Meeting Leo and Gabriel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . and The Rodviens' Big Island Vacation . .

One of the most special things that happened in the past month was finally getting to meet George's two sons, Leo and Gabriel. After hearing so much about these two wonderful fellows and even talking to them on the phone, I was very excited to meet them in person. They were every bit as wonderful as George had described them. During their all-too-short visit, we managed to get to the beach, the Polynesian Cultural Center, and Volcano National Park on the Big Island. George took leave from work to so he could spend more time with them and so the three of them could have some quality time together while I was at work.

Going to Volcano National Park was definitely the highlight of our visit together. Let's just say that Gabe, Leo, George, and I made a perfect little group to tromp around on the hardened lava, through a lava tube, and between the steam vents at the park. It was a great time, made very special spending it with my wonderful hubby and his two bright, talented, caring, thoughtful, and completely wonderful sons.

I've post pictures of our Big Island trip, but they are in a private online photo album. If you'd like to see the pics - and a few videos - shoot me an email and I'll be more than happy to share the link with you!

Kahuku's May Night in April

The school where I teach is awesome. I witnessed more evidence of its awesomeness at its annual May Night Celebration, held at the nearby Polynesian Cultural Center. At this event, students from the whole school - not just choir and theater students - perform a complete assortment of dances and songs from various Polynesian cultures. While many Samoan kids perform in the Samoan numbers, for example, there is also a lot of cultural mixing. Plenty of haoles (white folks) dance in the numbers and some Polynesian students perform in another culture's group. Pictures simply don't do it justice, but if you use your imagination, you can get a taste of this amazing annual school-wide event. Don't miss the videos I posted here along with pictures.

Quincy is Ridiculous

He likes to take naps in a flower box in the sun:

Beach Day!

Sometime in early April before the busy-ness in my life turned into complete chaos, George and I and two Army friends Jason and Angkiko went off in search of waves for our new boogie boards. We didn't find waves. Nonetheless, we managed to have a nice day at the beach. Actually, I challenge someone to have a NOT nice day at the beach in Oahu. Aside from forgetting sunscreen or some other equally essential item, it's pretty hard to screw up here. Its simply gorgeous. Way back when, I posted a few pics and you can see them here.

Holy Jebus, Batman!

Life has been unbelievably busy for the past two months. In the last sixty days, I have done the following:

1. Bought a house
2. Wrote a 20-ish-page paper and took a final exam for an education class
3. Moved into a new house
4. Escorted 25 ELL students/teenagers to a local Speech Festival on the bus with the driver from hell
5. Redesigned my school's ELL program/course-offerings
6. Met my (wonderful!) step-children, Gabriel and Leo
7. Spent a weekend on the Big Island of Hawaii with hubby and step-children
8. Grieved the loss of my family's 22-year-old cat, Chelsea
9. Flew to Washington, D.C.
10. Attended my sister's graduation
11. Visited with parents and my DC friends
12. Attended the wedding of two good friends
13. Chased around 30+ ELL students to ensure that they pass English (and graduate from high school!)
    
14. Suffered a 14-day-long sinus infection
15. Budgeted for and ordered a years' worth of ELL curriculum materials
16. Completed some long and random federal monitoring report
17. Wished Aloha Oe' (until we meet again) to my deploying hubby and sweetheart
18. And probably at least a dozen more things I can't remember right now...

Holy Jebus, Batman! How did this happen? When did life become so crazy? And can I really get off the crazy train now?

Its been a fun, but wild ride. Many good things have come into my life, even thought many came at a pace that I have barely been able to maintain physically or emotionally. For those blessings, I am thankful. Now that I am coming up for air, I hope to share a little about them with you in my next few blogs, even if they aren't exactly "news" at this point.

Our House is a Very, Very, Very Fine House....

with two cats in the yard....life used to be so hard... lalala.

