Goodbye 2015!

So much has happened this year, and it is crraaazzy to look back at everything.  I usually don’t celebrate the new year too much-as many previous years have almost blend together seamlessly in my mind, but this year has definitely stood out more than others.  Here are some of the BIG highlights from my year:

1. Last swim as a collegiate athlete

Swimming had always been a huge part of my life, and after 12 years it was hard to believe this journey had ended. I had experienced the joy of success as well as the pain of failure. Through it all, I know that God has used swimming to challenge, discipline, and grow me in so many ways.  Honestly, I was ready to be done-it was physically breaking me down more than I could bear much longer.  Even though it hurt, a part of me will always miss this sport.

2.  Being in Justine’s Wedding

I met Justine during orientation week at Asbury.  We happened to be in the same TAG group-or else we probably never would have met!  Over my entire 4 years at Asbury, we always did things together (with Anna too-JAK forever!!).  We would have “Say Yes to the Dress” marathons and traveled together for Spring breaks.  Before entering Asbury I prayed that God would provide amazing friendships for me there, and He was so faithful! To stand by her side on this special day was SUCH an honor!

3. PR in Half-Ironman

This past summer I decided to do a new race in July-the Ironman 70.3 Muncie.  I really enjoyed the course if only the run wasn’t so hilly!  I did not PR in the swim, bike, or the run BUT I had a solid performance in each leg to PR in the overall race.  It is always nice to see your hard work pay off.  I placed higher than ever before at an Mdot event (3^rd in my age group)! Maybe it was that trip to the beauty salon across the street from my hotel the day before-yep, those are my priorities…what “true athletes” do before a big race haha!

4. First Marathon

This was my “What Just Happened?” moment of the year!  As I’ve posted before, this marathon was not exactly planned for.  My workouts were determined by “how difficult my 5^th period Spanish class was.”  Sometimes I would go to the Legacy Trail in Lexington on the weekends-long path, lots of hills, no traffic, free water stops J Anyway, running the race felt great…almost too good…maybe I didn’t run as fast as I could have haha! I’m still not sure if marathons are in my future or if I will go to Boston in 2017, but at least I can cross “run a marathon” off my bucket list!

5. Teaching in Quito

I was told that I would have the opportunity to teach in Quito early in the year, and in October it was finally time to board the plane.  The overall experience was amazing!  The school and the kids were so awesome!  It was great to be a part of another culture-sometimes I think we get so used to the way things are that we forget about the diversity that exists in the world.  It was a completely different way of life, and I will use my experiences abroad to help me in the future. 

6. Graduating Asbury

WOW!  Four and a half years is a looonngg time, and sometimes you think “this will never end” and then you finish and can’t believe how fast it went.  I remember worrying about my choice to go to Asbury, but it was one of the best decision I ‘ve ever made-and I am confident that God led me there for a reason!  It is an amazing school with amazing people, and I will miss it so much!  But much like swimming, I am ready to move on.  Not in the sense of “get me out of here!!!” but more in the calm sense of knowing “the time is right and I am prepared.”

I know that 2015 was a BIG year, but given that I JUST graduated, I am fairly confident that 2016 will have a lot in store for me as well.  Surprisingly, I am at peace with the “I have no clue what my life will look like in a year” because I have grown to trust God more with the unknown because HE knows.

Prayers and blessings in the coming year!

Teaching is a Work of HEART!

Goodbyes are HARD! 

HARD!

REALLYY HARD!

Especially when you are leaving a COUNTRY and will probably never see people again.  Relationships have been established, grown, and will not forgotten, even if the distance is a barrier.

When I came here, I had no idea what to expect.  I remember being completely exhausted (partly due to my “last minute marathon” choice) and completely overwhelmed.  I entered a class with 18 little munchkins staring at me and wanting to ask me EVERY. QUESTION. IMAGINABLE (and unimaginable haha!)

Today my class had a goodbye party for me.  We had cake and juice and all the students gave me a scarf, signed coffee mug, flowers, and wrote a book where they each wrote:

“Ms. Gabriel will be a great teacher because_______________________.” (insert heart-melting here!)

My heart has been touched, and my experience here has changed me forever.  One of the best and hardest things about teaching is that “kids are your job.”  You are in constant contact and relationship with people.  They are people that GOD loves.  People that GOD created.  What a responsibility-what a job!  As a teacher, I can lead kids to the one that created them through my words, actions, and conduct…but I also have the power to turn my back as they struggle and sink into the world around them.  I cannot take this lightly, and MUST daily call upon the LORD for help, knowing that HIS grace can cover my inequities.

