One of my former students asked me the other day to upload a video of him to youtube. At the end of the year last year I had each student recite a portion of a poem for a grade. Kevin, the student featured here, loved to use expression during his recitation ... enjoy! Be careful, it's going to be LOUD!
God is a God of REST. He rested on the 7th day and highly promotes it in his love letter to His children. Through the years I have learned many lessons on this topic, one of which is that rest is absolutely necessary to my well-being, productivity, sanity, health, relationships, ministry and purpose in life.
This past week could be summed up in one word: REST. 
Amazing. The view was stunning and for five days my schedule consisted of sleeping, eating and being (with a little snorkeling, kayaking, and sunbathing). My best friend April and I spent five glorious days soaking in the sun, the beautiful view, catching up on everything that's been happening the past six months, and enjoying a break from the busyness that surrounds us the other 51 weeks out of the year. Ahhh.
We returned from Bali on Friday evening and then she left Jakarta last night. Today was Father's Day (HAPPY FATHER'S DAD, Daddy! I love you and appreciate you!) ... and my goodbye lunch with the three principals and their families.
All of the principals and their husbands left this afternoon for a teacher's conference in Atlanta, so they wanted to have lunch to say goodbye and thanks. It felt like Thanksgiving with all of the kids and talk going around the tables. 
It hit me during church and then again at lunch that these people truly are my family. My love for them is one that only Christ could give and it's rooted deep in my heart. And I am faced with the fact that I deeply love people who live on opposite sides of the world. Every trip I've taken overseas has led me to new people with which I've become heart connected. 
It's a fact of my life that I'll never be with all of them at one time, so all the time I will have to deal with separation issues and missing someone. I guess that is what makes the prospect of Heaven even sweeter ... we'll all be together forever.
These days are a raw mix of emotions, lots of pondering what the future holds, lots of pondering what has taken place in my life over the past two years. I really am thankful for the life that God has given me and the people He has blessed me with. 
What an amazing privilege and blessing to be a part of this family of believers here in Jakarta. I hope it's not too long before I can come back and visit.
School is officially over. Well, except for the piles of grading I have left to do.
Yesterday I took my homeroom class to the local amusement park for our final fun day ... we had a blast. I even overheard one of them saying that it was the best day of their lives. HA! We almost didn't go because I'd heard it was really dirty and smelly. But my roommate went on Monday and said it was no dirtier than any other amusement park. So, we went and I'm so glad we did. There was hardly anyone there, so the longest line we waited in was probably only 30 minutes long. And it only rained for about 10 minutes.
Yesterday the yearbook came in ... what a relief! So after exams everyone was running around and around getting autographs before everyone left school. I'm sooooo glad it's finished and there are only a handful of mistakes that made it in ... and nothing life-shattering.
I'm going up to school later to get some more signatures and sing some more books (and work on grading, and return my textbooks, etc.) A bunch of kids are at school today and tomorrow because WEST SIDE STORY is on Saturday! I'm so excited about the production this year and I can't wait to see it. Even better is that my best friend April, from Franklin, will be getting in at midnight tomorrow, so she'll be watching it with me.
And then Sunday morning is BALI ... oh, I am so excited!
I have so many mixed emotions now that school is finished. Some of my students won't be attending WEST SIDE STORY so I had to say goodbye to them already. So sad. :( But the best part is the great presents! YAY! Now I just have to find a way to fit them all in my suitcase. :)
Pictures from the amusement park yesterday:
Kimberly and Dea as we wait in our first ride of the day. Everyone still looks fresh and clean!
Nita thought it was funny. :)
Having a rest from all the walking and talking. :)
Chachi thinks it's winter time ... and that he's a model.
Jeremy and I are about to flipped and turned in every direction ...
The view from the top of the ferris wheel ... 
In the line ... for the next-to-last ride. YAY!
After the last ride ... the WET ONE! So long grade seven ... have a great summer!
I think making a yearbook is like birthing a baby. We push and groan and feel the pain until finally, the end result comes out. Gross?? :) Well, I've never birthed a baby before, but it feels what I imagine it would be like - more in a mental, emotional sense, though.
The yearbook is past due, but we're not finished with the design . It's got to be just right or else our year of taking pictures, collecting quotes, compiling information will all be for naught. And I don't want to see that happen. My editing skills sure do come in handy when it comes time for this (thanks Dr. Bowles and Mr Miller ... college professors). I know the designers hate me when they get these mile-long e-mails full of tedious corrections, but I can't help it. I would HATE to see the final product with spelling errors, or worse kids with the wrong identification or anything of the like.
It will be a sweet day with I hold the final product in hand. I really love the design this year, so much better than last year. It's going to be good and I'm getting a sense of the whole thing. I think I'll cry when they hand be the actual book. It'll all be worth it in the end!
Oh, and I am the gatekeeper of this thing. Sometimes I'll get the updated design and there will be things in there that I didn't approve. What?!?!?!? I don't get it ... why people will go around me and try to put something in the yearbook. Ain't happening ... thanks, but no thanks. :) Just bring it to me and we'll see about it, but it's too confusing when too many people are inserting what they want. I've seen it happen here many times before ... it never works, though. (Just needed to vent for a moment.)
