It's December?!?!?!

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December has shown its face, and my Travel Blog countdown is nearly to the single digits.

I will likely put up a couple more blogs before my India Adventure concludes (We still have a Christmas celebration to document!), but I wanted to take a moment to reflect on my time here, and on what December brings for me and the students.

I know that I've mainly written positive things for my blog entries, and I know that many of you are probably asking, "Is it really that great over there?" And the answer is that I guess I've been a little dishonest in my writing. It hasn't all be great. There are days (especially recently) when I want to run to my room screaming, "BUT I'M NOT EVEN PAID FOR THIS JOB!" I am often confronted with "surprises," like a fundraising concert where the choir had to brush-up/learn seven songs in eleven days (more on the concert in a moment), or when the 12th graders are suddenly thrown into a block schedule of studying and testing that not only conflicts with half of my time with the 11th graders, but makes it so I am working virtually the whole school day (and before and after for prep, choir, voice lessons, and PT). I don't do well with scheduling surprises. I need 24 hours to process, and that has often not been given to me (or my supervisor, for that matter).

But, here's the thing: Even after a truly dreadful day, like this past Monday, where the 12th graders are sleepy and I'm so stressed I can't make decisions, something beautiful happens. On Monday, this came in the form of Creative Writing with the 8th graders. I was just given this class the week previous, to fill a gap created by a departed volunteer. I was not looking forward to ending my Monday with them, as my first class with them the previous week had been hellish: I had been so excited to talk about archetypes with them by sharing one of my favorite concept albums (Light Chasers by Cloud Cult...so beautiful) and having them write a story inspired by the archeypal events the music follows, but they did not understand and continued interrupting me before I could explain. And then, when I came to pick up the first part of their stories on Friday, not a single one of them had done the homework because they were "too busy studying for exams." When they told me this, I had to walk out of the room before I said something I'd regret. Instead, I vented to Lizzy, and I know she and several other staff members reprimanded them, so I was also wary of how the 8th graders would react to the project (the album was only about half-completed) now that they'd gotten in trouble over it. But when I came in this Monday, the students were apologetic and then, after we listened to a few more songs, legitimately involved in the project. Of course, I also made some adjustments to clarify things, but they met me halfway, and by the end some were singing along. Some stayed after class to listen to the final song. Where I (and perhaps they) had least expected it, we ended up having a wonderful time.

I think this is one of the reasons I like teaching. You can take it on a day-to-day basis and, although something may go horribly, you are forced to either face the issue or determine it is negligable the next day and move forward. Either way, I have learned that humans of any age have ample capacities for forgiveness. If only it could be exercised more outside of the classroom.

In any case, this past week has also felt insane because we have been preparing for a fundraising concert. A group of 34 choir members has been rehearsing with me an hour every night, losing some of their precious studying time for exams (starting December 3). I am so proud of the work they have done, but rehearsals haven't been without their struggles. The performance space doesn't have any piano, so we had to record the accompanist, and I don't think the students understand just how much their accompanists have been adjusting to their fluctuating speeds--I cannot tell you how many complaints I've received about the speed of the recordings. They also are not used to actively watching a conductor, which is more necessary than ever now that we don't have live accompaniment. But, except for "Memories," which the students found either too fast or too slow, depending on who was talking, we brought everything together nicely for the performance.

We all packed onto a bus and rode for 1.5 hours to Rainbow Drive, a gated community outside of Bangalore. Apparently, SB students don't travel very much, and are prone to terrible motion sickness. In light of this, each student was given a "vomit cover" (cover being the word used for bag) and some chewing gum. I was lucky to be sitting with some folks who were decidedly not carsick. Lizzy brough her speakers and ipod, so we listened to music and danced and played a (slightly unfair) game of "Never Have I Ever." When we arrived, we set up and then were given delicious food. We didn't have enough time to rehearse anything on the stage, which was unfortunate, and the audience didn't really finish arriving until 30 minutes after we were supposed to start, which was also unfortunate. The kids were antsy, as we had already seated them in front of the audience, and so they were put under scrutiny for an extended period of time.

When the concert finally did begin, we had several problems with sound, and at first I could not hear the music from my conducting spot. I changed location, which improved my hearing significantly, and although the choir was clearly nervous and unused to singing in large echoey spaces, they were extremely attentive, and we managed to pull through. After the concert, we were given cake and juice boxes, which are very special treats for the kids.

And now, here I am, sitting in a hotel room in Bangalore on Sunday morning, taking what I've deemed a "Me-Weekend." I only have twelve more days left in India, so this will likely be my last chance to explore outside of SB. It's strange, to roam a city alone after spending most of your days at a secluded school. When I return to SB, it will be time for exams and more choir rehearsals for the "German Party" next weekend--another event in Bangalore that SB students go to each year because the attendees are some of our biggest sponsors. But for now, I'm just going to relax, meet a friend of a friend for lunch, and take some time to reflect.

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Photos

Haemon
This little dude is quite the cutie. He is a second grader, but he's much smaller than his other classmates, and his energy is just adorable.

Waiting
This picture reveals so much about my students. Sujatha, the one behind her hands, is a mischievous 11th Grader. Nickhil, in the red, is always very chill. Shrimathi, smiling, loves attention. And Vijay, in the stripes, often looks a little tired (especially in class) :-D

Comments

[Susan Mullin]

Whew!
Sounds very busy and exhausting and life-giving all at the same time. We are looking forward to seeing you soon!

[Abby Gerdts]

So happy....
...to read about some of your experiences. I'm so glad I was tipped off (by Davinia) about your blog. I have only read this entry so far, but I plan to read the rest too. I know that SB is full of the highest peaks and the lowest valleys - and I appreciate you for hanging in there and stepping up to the plate over and over again. From me, everyone at ASTEP, TGF, and from the students...Thank You! We would be nowhere without inspiring artists like you, willing to give selflessly, day in and day out. Thank you - and thank you for writing. So wonderful to hear updates and goings-on. Many hugs from Times Square!