I’ve learned about myself as a person and a teacher.  I had ups and downs, but choose to learn from it all.  I don’t know if international teaching is in my future, but these experiences will still help me be a better teacher no matter what students will be in my classroom.  I will be much more able to reach ESL students, and I will be much more understanding to students that have different cultural backgrounds.

I will miss the kids that I worked with, but I am also looking forward to starting the next chapter in my life. I will always be a student, because even as a teacher-I will constantly be learning….Learning from my successes and failures, and open to new ideas and new students (who are all unique and require different things from me).

HONESTLY I am terrified, but I am even more EXCITED.  Soon, I will officially be…

Three Things You DON’T Want To Be!

I’ve said this before, and my thought today remains the same.

When traveling abroad, the 3 things you don’t want to be are:

1. American

2. Single/Alone

3. Female

I like to think of myself as a fairly independent person.  I value time by myself, especially after a full day with lovely (albeit very rambunctious) children.  I need to unwind alone to relax by doing everyday activities such as grocery shopping, running various errands, and running/working out.  These things help my mind put stress aside.

During trips abroad to Guatemala, Mexico, Puerto Rico, and now Ecuador, my independent every-day life has changed drastically.  My CONSTANT thought is: “who is a threat” and “who wants to rob me.”  Yes, I know these are negative thoughts, but as a white/American female traveling alone, I know that realistically I am in a vulnerable position.  I was terrified to leave the gates of the school and dorm building for the first few days I was in Quito.  The fear of “the real world” was overwhelming.  I feel somewhat restricted by not bringing my purse, but instead stuffing money in my shirt and only going out in daylight in crowded areas.  I miss going for a run without constantly checking my surroundings.  I miss carrying my phone with me and making phone calls while in public.  I miss not having to purposefully choose baggy/neutral clothing hoping to deter unwanted attention, but still somehow manage to get honked at and a few “Que guapa, eres linda” with an occasional whistle.  I guess no matter what I wear, I am still a Gringa!

The dorm building-leave at your own risk!

This is probably the hardest thing about being abroad for me.  Besides Starbucks, I also crave the feeling of safety and knowing my surroundings.  Without feeling safe, I loose a large chunk of my freedom. 

Surrounded by unfamiliar streets!

My home city of Chicago!  I miss knowing what's going on and where I am!

How do I deal with this??

Well, nothing completely fixes the problem, but I just try to be smart and keep on living day to day without constant fear.  Fear is crippling, and in reality:

“LIVING IS DANGEROUS!”

That’s right folks, if you are alive, you are in danger too!  So, apart from being smart (not going out at night, etc.), I just choose to live and go on day-to-day, praying God will keep me safe.  Please continue to pray that he will protect me as I am here!

If You Want to Feel Out of Shape...

...try to run at 10,000 feet-about 2 miles-above sea level!

For many years I’ve said, “I’m not a runner…but I can run.”  Meaning: I don’t compete in running events, but I’m fairly fast for someone that doesn’t run a lot.  After I ran the marathon last month, I have officially started calling myself a runner (No, you don’t need to run a marathon to be considered a runner-this is just when I made the transition in my head). 

Since I believe it is easier to stay in shape rather than get terribly out of shape and then struggle to get back into shape, I try to maintain some level of fitness during my off-season.  I don’t plan to race in triathlons until 2016, but I know that it will be a “tough kick in the rear” come January if I don’t stay in shape (actually who am I kidding?!...it WILL be tough regardless, but maybe slightly less painful!).

This is what I REALLY  look and feel like after my races!

...and THIS  is at least an HOUR after the race! (Less "I'm going to puke" feeling) 

Here in Quito I have been running consistently almost every day (minus my sick week), but have had no specific pacing in mind.  Just going by feel. It is kind of nice not to have a Garmin watch commanding me to hit specific paces.  There is definitely a time/place for that when training, but right now I’m enjoying a break to relax from the grind.

In the states, I can run for a few hours at a slow pace without needing to pause or stop.  I might slow down while sipping some sport drink, but my body is not begging me to stop.  In Quito, after about 20 minutes I’m not exactly out of breath, but it’s like my muscles start to shut down with lack of oxygen!  It’s seriously the weirdest feeling…most similar to the “I’m really out of shape” feeling that I try so hard to avoid! I assumed that “easy running” would actually feel easy, but there is NO such thing as “easy running” at such a high elevation!