This thing's going to the printer on Monday, ready or not ... so I'd better get back to editing.
Marvelin, Neysa, Ellena and Danielle ... they've been in my class for these two years. Love you girls!!
Their artwork ...
So you're going to have to endure a month of "lasts" here at Asia and Chocolate, but I think you'll survive. I hope I survive.
Today was the last day of my program A classes. (The school is divided into two programs: one meets on Mon, Wed and Fri; and the other one meets on Tue, Thurs, and Sat.) Since Friday is my day off, this was my last day of classes with this set of students. The day started out normally enough. I went to devotions and we pray with the kids before the day starts. I prayed with my usual girls and when it was done I mentioned that this was my last devotions with program A. The little one gave me an extra long hug. Then my first class was with grade 6. They gave me a standing ovation when I walked out of class for the last time. I got tears in my eyes when I was walking back to the teacher's lounge. I love those kids.
Then I had a long break, during which I had to go to the bank down the street. I was near Krispy Kreme, so I decided to pick up 5 dozen donuts for my next two classes. (I dropped off a box for the 6th graders at lunchtime and they finished them in about 15 seconds.) We had fun eating and chatting. My 7th grade is finished with their lessons, so we just killed time, eating donuts, remembering our favorite moments over the past two years. It was a fun hour with lots of laughs. My 5th graders took all my white board markers and decorated the board for me and then we took pictures together. (The battery is dead in my camera and I don't want to go find the charger right now, so maybe I'll post them later.)
I'll still see the kids during exams and then I'm taking a few classes out for their fun day after exams, so it's not like I'll never see them again. But it won't be in that classroom setting. I could be having the worst day ever and be so very tired, but being in those classrooms always made life better. They always made me smile. Sure there were times when they drove me crazy, but it was a good kind of crazy. I just love them!
I wish I had been more diligent in writing down the humorous and oftentimes hysterical things my students sometimes say. (For example, the summary of the Parable of the Lost Sheep from last year.)
In March I took over another teacher's class when she went on maternity leave. This class is absolutely ... what would you call it? Vibrant? They are so full of imagination and ideas. This one kids answer always sound like they came from some movie or TV show ... wild imaginations.
So today we were discussing a story about a man who went on a vacation to Mexico. While he was there he was falsely accused of smuggling drugs and had to escape from prison. This led to discussions on what is smuggling, and would you break out of prison if you were in the same position, etc.
So a little girl whom we'll call Julie had the following conversation with me ...
Julie*: "Do you know that squirrels and rabbits sometimes eat drugs?"
Me: "Oh really? No, I didn't know that. How do you know?"
Julie: "Well, the smuggler puts drugs in the ground to hide it and the squirrels and rabbits smell the drugs and eat them."
Me: "Did you read that somewhere?"
Julie: "No, I just know it."
Me: "Hmmm, I see."
What can you say to that? No discussion would ever convince her that rabbits and squirrels do not, in fact, take drugs. Maybe she's right? I don't know. These conversations happen all the time.
A while back in another class I had this conversation.
Erin*: "Miss Laura, did you see that Michael Jackson is now a Muslim?"
Me: "No, I did not see that."
Erin: "Well, I'm glad he's not a Christian!"
Me: "Oh? Why is that?" (expecting her to say something like, he's a bad example, or has a criminal record, or something along those lines.)
Erin: "Because he had plastic surgery."
Rebecca*: "And because he's the father of Anna Nicole Smith's baby."
Me: "Hmmm, interesting."
* Names have been changed to protect the cute, yet misinformed.
For me, Mondays are my hell days. Nearly 6 hours of straight teaching. No lunch, no scheduled break, just leading reading/literature classes for six hours. I know there are worse things in life, but it's hard for me. I do it every Monday, though ... not any more. Today was the last one. I'm slightly relieved.
I've been going through the gamut of emotions/dealing with leaving. Last week I was weepy, but this week I have something closer akin to ... senioritis? Yes, I'm ready to be finished. I'm ready to see what the next season of life holds. I just have to finish the yearbook (STILL!!), finish grading papers, teach four more days of class, and give four final exams. Oh, the end is near, and I've already started packing. (I'll still miss the kiddos, though. Definitely.)
Bali, here I come.
These are mine ... my form class (homeroom) and
7of them and I have done life together over the past two years. I love you guys!
It starts out innocently enough.
"Ms. Laura, how old are you?"
"I'm 26."
Wait for it ... wait for it.
"Mmmmm, Ms. Laura? How come you're not married?"
It never fails. Every. Single. Day. that I'm at school, at least one person asks me these exact questions. I've started to just ask the second question after they ask the first. Where do they learn this stuff??
And about last night's post ... I'm fine, really. I just was so tired and still had so much to do. Found out this morning that the reason I was so tired was because I now have a cold. Oh well, such is life. Today was quite productive and tomorrow is my light day at school, so everything is OK. :)
