An Active & Altered Agenda

My life in Madrid is really starting to kick into high gear. From teaching English to kids of all ages to participating in new extracurricular endeavours, I am maneuvering my way through the hustle and bustle of city life on my figurative motorbike (if only I could have a real one!), shifting gears for stops and turns along the detoured-prone road. Currently, my weekly route takes me through the following:

School: My “time-table,” as Cristina calls it, has been changed multiple times in the past few weeks. Originally, I was working only with 1^st & 3^rd grades. Since our fourth assistant never showed up, everything was sent into chaos mode. After several rearrangements in my school schedule, my time at school is now spent mostly with 5^th grade; the rest has been divided up between 3^rd, 1^st, and kindergarten. All of the switching and inconsistency has been keeping me on my toes, literally. I’ve been running up and down the three flights of stairs enough times to make me an expert at the Stairmaster.

Even though I want to get a fixed schedule so I can really start working with my kids and my co-workers, the cool thing that has come from all this craziness is that I now know almost every single kid in the bilingual program (with the exception of this year’s 2^nd graders). It always makes me smile to hear the kids call out my name, “Laura! Laura!” (explanation of my identity crisis found can be found in the Blog post made on September 29, 2008) and to see them waving and grinning at me as I walk through the patio. Sometimes, they even latch onto my arms and legs and won’t let go until I pry their small fingers apart. This “celebrity status” thing is really nice and it really does create some kind of blissful high that I can imagine would become addicting. My sympathies to the real celebrities in this world.

Private classes: By the grace of God, I was able to arrange my private classes perfectly so that I don’t have any dead time between classes, a major inconvenience and downright annoyance I had to deal with last year. I am working with three of the same families from last year: the twins Marcos & Aitor, the little girls Paloma & Lucia (& now Ana, who’s maybe 3), and my two “big kids” Fernando & Belén. I have also picked up classes with two 4^th grade girls (Andrea & Andrea) and a class with three 4^th grade boys (Yes…Kike, Manuel, & Omar are quite a handful!) and two 6^th grade boys Javier & Alex. I have a total of 10 lessons per week, which is such a blessing and a joy. I am very fond of these kids, and I love getting to work with them one on one.

Swimming: I’ve started going to the pool near my school and swimming three times a week during my two hour lunch break. I’ve never been a competitive swimmer—although, I always did want to be a Dothan Dolphin—and I’m trying to pick up some tips on technique by watching other swimmers around me and by researching a few internet sites. If you’ve got some good advice on proper swimming, please send it my way! I am really enjoying this activity because it breaks up my day quite nicely, it gives my body some good exercise, and it’s something I think I could get into for the rest of my life. My only complaint is that, by default, I am surrounded by naked Spanish women of all ages for longer than I would ever care to be every week. Too much information? You bet!

Volleyball: Remember those girls with whom I played volleyball back in June? (If not, see Blog Entry from June 17.) Impressed by my superior skills when we played together in June, Maria asked me to join her team once the season started in October. Of course, it was the opportunity I had been hoping for, and I said “count me in!” I am now a registered team member of Las Otras, a misfit group of Spanish women who play in a community volleyball league. We had a scrimmage match a few weeks ago but our first league match this past Sunday. We won. The season goes through March, and I hope to have many more W’s when all is said and done!

Church: It’s been such a wonderful thing to have a church home to return to this year. My involvement with The Community Church of Madrid and my friendship with Pastora Cathy are great examples of the living and loving body of Christ. Unfortunately, most of my volleyball games are on Sunday mornings, and therefore, I’ll have to pick and choose when I go where. Luckily, Oasis Madrid, another international English-speaking church, holds services some Saturday evenings, so I will have the opportunity for Christian fellowship there, too!

Spanish class: I am going to stick with my Mosaic Spanish class on Friday evenings. Hopefully, I can drill in some of those grammar rules that don’t stick when speaking Spanish. Unfortunately, I will be missing a very helpful lesson on the subjunctive tense this coming Friday, but with good reason…

Traveling: I am flying back to the United States on Thursday in order to attend Todd and Sally’s wedding in Tennessee! I can’t wait to tell you all about it!