What Happens When It All Goes Awfully Wrong?? Smile!

The reason I've been a little MIA from my blog-I left the Teach Abroad Program after the first term to accommodate my friend that came to live with me in Thailand. I'm a Teach Alumni, and now that I'm on my own heres what happened-after 2 months of just settling for where I was and what I was doing I decided to be drastic! I quit my job, got kicked out of my house and found my self in a place I just didn’t want to be. 

Let me rewind. I moved to a new city to work. Hat Yai. I didn’t know much about the town when I moved there but I took a leap, packed up everything and caught a plane to the south of Thailand.  I was living in Sattahip, a small town below Bangkok. My home was on the Royal Thai Marine Base teaching wonderful little 4 year olds surrounded by amazing people. For many reason, I decided to try something new. So I left. When I got to Hat Yai it was like a culture shock! And I was in the same country! There were definitely nice people but few and far between. Though I made sure to try and surround my self with those kind hearted people including my friend who moved all the way out here. I tried to stay positive. Then I started teaching at a school where the teachers hated me because I was new and a foreigner. But again, tried to stay positive. I loved the kids I taught. They knew that, the teachers knew that and the parents knew that. So that made it worth it. Then after 2 months I had a run in with my boss. She had been fine before that. I ignored all the rumors I heard about how nasty and crazy she was. But one day she flipped her switch and went totally nuts on me! With in 5 days, she had called me into her office, screamed and shouted as much as she could. Then followed me down the street on her motorbike just to yell at me some more. When I decided to stick it out until the end of term, for the kids, she then walked in my house. No knocking, no calling before hand, just walked right in. The yelling, on her part, began again. There was never any point to fight back or stand up for my self when she called me stupid because the woman just start flipping out more. That was it. The moment she came into my personal space I knew I had to quit. If she thought she was able to go that far than there was nowhere I could go to avoid this woman. The next day I quit. Well long story short, she was the signer on the lease for the house my friend and I were living in. When I quit and she lost it, again, we found ourselves on the street the very next day. (this was illegal by the way but we just wanted to get as far away from her as fast as possible!) After checking into a hotel, then finding a 1-bedroom apartment we were free!! 

Again, what happens when it all goes awfully wrong? Smile!! My friend decided he is going to come out to visit me since I no longer had work. He is coming out before the end of term. So I set out looking for some part time work. A week and a half later I found a new full time job. The school was desperate for a teacher even if it would only be for one month and I would be leaving before the term ended. What’s the catch? I’d have to move again, but this time to an even smaller town that I knew nothing about. The only things I had heard was that is was small, boring, there was nothing to do and almost no foreigners. So I took it. Don’t ask me why.

Smile. I’m here now. Sitting on my porch. I wake up to the sounds of roosters yelling at me not to be late. Now going to sleep, listening to the daily intercom chants from the mosque close to the house. The sky is beautiful and the sunsets are even better when they fall behind light clouds and swaying palm trees. It brings in a cool breeze that makes the heat of the day worth it. I'm looking up. I can actually see stars?? Perfect. With maybe 2 scattered clouds, the bright moon and stars shining through palm leaves against the black sky; an image I will never forget. I have no one to speak English to on a regular basis. I’m alone. Smile. The biggest event since I've been here was the rice cropping ceremony that was put on by my school. It had maybe 50 students and 10 teachers. The parents, local towns people, the governor and a camera crew all came. It’s the country! After school and on the weekends I take out my motorbike and just enjoy the mountains and the breeze. I might be alone but there hasn’t been a day yet where I feel alone. Some times we just need to get away from it all. I have a school where they respect me, students who come running across the school just to say hi and shake my hand. Sure there are those tough days when a class of 45 12 year olds don't feel like listening and try and create chaos! I'm tired, have a soar throat from trying to shout over them but at the end of the day, it ok.  The teachers eat lunch with me even though we don’t speak the same language and a town that’s not only beautiful itself but the nicest people who fill it up. The town has only one main road and I do all my shopping at the local market. It will be incredibly sad to say good-bye so soon but I am so happy I’m here and I’m lucky that I said yes. And smiled! 

"What happens when you hold up a cat and drop it? It lands on its feet."-My dad