Michael: Penance

A silent Friday
Night, without barks or parties,
Is a rare blessing.

Saturday, Sept. 26, 2015

Wow! That “Be careful what you wish for,” thing sometimes comes back to bite you sooner than you think.

I was an elementary school teacher in California for 25 years. Many of those years were spent with Spanish speaking immigrant children. My struggles to learn Spanish here in Panama has given me a sense of empathy for those students that wasn’t as strong as it should have been when I was a teacher. I feel guilty about that and hope that in someway, at sometime, I can go back into teaching in some capacity and better assist second language learners.

That opportunity may have come much sooner than I expected. Yesterday, at the Friday market, an ex-pat came up to Kimme and me and asked if we would volunteer to teach English Wednesday afternoons to adults. We  would only be asked to assist through October when the program goes on hiatus for 3 months to coincide with the elementary school calendar. The program resumes again in March, so we could volunteer at that time if we’re not needed now.  

Being with 5 to 6 adults who are motivated to learn English while we’re trying to learn Spanish could prove beneficial for all concerned. Hopefully, we could do what we’re suppose to do and teach some basic English. That would give us a way to help out and become part of the community. It would also motivate us to try and communicate better (I.e. learn Spanish) by giving us the opportunity to bond with Panamanians. And it would give me the opportunity to assuage some of the guilt I have over not doing a better job with the students I had who were struggling so valiantly to understand me.