Perspective

I was frustrated that, once again, no one showed up for class, so I left after waiting for 20 minutes to make my way back to the office. I had waited for thirty minutes for the last class to show up after the assembly, but of course no one did.

A student stops me on the stairs and I am able to ascertain that she is from the class I was waiting for.  At the same time another teacher walks up and decides she needs to translate, and basically tells me I didn't wait long enough. UGH!  Had I never come back from waiting I wouldn't have met the girl, but trying to explain this is wasted energy.

Anyway, I head back down to the picnic tables where my class has been the whole time, and after checking everyone in, I thought, well crap, what do we do with less than half the class period left and no chalkboard. No one has the worksheet from last week, so I decided to spend the remaining thirty minutes just trying to talk to them.

And that is when that beautiful thing called perspective hit me smack in the face.

I was pleased at how easily we communicated in this smaller informal setting, they understood my slower voice with much ease.  Two girls in particular, the one who caught me in the hall and her friend, were really interested in knowing more about me than the basic "do you have a faen? (boyfriend)."  And I was interested in learning about them, a rare opportunity it seems since most of my energy is spent controlling the unruly students during classtime instead of having conversations with the brightest ones.

Turns out Ban Mi Wittaya has 38 girls from across the country who live on school grounds to be a part of our famous volleyball team. They have traveled to Russia, China, Vietnam, Korea.... but not without cost. The two girls I was speaking with wake up every morning, school or no school, at 5 am.  They jog, even though they hate it. And when they are done with their run, they practice their skills until it's time to get ready for class.  Then, when school is over, they practice for hours more, and by nighttime they can be seen riding their bicycles around for more exercise.

They have not seen their families in a year. They are 16 and 17 years old.

These girls were recruited to play volleyball for our "high school." And they have contracts to fulfill. The 17 year old still has two years left to play for Ban Mi Wittaya, and the 16 year old has four years left.

My volleyball girls and me

I was so stunned I didn't even know what to say to them, other than wow.  They seemed happy enough, other than the jogging part. Who was I to judge?  My heart aches for them, but maybe it shouldn't? Maybe this is an amazing opportunity that will provide futures for them that they never dreamed of. I'm trying to see it that way, any how. Either way, what an amazing thirty minutes. :)