Home sweet home

Being back home is definitely bittersweet.  I am so happy to be back with my family and friends again and back to working, but I definitely miss Costa Rica.  I have only been back for a short while and I’m ready to start planning a return trip.  Although the trip had its stressful moments I’ve realized, what class doesn’t?  On the trip there were times that I let the stress get to me more than I should have and that is unfortunate.  I do feel though that even that has been a big part of helping me grow on this trip.  There were trials with homesickness, arguments, stress, and so many other things, but it has ultimately made me a better person, and a better teacher. 

                Before coming on this trip I was very worried about how everything would go with my home stays.  I had never expected the biggest challenge to be with the mix of people on the trip.  But even this was a helpful learning experience.  There are always going to be people that you don’t get along with all the time, especially in teaching teams.  It is very important to be able to work with people even if they aren’t your favorite people in the world.  I think this trip has helped with this a lot.  This past semester a lot of my classmates learned this in our unit groups.  During the semester I got lucky in that I got along with my partners very well, which will also happen sometimes.  However, the fact that this was the ideal situation didn’t help me get used to having to work with people that are very different from me.  On this trip I not only had to interact with them but I had to live with them more or less.  Although I wasn’t working on projects with these people directly, it has still helped to prepare me for what it might be like to work on a teaching team with people that I don’t get along with 100%. 

                There were times on the trip when I was ready to just leave and go back home.  But now, looking back I am more than glad that I went on this trip.  It wasn’t easy but then again nothing worth it is easy.  It was a process but I made it through and I am a stronger and better person for it.  This trip has changed me and I’m glad for that.  I feel such a great pride in myself for taking the step and going on the trip despite how scared I was.  I’m proud that I did the things I did and faced my fears.  This trip truly is a once in a lifetime experience and I would highly recommend it to anyone and everyone in the department.  I went thinking that I would learn about ELL students, but I learned so much more than that.  I learned about myself, and for that I am grateful.  I am grateful to the department and the teachers who all made this trip possible; because getting to learn about myself in this way was priceless.  PURA VIDA!!!!!