Those who follow this blog know that teaching here in Baku has been challenging for me. There have certainly been highs and lows, and at some points I felt pretty disheartened by having students who would not do their work or played on their phones in class. But while the lows have been low, highs have really uplifted me.
Recently I had a student apply for a State Department program that would allow him to travel to the US. He said he got the confidence to apply thanks to my class. I had students tell me they love me. Yes, love. Moments like that remind me of why I started teaching in the first place, but wanting to be something and knowing it is truly a good fit for you are two different things. Today I got the ultimate validation that teaching is what I am meant to be doing right now.
I had a pretty rough, whirlwind of a weekend personally. It started with an unpleasant conversation at the office, right before it was time to go home. It spiraled down, when I heard some unfortunate news. All the things that transpired, have been weighing on me as I had plenty of free time over this long weekend. My mind has been going non-stop trying to figure out solutions to my problems.
And then today rolled in and I had a lesson with one of my undergrad classes. For that hour, all my troubles melted away. I forgot about everything, and I was in the zone. I enjoyed hearing my students telling me about their weekend activities and doing the assignments I gave them in class. We worked on narration a lot, so the students came up with funny and creative stories that uplifted me and turned my frown upside down, literally. I felt enthusiastic, and was able to check all my problems at the door to engage my students and indeed I left feeling exhilarated.
When you can let all the personal bs go and get in the zone doing something, you know that something is what you’re meant to do. I cannot wait for my next teaching post.
South of Russia, North of Iran 