Darren's First Jordan Post

Well, I think the dust is finally settling from our whirlwind start. Arriving in Amman on Friday evening and starting work on Sunday morning was…fun. Oh, and grade 12 started a week early, so on Tuesday (that’s right, the 3rd day) I had to teach my first class! As for classes, originally I had grade 8 World Religions, grade 9 World Religions, grade 10 World Religions, grade 11 World Religions (x3), grade 12 World Religions (x2), grade 8 Social Studies, grade 9 World History, and grade 10 World History (x3). But the guy in charge of scheduling thought that was a little heavy, especially for a new teacher, so he gave my grade 12 classes to someone else. This, of course, is not a daily schedule, but spread over a 2-week "cycle" in which I teach 32 classes. Needless to say, I stay pretty busy!

In my office 

I’m still getting used to the "cycles" and everything else that goes along with the International Baccalaureate Program. Also, the school is struggling to migrate to a new record-keeping platform, so we've had trouble with class schedules, room assignments, class lists, and submitting attendance. In the last month, my schedule has been changed 3 times, I don't have my own room but float for every class, I just got the list of students in my grade 11 classes (although I was warned that they may not be up-to-date), and the other day was the first day I could submit attendance for my middle school classes electronically. Stress level slow and steady…

Lest I sound like a big, fat whiner, it's not all bad, by any means: the people here are as nice as we remember, the food is fabulous, and I like the classes I'm teaching. I just try to keep up with everything and not stress out too much. It will all fall into place with time, I'm sure.

Downtown Amman

Other than work, we’ve not done too much. The first break is coming up soon for the Eid al’Adha and we are heading to Rome! The FOT starts during the break, so were are extending our trip and staying in Saboudia for that. Once we get our residency cards we can do some more travel inside Jordan.

Amber's First Jordan Post

Well friends, it has been a month since we touched down in Jordan. We hit the ground running! We had one day to rest and recoup before we started our new jobs. We started out with a few days of orientation mixed with really bad jetlag. This caused us to want to sleep during the middle of the day, which was really inconvenient when you are supposed to be listening and absorbing information. After a few days of this, Darren and I got to start our real jobs. I have never been an administrative assistant and this is Darren's first year being a teacher. Now we are half-way around the world doing jobs we have never done before. We were both nervous and excited about the new opportunities!

My desk

Almost my entire adulthood I have worked with kids. For the last 3 years or so I have been wanting to try out a secretary-type position, but with no experience to speak of in that area, no one would hire me. I can't blame them, but it was really frustrating. When Darren looked into teaching at the Amman Baccalaureate School, they got back with him right away; they also inquired about me, and if I would be interested in working for the school, as well. It just so happened that they promoted two people in the Middle Years office, which left the Administrative Assistant position open. So I was offered this position, and I accepted it. I was so excited to learn that I would be working for a lady that I met when we lived in Jordan 4 years ago! She is a wonderful boss to have, and she is very patient with me. I try hard to be useful in the office, even if I'm not quite sure what I should be doing.

My first day in the office, I answered the phone a few times. The people on the other end started to ask me questions that I couldn't answer, and I didn't know how to transfer calls yet to get them to people who could help them. So, that is when my fear of the phone started. I turned down the ringer for the next two or three days till I learned more about the school. I am no longer afraid of the phone, which is good, because that is a big part of my job. There were large parts of the day when I wasn't sure what to do. So, I decided to organize the cabinets so at least when people came in asking for different supplies I could actually get them what they needed. You know how when you organize and clean things you get to a point where it becomes a huge mess before it becomes clean and tidy? It never failed that as soon as I reached this point people would come into the office and look at me like I was a bit crazy.

I have discovered a great love and appreciation for post-it-notes. They are a lifesaver when you need to jot down some quick notes. In a day I do many different thing ranging from answering phones, calming frustrated parents, keeping an eye on kids that are in trouble, filing endless amounts of paper, helping kids find their classes, and anything else that may pop up.

The work week is Sunday through Thursday. It is my goal to bake something different for each Thursday of the school year. When people come into the office I tell them, "Happy Thursday!" and give them one of my baked goods.

Aside from work, we have been trying to get our apartment to feel homey. We have gone out shopping a few times and bought some things. We got a painting, an embroidered blanket that we will hang on the wall, a small mosaic, and some patio furniture. It is really starting to feel like our home. We have yet to venture out of the city, because we are waiting for our residence cards. Once we have them, we can pay local prices to enter touristy places, which can be very helpful in some cases.

Challenger West Program (Darren)

Challenger West Program: Dubois, Wyoming

What can I say about Challenger, other than it was tough, exciting, and beautiful in alternating waves?  Tough because from the very beginning we were given new challenges, put in uncomfortable situations, and tested physically.  Exciting because of new experiences, risky situations, and the opportunity for growth.  Beautiful because of increased personal insight, natural splendor, and friendships built. 

In preparation for this program, we were required to read two books, one on finding and building up your natural strengths (Strengths Finder 2.0) and one on developing authentic leadership skills (True North).  These were both informative and insightful, and helped me understand my strengths and motivations better.  Of course, we also had to train physically, so I was hitting the gym at the Y regularly to build upper-body strength (for rock climbing), and we did a couple preparatory hikes to condition our legs (although not as many as we should have!).

In Dubois on Sunday we started our orientation: a little training, packing for the trip, meeting new people, and dealing with different personalities.  Then on Tuesday morning we hit the trailhead.

The hike up was pretty grueling, starting with over 3000 feet elevation gain in about 3 miles.  Not the hardest I’ve ever done, but still pretty miserable at times, especially considering that we were going from 7000 to 10,000 feet above sea level.  At that elevation you get out of breath so much easier than normal, even doing the most ordinary things.  Still, the scenery was gorgeous and we saw some wildlife, including grouse and bighorn sheep.  

If you're curious, here’s the link to Google maps satellite view of the area: https://www.google.jo/maps/place/Dubois,+WY,+USA/@43.4042474,-109.6545372,7778m/data=!3m1!1e3!4m2!3m1!1s0x534d5e824c80832b:0x3454e61a8b25ffee?hl=en

We stayed at our first campsite for a few nights, taking advantage of the surrounding area during the day for orienteering and rock climbing (when it wasn’t raining, that is).  The orienteering looked to be pretty straightforward according to the maps we were given: go up a pretty steep slope to reach the top of a plateau, then walk on the flat top to the meeting point.  In reality, the plateau was not nearly as flat as the map made it out to be, but was actually dotted by jutting peaks of exposed granite.  Going up and over a couple of these was fun, but it set us back a lot, and my group was not the first to reach the meeting point.  Rock climbing was great!  It was also exhausting!  “You can do it, Darren! Take the crack route first.  It’s only the most physically demanding route here!”  Counter-balancing 200 pounds while having your fingers crammed into a crack in solid granite while hanging above the ground, all while over 10,000 feet above sea level, is exhausting…but exhilarating at the same time.  Definitely want to do more of this in the future!

Next, we hiked down a few miles to the far end of Ross Lake, where we stayed a few more days.  While here, we did some fishing, some repelling, and had church services.  Very nice, all, except that I didn’t catch any fish.  Despite being told we would have great luck in Ross Lake, hardly anyone caught anything there (although several people caught some at Upper Ross Lake).  Still fun, and some of the most beautiful scenery I’ve seen anywhere.

The hike out was long, but rather uneventful, and we were treated to a great dinner when we finally got to the end.  A wonderful trip overall, lots of fond memories, and some good friendships made in the process.  Thank you to everyone involved in the Challenger West program, staff and participants alike!

~Darren