If somehow you haven't already heard our news, George and I bought a house here in Hawaii! We hope to close and move in by the end of April. Hawaii real estate ain't cheap, so its no mansion, but it has plenty of room for visitors: an extra bedroom, extra bathroom, and a decent-sized loft. In other words, get your butts out here for a visit! We have lots of ideas for improvements and renovations, but since they are only ideas right now, I'll just let the pictures and house-tour video speak for itself. Oh - but we do plan to paint the outside of the house a bright yellow with white trim. The sea-foam green must go. :-) Pics are here, a silly house-tour video that I made is here.

Whale-Watching from Makapu'u Point

Over the weekend, our friend Doris (that I know from my brief time at University of Hawaii) took George, Jason, and I to Makapu'u Point at the Southeast corner of O'ahu. At Makapu'u Point, visitors hike up a short but steep trail from a parking area to a low peak that overlooks the channel between Oahu and Molokai, the next island in the Hawaiian island chain. In addition to the amazing views up both coasts of Oahu and out towards Molokai, Makapu'u Point is an excellent place to watch whales. We managed to see quite a few whales, even though it is very late in the whale-watching season. They were so cool! We saw a few jump completely out of the water and then splash back in. We also saw several good fin slaps, pec slaps, and tandem whale jumps. We were really far away, but the whales are so enormous that you can still see them reasonably well, even from a distance. Apparently, the humpback whales come to Hawaii every winter from Alaska to give birth to a new generation of whales. (Personally, I'd stay all year if I were a whale!) They can be seen in greater numbers in February - as many as 10,000 at a time, but they are still seen around the islands through late March and even early April. As many of the places we've seen in Hawaii, Makapu'u Point was beautiful. The sight and sound of the whales was amazing. On top of all that, the air was clear enough that we could see the island of Molokai from the lookout point. The pictures don't do it justice, but check them out here and you'll get a taste of our day.

The Polynesian Cultural Center

Yesterday, George & I took a little adventure to the Polynesian Cultural Center ("PCC") in La'ie, Hawaii. Although the place has been on the list for both of us, the visit was prompted as one of my students from Kahuku performs regularly in the evening show at the center. As a native Samoan, he performs with heart and enthusiasm with the group from his home country.

Having lived in Polynesia for about 8 months now, I am starting to think it is the best place on earth. Of course I have a lot more places to visit before I can say that definitively, but its pretty awesome here. Visiting the PCC enhanced my appreciation of indigenous Polynesian cultures. In these cultures - some of which have changed very little from centuries past, people eat a healthy diet of fish and tropical fruits. People build and make almost everything they need from the coconut tree. Houses and boats are built from the wood. The fronds are used to make roofing, bowls, and hats. and clothing. The shell of the coconuts is used to make bowls, small tools, and decorations and the meat is eaten or used to make coconut milk. The people spend their days fishing, boating, and cooking and their nights are spent singing, playing games, and dancing. The joy of Polynesian lifestyle is expressed plainly in many of the dances and songs/chants. Of course there are some more sombre and ritualistic songs and dances, but the majority are lively, playful, or just plain fun. What more does anyone need in life?

If you come to Hawaii, I recommend a trip to the PCC. It is a bit pricey, but your ticket includes entrance to the island exhibits, a luau with authentic Hawaiian food, and the evening show. When you think of how much you get for the price of a ticket, it is actually quite reasonable. The highlight of the PCC is the evening show in which groups from each of the Polynesian island nations perform their own dance and music in indigenous dress. It is a wonderful experience.

For more pictures and a few video clips, go here.

North Shore Waves

A few weeks back, the North Shore of Oahu saw some of the winter season's biggest waves. I took a lot of pictures, but they don't capture the scale of these waves. In the picture below, taken at "Sharks' Cove", the spray coming off the rocks is roughly 60-70 feet high. The waves themselves are roughly 25 feet. Try and picture a teeny person standing on the long rock out beyond the cove . If I had Photoshop I could put something out there to give a better idea of the scale, but you'll have to use your imagination. More pictures from a couple different days out on the North Shore are here. Oh - did I mention there were surfers out there? They were far away from the rocks of course, but they are still crazy! Oh - and one last thing - the only time I've seen a real traffic jam on the North Shore of Oahu was on the day I took this picture. People were lined up along all the beaches and the coastal road to watch the waves and the nutty surfers and traffic was essentially stopped. You gotta love a place where the only thing that causes traffic is people stopping in awe at mother nature.

