautiful - a camera can't do it justice. I'll get more pictures eventually, but those are all I have for now. Enjoy!
Outside view of my apartment
View from my apartment
Mount Cyclops
Mountain Sunset
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