Ash Wednesday

I have been a Catholic my whole life, so Ash Wednesday is nothing new to me, but this was my first time experiencing it as a teacher in a Catholic school. Today was the second time that we have had Mass at the school, but the first time was within my first week of being at the school so it doesn’t count. Controlling 35 kids in the classroom is hard, but it’s a different kind of hard to keep them quiet for Mass. There is no such thing as personal time or space, so you just say your prayers quickly and then attend to whichever student is asking for you next. Also Mass here is always at least 2 hours long, so thats a long time for kids to sit still and behave. Everyone received ashes in the school, but me having ashes on fair skin was shocking to my students. The ashes showed a little more on my light skin and all my students were surprised to see it. They also made a big deal about me going for communion as if they had never seen someone receive communion before. Life with 35 6-7 year olds is always interesting to say the least.

As I am in my 5th week teaching I am getting to know my students more and more. The students are beginning to open up more as they feel more comfortable with me. For some this took only 2 days, but for others it took a few weeks. If I didn’t know any better I would think one of my little boys has a crush on me.  I also get asked more and more questions about my life. One day I had a student ask me if I had parents, and then was really surprised when I said yes. I also had a student ask me if I put the clips together on my backpack if it turns into a jetpack. The questions come in all forms, but I love all of them!

Also, side note. I bought fabric at the market last weekend and will be bringing it to the seamstress to be made into dresses! I'm really excited!