Back to School

Back to School

I was in a crowd of adults, packed close enough that I was physically touching multiple people. Every once and awhile there would be a push at my waist as a child tried to force their way through the adults to the gathered children in the middle of the crowd.

Depending on your opinion, we either came at just the right time this year or we were late. It was the “Re-entry” Day (at least that is the French  word they use, we’d probably say “Back to School” Day). Normal school days start at 7am and so many families were there since that time, but we came a little past 8:30. So instead of milling around for over an hour, when we arrived the crowds had already gathered around the stairs from where the directrice would address the assembled parents and children. The children are supposed to be in neat lines based upon their grade in front of the stairs with the parents calmly observing from the outskirts. In reality, the space isn’t big enough for both the children and parents to fit neatly, so the kids’ lines get muddled and buckled up as the mass of parents clamber around, corralling the kids until their lines turn into a messy jumble in the middle.

The "Rentry" crowd

When we arrived, the directrice was just making her way to the stairs. We got to the outer edge of parents and then I pushed my kids forward and adults let them through. I couldn’t follow them, but I told them to find their classmates and say “Present” when their name was called. I worked my way along the outside of the adults until I could actually see the directrice, knowing I’d understand her better if I could see her face (the island language is not my first language after all). Not that anyone could hear her clearly. Too many people, too much background noise and muttering. “She should have a megaphone,” multiple parents grumbled. I caught enough to know that it was basically the same “Back to School” spiel as previous years— “Don’t be late, don’t give your kids sugary snacks, don’t do your kids’ homework for them…”

Several minutes in, I got tapped and looked down to see our youngest son in tears pushing his way toward me. He was wiping at his eyes and taking deep breaths, trying to calm himself but he was obviously overwhelmed. Our kids are the only foreign kids in the school. This was our youngest son’s second “Re-entry” experience, but the year before I had been with him the whole time. He isn’t particularly strong in either French or the local language and couldn’t find his classmates in the corral of kids and couldn’t remember what he was supposed to say when they called his name. So he had spent those several minutes getting worked up and scared.

Our youngest in the crowd

I gave him a hug and reassured him that even when I’m not with him, that God is always there and he didn’t need to be scared. I asked the crowd to make a way and this time I pushed forward with our son. Soon a boy called out his name with a smile and as soon as he saw our son’s tears, he put his arms around his neck and held him for awhile. Our son looked back at me and gave me a tentative smile.

Sometimes we think about our kids’ school experience and we grieve that they aren’t having the positive school experiences we had at home in the USA. School here can be pretty tedious. The teaching style isn’t very dynamic or engaging. They don’t do many fun activities. No science experiments, no crafts, no exciting visuals, no field trips. Plus, our kids are the only foreign kids in the school, so they are always different, always scrutinized.

Still we remind ourselves that just because it isn’t what they would have had in the US, it isn’t all bad either. There is still the friendly teacher who kneels down, smiles and introduces herself to our 7 year old. There are the friends who share their snacks. There are the games at recess. There is the learning how to interact and build friendships across cultures. Our kids aren’t having our experiences, but they are learning a lot.

Our oldest in her new classroom

PRAYERS ANSWERED
Megan did another open ocean swim.  We are thankful for this new opportunity for her to enjoy a sport she loves.  We are also thankful that her back has remained healthy enough for her to do these sorts of things.  The kids’ first days of school went well and they all seem to have positive feelings about their teachers. We’re also thankful that homeschool continues to go so smoothly.  Most days the kids enjoy their assignments and get their work done in good time. Some recent celebrations have allowed us to continue to deepen connections with friends and neighbors.  We’re thankful for the ways we are continually allowed into community here.

PRAYERS REQUESTED
Ma Imani still isn’t well. We’ve heard that there was a scary episode where she stopped breathing and her family worried that she had died. Still not sure exactly what is wrong as she has gotten differing diagnoses. Pray for her healing, that she would be able to breathe again fully and normally and that it would be understood what is happening with her lungs. Ma Imani is a wonderful connector of people and so we pray that even through her illness that she could be drawing the people together on the big island. Our former teammates who now serve “next door” on the French Island are in France so that our friend (the Brazilian doctor) can take exams that would allow him to be a fully-recognized doctor on the French Island (so far he has been working as an intern). Pray for him as he takes these exams, especially as they are changing the hospital’s visa practices and he might not be able to get a visa as an intern in the future. Pray that this added pressure would not cause extra stress but that his exams will go well. Pray for our kids as they start their school years, that God would protect them and bless them with good friends and teachers.