bits + pieces.

while i was walking back to my little house today i couldn't help but feel like the ground was breathing. this is going to sound sort of silly, but the humidity was so dense that it actually felt like the ground was breathing hot air. the warmth was radiating from the grass and for once instead of being frustrated about my consistent back sweat (i bet you're glad i gave you that mental image), i was grateful. and then i got to thinking about other interesting and funny things i was grateful for this week. here is my list:

- we all know that i have an obsession with simply adore kalo (my 3-year-old next door neighbor). well, today she was swinging outside my classroom and while my students were diligently working on their assignments i heard her yelling outside. i peeked out to see her swinging from the mango tree in her yard and yelling "ta'e! ta'e! ta'e!" i bet you are wondering what that means, right? guys, she was yelling "sh*t! sh*t! sh*t!". i know i shouldn't have laughed (and i didn't let her see me) but wow that little girl has spunk.

- today i did a mini lesson on there, their and they're. 3 of my students wrote down "they're cooking their dog over there in their 'umu. they're going to eat it for dinner." and i told them they did a great job and then i realized that two years ago i would have been super alarmed by such a sentence, but not anymore. we eat dog here. and it tastes sort of like chicken.

- this afternoon i sat with my students in an abandoned building next to a rugby field. my students are practicing for sports day which will take place tomorrow in town against three other schools. last year we didn't practice or prepare much for the big day so this year we're taking things a bit more serious. i sat with the youngest kids and we sang songs and cheered the older ones on. instead of batons (to pass) we used sticks, instead of running shoes we were bare foot. 

- my village loves zumba and every day i am asked if we are going to "pe 'anai?" (do PE later?). my students especially love Abba so today we got down (see picture above) to a little mamma mia. good times :-)

what about you? what's new? what are you grateful for?