It’s amazing how quickly the weeks have filled up since I arrived here over two months ago; nearly every day has something going on. Tuesdays and Thursdays I tutor from 2:30-4. Usually one of those days contains a trip to Bourbon Café or Torero, the new café downtown. Wednesday nights are for the singing and prayer service at our headmaster’s house. Saturday mornings are for grading, and, more importantly, not setting my alarm; Saturday nights are typically reserved for something slightly less depressing. Sundays are church days, movie nights, and the inevitable Sunday night existential crisis about whether or not I can actually teach another week of school.
And then there’s Friday.
Fridays have no designated activity, excepting the institution of the Friday Song (and, more recently, upon the suggestion of a fellow teacher, Friday Chocolate). The Friday Song was designed to inject the drudgery of the workweek with a Springsteenian dose of grandeur and significance--a musical high-five, if you will. There is only one rule for the designated Friday Song: it may only be listened to on Friday, after the completion of another five days that, on Sunday, seemed impossible. Preferably, it should be a song with a slow build, gradually climaxing to a release of epic proportions. The song selection is crucial, since years later, the Friday Song will be synonymous in my mind with freedom and survival and that time that I was 22 and taught in Rwanda and felt anxious and so young and so old at the same time and didn‘t have a clue what I was doing but at least seemed bold and intrepid, right?
The last class exits my room around 2:25 pm. As the last student leaves, I hastily shut the door behind her, and hurry over to my laptop. On goes the Friday Song (currently: Hey Jude, though I’m thinking of doing a monthly rotation); off go the shoes. For the next seven minutes, after my chocolate is eaten, I will dance (actually, more like drunkenly sway) around my room like some deranged hippy. I am careful to avoid the window in my door, lest a passing student peek in and silently confirm that Ms. Merrill has a screw loose.
I can think of no better way to end the week than closing my eyes and losing myself in the euphoria of Paul McCartney’s chorus of nah-n-n-nah-nahs.
One more day.
2 comments:
Fridays are truly glorious! I'm glad you have found a way to celebrate! I want to hear all about learning to drive the car (who will be brave enough to teach you, jk) and the wedding, which should be totally wonderful. Both of those items should be good "blog" material!
Love you,
Mommers
Dear Jess,
I just found your blog through Alex! I have really enjoyed reading your posts because I can totally relate to some of the sentiments and you express yourself so poetically.
I really like the idea of a Friday song/treat. I only see my students once a week, but there are 14 classes so I still have a full plate. Lately, I've been making a mix-CD of soothing songs that I would listen to in a park or the Front Lawn and I listen to that between classes. I have another CD that I play while students clean my room at the end of the day. It's more peppy with plenty of garage band music and my students really like it.
Wow, this turned into a longer post than intended. I am glad I found your blog because it is good to know that despite being in two different cultures, we share similar "new-teacher" sentiments!
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