After three months away, I am finally reunited with my students, my fellow teachers, and my Labis friends. It feels amazing to be back in my town and in my school. Once again, I cannot stop smiling.
There was no pomp and circumstance to accompany my arrival, and that is perfectly fine by me. Seeing the excitement on everyone’s faces and the curiosity of the new students was honestly enough. Students who were so shy all of last year have already held conversations with me (even if I started them). Form One students have approached me and introduced themselves, clearly excited to have a new foreign teacher. Former students have started asking when I’m going to host English Camps and hold Cooking Club and play Ultimate Frisbee. Teachers and students alike have expressed their delight in seeing me return to SMK Labis. I feel inspired.
There are some changes this year. The most prominent is the new week schedule. Starting this year, my state of Johor is reverting to the former Sunday-Thursday workweek. Prior to 1994, the state had Friday-Saturday weekends, and now the Sultan of Johor has decided to return to this former schedule. The reasoning is that Friday is the main religious day for Muslims. I think it will take some getting used to, but it really shouldn’t be a problem.
Other than that, Zawani had her baby boy. Lia is getting married. Syuhada transferred to a different school. There are a few new teachers; two even arrived just today. There are new tables and chairs in the canteen. The seminar room construction is complete; now the room is tiered and it has working aircon. The library has been rearranged. I have a new desk in the teacher’s room. A new assembly stage is under construction at the front of the school. And many students have left the school because they graduated or transferred.
Already I feel as though this year is going to be highly successful. I know it will have its own set of hurdles, but I am thrilled at the prospect of completing what I have planned. The weekly English Teachers Meeting was this afternoon. As I had prepared an Activities Proposal for the year, I was given much time to discuss my thoughts about and programs for the year ahead. Knowing the challenges and successes of last year, I was able to clearly express my wishes for this year and discuss with the English teachers the best ways to meet all of my contract requirements.
Most of today, I spent in various classrooms with students, catching up on the past three months and having a great time. We made origami roses and performed science experiments. We talked about the school holiday, Christmas, music, activities for the coming year, and made many jokes. For students I didn't teach last year, we decorated their classroom while getting to know each other. Additionally, an initial date was set to play Ultimate in the dataran!
Have I mentioned how excited I am to be back in Labis?