Most mornings I wake up at 5:45 to run for about 40 minutes around the school soccer field.  Then I do stairs for about 10 minutes.  On weekends, I go to the park and run around a 3 mile loop three or four times.  It is so beautiful and I love being around all the people and families at the park!  It is amazing to look at the beautiful backdrop of the mountains!  There is also one busy street that I run on a few times a week that goes up a very steep hill!

The soccer field I run around each morning!  Beautiful moutains in the background.

Stair climbing each morning after my run to try and build up my leg muscles (epecially since I'll be on a bike soon)!

 Usually when I run in FL I say:

            “Running in FL in the summer is basically commiting suicide”

BUT here in Quito I say:

            “Running up a hill at 10,000 ft. is basically commiting suicide”

(During my marathon I did not stop once!-even at aid stations (yes, Gatorade splashed all over my face since it’s hard to run and drink at the same time!), BUT HERE I have to stop at least 2 times running up this hill.  It is THAT. HARD.)

I guess sometimes it is good to enjoy a slice of “humble pie.”  I don’t mind the challenge, and it is kind of cool to see how my body has started to adapt!

I did the UNTHINKABLE!

What did I do???!!!

I DID A PAINTING ACTIVITY WITH MY FIRST GRADERS!!!

...With REAL PAINT!  

 ...And it went GREAT!!

I never knew this was even a possibility.  I cringed while planning this lesson, but I decided to just go for it anyway (as an athlete I've become great at putting my feelings-physical and mental-aside and "just do" even if it's crazy).  Student teaching is a time for me to learn and try new and sometimes challenging things, so I might as well be a little crazy while I still have these training wheels, right?!

I am teaching the students about the weather and seasons-specifically FALL, so I had them trace their hands/arms for the tree trunk and branches and use Q-tips to put dots on for the leaves. I covered the tables with packing paper for easy clean up, but it all went surprisingly well (which means NO paint ended up on the kids’ clothing or floor.  WOW!!)

Each tree is so very different-much like each unique student!

A few other “teacher notes from the week”

1.  My name has always been hard for the kids to say-I don’t really know why, but it has been teacher, Mrs., Mrs. Gabriel, Mrs. Gabriella, and The newest one (thanks to one of my little cuties) is Mrs. GARBRAL!! HAHAHAHA! I think that I will ask every student to tell me my name and those who get it RIGHT will get to clip up! I was also called “mom” on accident haha-the sad thing is that MY MOM has accidently called me “mom” before too!

2. THE FIRST loves notes I’ve received come from 6 year olds ;) I got a few “love notes” from my students-SOOOO CUTE (see: I’m Mrs. Gabriel haha)!! It touches my heart to receive these small little things from my students!  My heart is so full!

I'm even wearing PINK in the drawing!! 

On the flip side of #2:

3.  I made a student cry for the first time this week.  There were some issues between 2 students at their table.  After they BOTH came and tattled (complained about the other person), I told them that they need to stop talking to each other or ignore each other and if I heard one more thing about the other person, then one of them would have to sit alone at this table in the room.  Of course, there were MORE issues, so I told a student to go sit at the table to finish her work. She started telling me it was not her fault (it never is haha!) and I said I didn’t care, she either moves in five seconds or can “clip down.”  She chose to move, but not without tears!  Teacher initiation for me!

4.  Since my voice was not existent, we had some different motivational things for the class to listen extra hard to me.  On Thursday, I told them that if I gave them 5 check marks on the board for good listening, then they would have 10 minutes of recess at the end of the day.  With one class left (Bible) they had 4 check marks.  After Bible I said, “I don’t know if I’m going to give you all another check mark” and the students went DEAD SILENT.  I held the marker 5 inches from the board just to add to the suspense (Ha, I was totally milking it for all its worth!!).  I suddenly made the mark on the board and instantly the class yelled “YYYEEEEEAAAHHH”  (in complete unison).  I don’t think I’ve ever made so many 6 year olds so happy!!!

Next week will be another FULL week of teaching-EVERY.SINGLE.SUBJECT!

Please pray that I would do well and continue to grow as a teacher in this placement! (Especially with my upcoming observations!!)