Update on the 2007-2008 Job Situation

As predicted, my principal had to hire a tenured teacher to fill my position for next school year. Her email felt like a gut-punch to me, but I'm recovering from the initial disappointment and trying to move forward. On the positive side, she said she is keeping another position open for me for next year. The trouble is, it wouldn't be exclusively ELL (English Language Learning). I need more details, but it sounds like I would be a reading specialist who works with ELL students. I'm not sure how I feel about this because it is really not my specialty. There is, however, a lot of overlap between ELL and reading. I may just look for another full-time ELL job. On the flip side, since George and I will likely only be in Hawaii until 2009, I'm not sure I want to uproot again with the possibility of being bumped again the following year. Luckily, next school year is still far off, so I don't have to rush these decisions. I would love any and all thoughts on my situation. Sigh...

"Professional Educators are the Cornerstone of our Mission" - Hawaii Dep't of Ed. Website

I don't usually use my blog to write about "issues." However, I cannot let the absurdity of Hawaii's teacher-hiring system go untold.

Let me begin this story with some background on the school where I work school and the students in my classes. Three short weeks ago, I began working with the ELL classes (English Language Learner) at Kahuku High & Intermediate School, grades 7-12. Kahuku, Hawaii is a close-knit rural community on Oahu's North Shore. It has a mixed immigrant population with familes from, among others, Tonga, Samoa, the Philippines, China, Taiwan, and Laos. Across the U.S., ELLs are an oft-forgotten and neglected group of students. The approximately forty ELL students enrolled in ELL language arts classes at Kahuku have almost slipped through the cracks.

(Note: The following part of the story is a history that I have pieced together from conversations with various coworkers at Kahuku. I have done my best to be accurate, but of course I didn't experience any of the previous changes first hand.)

At the end of the 2005-2006 school year, Kahuku's ELL teacher of 10 years moved on to a position at the district level. I have spoken with her some and from what I can tell and have heard she was - and is - passionate about the education of ELL students. After she left Kahuku, however, things started falling apart. At the beginning of the new school-year, a former social studies teacher assumed the helm of the ELL program and the teaching of its 40 or so students. It is unclear whether this teacher lacked the training or motivation to work with this very high-need group of students. Perhaps he did not get the support needed to perform this new job, but by November, 2006 the ELL program had completely fallen into disarray. The teacher called in sick for two consecutive weeks and it became apparent that he was never coming back. The students have described feelings of hurt and abandonment due to this situation. An assortment of substitute teachers led the class for the remainder of the fall semester.

In January 2007, the school placed a long-term substitute teacher at the head of the ELL classes. This teacher, however, offered little instruction to the students. At last, in early February 2007, principal at Kahuku was able to draft the help of an experienced ELL teacher from a nearby high school to help undo the damage of the previous six months. This teacher remained in the classroom for a week and then another substitute teacher stayed with the students until I became the students' permanent full-time teacher on February 20, 2007.

While I have only been in my position for three weeks, I believe I have restored the order that was absent during the students' period of teacher turnover. Once again, the students are working on learning English. They have returned to the challenging task of becoming competent readers in their new language and learning to express themselves orally and in writing. They are developing listening skills while simultaneously trying to grasp the difficult nuances of English grammar.

Still, the chaos they have been through has left a mark on them. The students have had at least five different teachers since the beginning of the school year. It is no surprise that I have had students ask me questions such as, "Ms. Rodvien, are you going to stay with us?" or "Ms. Rodvien, will you at least stay until I graduate from high school in 2009?"

