Week 1- The Week of the Gringa : Monica Majors

Week 1- The Week of the Gringa : Monica Majors

This week has been a week to remember. Not only did I travel to another hemisphere, but I kindly dropped my person and belongings in the house of another with confidence of the next three weeks being time well spent. Boy was I correct! My short time here has pushed and pulled on me personally, academically, and socially. As I write this, I had to steal away from my family --our night is filled with laughter. stories, Netflix, and translation.

The funny thing about translation is that is a necessary evil of convenience for me, both beneficial and a crutch. At my house I speak English; almost my entire family has a level of conversational English. I relish in my feelings of comfort as my host sister translates for others who do not understand. Conversely, my host sister is not always present and my neurons fire at lightening speed looking for the right Spanish words to translate my thoughts... Puedo tener a empanada!

The school is a refreshing anomaly in my educational experiences. I have already picked up a few tools to bring back home and I am excited about the coming weeks. Every student and each period carries the possibility of learning not only for the students, but for this American gringa. Carlos Mora is more than helpful and open to sharing in the uniqueness of his classroom. I'm getting ready to teach a class on street art/graffiti. I'm excited to share the commonality of Chile and the USA in that regard. More to tell next week.

Chao!