15-5-2011

Robert and me.

Some of the guys students all dressed up for the event.

The girls also wore their best dresses and gowns. It was fabulous!

Anna and Robert won the best dressed couple, while Reshma and Greig were elected as their bridesmaid and best man.

Matthew wore the mask of Prince William.

Here I am sitting by my bed resting on a Sunday Afternoon. There´s nothing more rewarding than this after a week of full activities. Well, it´s really not that bad. In fact, it has been really good. I work 9 to 5, go back home and make dinner, rest for an hour and do another hour of exercise. Very regular life but I am loving it. That´s what I want for myself really.

Last Monday we had a Royal Wedding Street Party at the centre. It wasn´t technically a street party, we just decorated it like the street. Everybody dressed up, we had some finger food, and the students were having a good time hanging out with each other. At the end, the best dressed gal and guy were chosen, so were their best man and bridesmaid. The rest of them formed a arm bridge for them to go across. The party ended with a dancing session where many of them loved.

My work has been getting on quite well. After a couple weeks of working in different sessions, I have gathered some new ideas on how to make the work better which hopefully improve the performance and learning of the students. I have learned to ignore the noises and politics around me as I know that my focus is to facilitate these wonderful souls to maximize their potentials and make them feel confidence in themselves. And I am here to achieve my short-term and long-term goals. The students are just so precious! They are some of the most genuine, sweetest and funniest people you will ever meet! I just love to be around them, and I really appreciate their sincerity and honesty. Even the less verbal ones who sometimes seem a bit disconnected, you can connect with them when they can feel that you are there for them and care about them. On Friday, a 40 something-year-old student who was talking to himself the whole time and never responded to anyone was in the computer class where he was disturbing others by talking to himself too much. So I worked with him a bit and tried to make him calm and quiet in the class. By the middle of the class, he was really quiet and I praised himself quite a bit for that. At the end of the class, I let him watch his idol Teresa Tang´s music video on Youtube, and his smile was so innocent and sweet that it was like a small child. At that moment, I almost bursted into tears. It was such a rewarding way to end my week of work!