Until last week, the answer I gave was a resounding "Yes!" In three short weeks, I have grown so attached to my wonderful students. I spring out of bed at 5:30am ready to start the day, ready to challenge and serve them. I have worked hard on improving the physical environment of the classroom: repainting, cleaning, scrounging around for classroom furniture that wasn't broken and actually matches, and ordering very basic supplies that were missing. Students have begun to help. With only a little guidance, they have painted the words for "hello" in their first languages on the walls of the classroom alongside hibiscus flowers, all in bright Kahuku-red. At last, the students are starting to feel some stability again.

Unfortunately, thanks to the brilliant teacher-hiring system these lovely students may have yet another teacher come next fall. I am crushed to learn that I may have to tell these students that I indeed cannot stay with them until they graduate. You see, I am recently-licensed ELL teacher. For that reason, my position at Kahuku must be listed as vacant for next school year. More senior teachers from other schools have priority in filling this "vacancy." Basically, because I am new to the system, my job can be poached by more senior teachers.

Honestly, I am not that worried what will happen to me, although I do have a few concerns. As a new teacher, having to pick up and move to a different school only a few months into my professional teaching career is a heavy burden. Every school does things differently: schools have different materials and different program structures. There are no official state-wide curriculum or standards for ELL. ELL teachers must design curriculum on their own, from scratch, based on the needs of their students and the design of their school's chosen ELL program model. Most importantly, I will have another steep learning curve to face in getting to know the individual needs and abilities of the students I serve.

At this point, however, my bigger concern is the students. After a year of being tossed about like unwanted foster children, the last thing that will benefit these students is yet another teacher come fall. They need continuity. They need the stability of a teacher who has begun to learn about each of them as individuals. They need the stability of a teacher who is not in fear of her job security, even if she were the most successful teacher in history!

My question is: who does this absurd job-poaching system benefit? If yet another teacher comes to teach the ELL class, it will certainly not benefit the students. Once again, they will have lost any continuity and stability they regained in their classroom. It will certainly not benefit me as a new teacher. I will essentially have to start over in a new school. Did I mention that any job I get can be "poached" for the first two years of my teaching career? Even at a new school, I will have to live with the knowledge that I will have to start all over yet again in 2008-2009. The system does not benefit the students who will be losing their teacher to my school. Basically, everyone loses. Yet this is the system in place in Hawaii's schools.

Oh wait - maybe there is one person who benefits: the more senior teacher who now has a shorter commute to her new job than she did to her former school. Yes, it is a great system after all.

My New Job at Kahuku

At long, long last, I have begun my new professional life as a full-time ELL (English Language Learning) teacher at Kahuku High & Intermediate School. As far as schools go, Kahuku is a one-of-a-kind. Of course no two schools are exactly alike, but a place like Kahuku is rare. It is known as the "Pride of the North Shore." Kahuku is the sole secondary school for several rural communities lining Oahu's surf-famous North Shore. Besides being home to great surfers, the North Shore is home to Brigham Young University's Hawaii campus and a large mormon community. It is also home to the Polynesian Cultural Center, which is the preeminent place in the Pacific for all things Polynesian. Finally, Turtle Bay Resort and Golf Course takes a section of the coastline as well as the private vacation homes of many celebrities.

Adding to its unusual mix of residents, Kahuku High & Intermediate School (HIS) includes many immigrant students from across the Pacific and the Pacific rim. For that reason, it has been a fascinating place to begin a career teaching English. My students, grades 7-12, hail from Tonga, Samoa, Tahiti, and Kiribati as well as China, Taiwan, Laos, and the Philippines. Kahuku's rural location make it an unlikely location for such cultural mixing, yet there it is. By the way, Kahuku is also home of the high-school state-champion football team. In Kahuku, they "bleed red" for Kahuku Red Raiders. Kahuku HIS has more alumni in the NFL than any other school in the ENTIRE U.S. I think I may have a future NFL-er in my grade 12 class.

All that said, the beginnings of my new career have been wonderful. I have felt eager and excited every day to wake up and get to work. George provided immense help in getting my classroom looking more like, well, a classroom! When I took my first steps there, it was instantly obvious how much work needed to be done. There were layers of dust and dirt and rust that needed to be scraped away from various parts of the classroom. There were student files from the early 1990s. We gave my desk and a file cabinet a fresh coat of paint. Since our initial effort, I've done more cleaning, painting, file-purging, and furniture-rearranging. I've ordered basic supplies that were absent (thank goodness there were funds in the budget!) and enlisted the help of many delighted students to make improvements here and there.

