August 30, 2009

Twilight

There is an elephant in the room.

What I mean is this, I feel distant from God. I don't like feeling this way at all. But as much as I try I can't seem to bridge the gap. As time goes on I feel more cold, as if my life were slowly fading away. Is there a cure for this sickness? My conscience tells me yes, repentance. This I have tried but it seems to be of no use. Does God just stay SILENT sometimes on purpose? Or is he speaking to me and I just can't hear him? I do not want to slide any farther but I can't seem to get my footing. There has been so much change in my life lately that I can hardly recognize a thing. I don't even recognize myself right now.

August 29, 2009

LADO TEFL certificate

This past friday was the final day for the TEFL certificate course I was taking. The practicum and theory are over but a sizable amount of work still remains to be done. In addition to a revision of my final lesson with assessment notes in a publishable format, I need to read 2 books, write a comprehensive final exam and complete a cultural profile for Taiwan (or whatever country I decide I want to go to). Former participants of the course said the final assigments that make up our "toolbox" could easily take a month to complete! I need to not lose any steam and keep a rigorous schedule going to get all my work done asap.

All in all, I think the course was really good. It definitely pushed me to the breaking point a couple of times, but I am so glad I didn't quit. It was something I needed to do. I think it has made me stronger and inclined me to be more proactive. Teaching is really quite rewarding when you see your students catch on to what's being taught and they get excited about learning and practicing English. I do think teaching is a good fit for me, at least with the meager 13 hours of experience I have had so far. Time might say otherwise, but only after a serious dedication to teaching for some time would I even think about turning to something else. Now the task at hand is to land that first teaching gig, wherever in the world that may be.

I've always wanted to travel extensively abroad, but now that I am facing a very good possibility of doing so I find myself holding back just a little bit. Maybe it's the uncertainty of going out into the world all by myself. I definitely always hoped I'd do some traveling once I found that special someone, but things are the way they are for a reason and I am determined to accept my circumstances as a gift. I am young, single, unattached and multilingual. It would seem that indeed the world is my oyster. Now I just need to the guts to step out on my own adventure.