Jounen Kweyol

Today at school. we celebrated Jounen Kweyol, which celebrates the French and African dialect that is spoken here. St. Lucians are extremely proud of their culture, and today was an intriguing look into the vibrant and colourful culture.
Everyone was dressed in Madras, which is a colourful striped fabric. Each class prepared a performance which demonstrated a particular part of the culture. The grade one classes prepared a "Battle of the Flowers," representing the two different flower festivals in St. Lucia, La Marguarite and La Rose. Other classes danced, sang, and played instruments. The entire performance lasted two and a half hours, and it was extremely hot. You can only imagine how well all of the children were sitting by the end! Once the performance was over, we went back to our classroom to eat bouillon, a kind of stew. At the upper campus, teachers were selling a variety of national food such as saltfish and breadfruit. As hectic as the day was, the children did a beautiful job and I can officially say I have survived the first half of the term!

Vive La Marguarite!

Yesterday at school, we celebrated one of St. Lucia's flower festivals, La Marguarite. The colors for La Marguarite are maroon, blue, violet, silver, and white. Students came to school dressed as queens, kings, princes, princesses, flower girls, doctors, nurses, policemen, governors, governors' wives, and flag bearers. The children in Preprimary through Grade 2 came to school in their outfits, which proved to make for quite the crazy day. (Note from the teacher: if the daily schedule is different AT ALL from the normal routine, children go crazy and do not listen very well.)
At 9 o'clock, we lined up to parade around the school's fields as we sang our La Marguarite songs. I was amazed at how many parents were there to take pictures of their kids and watch them parade around a field a few times. It's weird to know that there are a large number of pictures out there of adorable children dressed up so nicely, and then Teacher Abby all awkward in the background. Children waved flowers above their heads as they sang Creole songs. I had tried my best to learn these songs so I could sing along. I don't know how great my pronunciation was, but I sang loud and proud. It was already very hot by 9 o'clock, so after twenty-five minutes of parading, flower waving, and Creole song singing, we headed back to our classrooms.
Because it was a special day, not much was accomplished for the rest of the day. Next week, we celebrate Jounen Kweyol, a festival which celebrates the French/African dialect (Creole). On Wednesday, all of the students will put on a performance for the parents, so all the teachers are looking forward to another crazy day. I am getting quite the cultural education here!

Thanksgiving!

Today is Thanksgiving in St. Lucia. It is nothing like American Thanksgiving. No American football is played, and no turkey is consumed. St. Lucia just really loves its holidays, and St. Lucians especially love days off of work and school. This year, I get to celebrate Thanksgiving three times: St. Lucian Thanksgiving, Canadian Thanksgiving (one of my roommates is from Canada), and American Thanksgiving. I want to share just a few of the things I am thankful for:
1. I have 17 students who I get to watch grow. They are excited about learning and they show me an insane amount of love and hugs. Also, my co-teacher and assistant teacher are an amazing support system and help me with whatever I need.
2. I am thankful for my two roommates who put up with me. I cannot imagine moving to and teaching in St. Lucia alone. They are currently teaching me how to cook, and are being very patient with me. Last week while making mac and cheese, I accidentally dumped the cheese packet into the boiling water. Last week I almost set the kitchen on fire by lighting the gas stove which had been on for a while. (Long story... making brownies in a gas oven is tricky.)
3. I have an amazing boyfriend who is extremely patient with me. Long distance relationships are challenging, especially when both people are busy and trying to work around each other's schedules. It's not easy, but I know that our patience will be worth it.
4. Our church family, especially the pastor and his wife, give us rides when we need them, take us to amazing beaches, host pizza and movie parties, teach us how to grocery shop and prepare food down, and make us feel at home down here.
5. God has greatly blessed me by allowing me to call St. Lucia my home for the year. Pictures do not do this gorgeous island justice.
6. My family and friends back home--I appreciate all of you and your support. The initial adjustment period here was hard. Being able to Skype, see faces from home, and catch up on life makes the distance feel not so extreme. I am looking forward to seeing as many of you over Christmas break!
7. Food. I am so thankful for food. When we first arrived, I ate like every meal was my last. Now, I realize that God will provide for all of our needs and I do not have to worry about starving. Which was never going to be an issue, I just really like food.
In short, God is good. "Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; his love endures forever." 1 Chronicles 16:34