Aside from the physical environment, I've done my best to inform my wonderful students that ESL will no longer be an "easy A", but I've also let them know that I care immensely about their success and their general well-being. They are responding positively so far and I am thrilled to have encountered so many wonderful young people in my new position.

Well, I am sure I could find another hundred things to say about my experiences so far, but I will save more for another time. I have no doubt that Kahuku will offer many, many wonderful and fascinating experiences. I look forward to them all. Please look at my lovely new home away from home (away from home) over here.

Carrie and Paul Come to Hawaii

During a week in early February, we had the pleasure of visitors from back East. Carrie and Paul brought us in-person reminders of our fond friendships with DC-area pals. They also came ready to relax and take in the island. While both George and I had to work during their vacation week, we managed to have some nice free time with our visitors, including a trip up to the North Shore, the Dole Plantation in central Oahu, Chinatown in downtown Honolulu, and a windy hike up Kolekole Pass complete with a wild peacock sighting. Carrie and Paul took a lot more pictures than I did, but I captured a few that you can see here. We had a great time with our lovely and kind guests and we hope that many more will follow in their footsteps.

Great Times with Ladies from Pusan

At last, I have enough time to sit down and write about some of the wonderful experiences I am having here in Hawaii. In early February, I had a very special experience teaching a two-week intensive English class at Kapiolani Community College in Honolulu. My students were 8 women from a university in Pusan, Korea. With a small class size, we got to know each other very quickly. Its amazing how quickly the bonds between us grew. Despite language barrier, we managed to communicate very well, in thanks mostly to the ladies' outstanding English language efforts. (I know only two phrases in Korean: "ahn yeon ha say yo" (hello) and "soju" (a korean liquor!). At any rate, by the end of the two weeks, we were all very sad to say goodbye. We'd laughed and danced hula together and got to know each other very well.

Take a look the pictures that both and I the students took and you will get an idea of the wonderful time we had together. And oh - did I mention that Kapiolani Community College has one of the most beautiful views of any campus I've ever seen? Well, it is in Hawaii after all. A hui hou! (See ya later!)

Just a Quick Blog to Say....

that I've posted THREE new photo albums. I'll write about the experiences that go with each of them very soon, but there are lots of fun pics. My two weeks with the Korean women from Pusan, Carrie & Paul's trip, and my new school/job in Kahuku. Go here to see my pictures. A hui hou! -Lisa

Birthday Submarine Trip!

After having thirty some-odd birthdays in cold and snowy weather, having my birthday in Hawaii was a very welcomed change. George got me some very nice presents, including boogie boards and some pretty vintage-style Hawaiian prints to hang on our still-rather-bare walls. I got lovely greetings and gifts from back East. (I can't wait to get the tent, ladies!)

The main event of the weekend, however, was a submarine trip right off of Waikiki beach. George and I departed, along with our friend Jason, from the Hilton Hawaiian Village Hotel on a shuttle boat that took us out to the submarine. From there we climbed down a little port-hole into the main cabin of the submarine. We each had a little seat and window to see out into the beautiful underwater landscape. We saw lots of interesting fish and reef life: sea turtles, sharks, schools of fish, and even a 5-ft barracuda! A lot of my photos didn't come out very well, but I got a few nice shots. You can see the pics here and a few videos from the day here.

Surf's Up!

This past weekend was the warmest MLK weekend I've had in my life and it was fabulous! George & I took advantage of the weather and our location by heading to Oahu's North Shore on Saturday to watch surfers take on the 10-14 foot waves. On Saturday we walked around the harbor by Chinatown after having lunch with longtime family friends Gerry and Mike Rogers. On Monday, we attempted to go snorkeling at Hanauma Bay with our friend Jason, but the parking lot was full so we trekked over to the Windward side of the island for some swimming and general beach fun. I took a few pics up at the North Shore as well as some video of some surfers swimming out and then catching some waves. Enjoy!

The Schwester Comes to Hawaii!

This past week, George and I had our first visitor from the mainland: my sister, Susan! Although our visit got off to a rough start with me being horribly ill and Susan accidentally leaving her ID on the airplane, we still had a great time. While I recovered from somach flu, Susan and George went hiking in the Waianae Mountains. The next day, we were joined by two more Washington, D.C. friends, Esther and Hyong. We hiked, went to Waikiki, had a mini-BBQ at our place, climbed to the top of Diamond Head, danced, went to the zoo, and ate lots of yummy food. From the peak of Diamond Head we saw a picture-perfect rainbow over the city of Honolulu.
It was really great to see my sister, but the visit was over too soon. I hope she can come out to Hawaii again for a longer visit some time. After all, she still needs to hit the Big Island and Volcano National Park! Susan and I shared my camera for the week and you can see all our pictures here. We're looking forward to hosting more guests at the "Hotel Lisa & George!"

Holidays 2006

The holidays were unique and very special this year. This was George and I's first Christmas and New Year together. AND they were in Hawaii. As I mentioned previously, it felt a little strange at first to be in a tropical climate for the season. Luckily, it didn't take long to get used to the idea of a palm tree for a Christmas tree and sandals for church on Christmas Eve. In fact, I think we both liked it a lot. Who knew that Christmas carols could sound so lovely on the Ukulele?

I also made a rather short trip to St.Louis between Christmas and New Year to visit with my family. (Click here for the pics.) I admit it felt rather rushed, but I still had a nice time seeing with my parents, sister, and brothers. It was especially nice to get to see my brother Joe before he heads off to Thailand for a 27-month placement with the Peace Corps.

Also during my trip, my Mom and Dad and I made some headway with the initial planning for George and I's upcoming wedding celebration. We also had some time to visit a cool exhibit of South Pacific art at the St.Louis Art Museum with long-time family friends Cathy and Jerry Willie. Overall, it was a very nice, but all too short visit.

I flew back to Hawaii just in time to celebrate New Year's Eve with George. On my flight back, I took some neat aerial photos of both Santa Rosa Island off the southern California Coast as well as some shots of O'ahu. You can check them out here. After my return, George and I went to a New Year's Eve party with some of George's Army pals and then came home and watched the fireworks from our front porch. For the record, fireworks seem to be the one and only activity that people do here in Hawaii on NYE. It was really amazing and also trippy to see and hear fireworks constantly for several hours leading up to and following midnight. It literally sounded like rain with all the small explosions and at midnight the sound resembled a torrential downpour! I took some video of the post-midnight fireworks that you can see here.

Well, that's the news from my neck of the woods. I hope to see many of you in Hawaii or St.Louis in the coming year. But whether or not I see you in person, best wishes for peace, health, and prosperity, in the New Year.

A Christmas Eve Hike

Yesterday, George and I took a really cool hike up one of the highest peaks on Oahu: Pu'uhapapa. It required some serious climbing! Thank goodness for our new hiking boots (a Christmas present to each other) or we probably wouldn't have even attempted a lot of the steep spots on the trail. Next time, we need to take some serious climbing equipment, ropes, etc. so we can go even higher. The pics are here, a video from the top can be found here.

Christmas in Mililani

I have to admit that as much as I am loving life in Hawaii, getting into the Christmas mood has been a little hard this year. With friends and family all so far away, not to mention that we're still wearing flip-flops and the trees are green and showing no signs of winter, its just a little
. . . different.

All the same, George and I have tried very hard to let the holiday spirit find us. We found a lovely little thatch palm tree and decorated it with little ornaments and lights. We put lights up around the house and out on the front balcony. The gifts are accumulating under our tree and we are settling into a new and special flavor of Christmas. Here are the first batch of pictures. More coming soon!

Farewell to Aiea Intermediate School

Words will never capture all of the feelings of joy that my student teaching at Aiea Intermediate School brought to me. There are so many reasons that I just loved the experience and the students that I worked with. I thinking teaching may be the best job in the world. You get to be everything: scientist, historian, writer, teacher, artist, performer, dancer, comedian, and friend. Its all wrapped up into one fabulous job. Its a perfect fit for someone like me who thinks of herself as a jack-of-all-trades, master of none.

The students at Aiea really proved to me that middle school students are the coolest and most fun to be with. We had a lot of great times together, not the least of which was the holiday party we had on the last day of classes for the fall semester. Check out pics from the holiday party here and a few more here.

Thanksgiving in Hawaii

Thanksgiving weekend was a lovely and relaxing weekend for George and I. We had Thanksgiving dinner with our friends, the Kempers. EmilieAn is a great cook and we left very well fed and enjoyed nice company. Jason doesn't know what he missed! Check out some pics from the dinner here. After the big day, we did some general relaxing, but the highlight of the weekend was a hike up the Kolekole Pass trail. The trail is of one of many in the Waianae Mountain Range with breathtaking views. At times, the trail becomes very steep and you must climb on all fours rather than walk. The views, however, are well worth the work needed to get to them. There were places you could see both the Windward and Leeward coasts at the same time. From our mountain perch, we could see all of Schofield Barracks and the town of Wahiawa. We could also see towns along the Waianae Coast and the road that leads to Hale'iwa on the North Shore. Check out the pics from our hike here. Next time, we want to take a tent and camp out so we can see all the stars from up there. We will also gladly make the hike again if any of our visitors would like to take in those amazing views!

Valley of the Temples

Yesterday, George and I took an adventure to a cool place I'd found in my guidebook to Hawaii. Usually, I wouldn't think of a cemetery as a place to go sight-seeing, but of course there are exceptions. Valley of the Temples Memorial Park is a inter-denominational cemetery with a unique cross-cultural mix of East and West. The main "attraction" at the cemetary is the beautiful Byodo-in Buddhist temple at the back of the park. It is a scale replica of a 900-year-old temple located in Uji, Japan. It is a peaceful and contemplative place complete with wild swans and peacocks and large carp swimming in the man-made ponds. The temple houses an enormous gold-leaf Buddha. Adjecent to the temple is large bell that guests to the temple can ring using a large log. The whole park is situated in a lush valley surrounded by large volcanic mountains and facing a bay out to sea. A gem of a place indeed! More pictures here.

George's Graduation from NCO Academy

After a month of rigorous, sleep-deprived, out-in-the-field, covered-in-mud training, George at last completed the Warrior Leadership Course, also known as NCO Academy. The Army held a nice ceremony for the graduates at Schofield Barracks. George graduated with academic honors, showing me again that he is a smarty pants! :-) If you look carefully at the pictures you can tell that George and the rest of the graduates are completely exhausted, but they all seem happy to be returning to their normal lives. I am as happy as anyone to have my sweetie back at home! See pictures from the graduation here. A couple short video clips click are here.

A Window into Aiea Intermediate School

I'm mostly blogging because I have uploaded some new pictures I took at the school where I am now student-teaching. Click here to see pictures of the school building, the volleyball circles that are a staple at lunchtime and recess at Aiea Intermediate, and pictures of my students, my mentor teacher, and her instructional assistant. Like I said below, I'm having a great experience and I love working with middle-schoolers.

The Melting Pot of the Pacific

I have now begun my second student-teaching placement at Aiea Intermediate School. There is no other word to describe my experience except amazing! In typical Hawaiian style, the school is an open-air structure, with classrooms built around an open courtyard adorned with palm trees and tropical plants. If you are standing in the right place, you can see Pearl Harbor through a window-opening in the stairwell in one corner of the school's main two-story building. If you look to the right, you can see the top of the Waianae mountain range just above the roof. (I promise pictures soon!) While the views and the atmosphere are great, the best part of my experience so far is the students. The students at Aiea are diverse and lively and lovely. They love football and volleyball and can be seen throwing one or both in the courtyard after lunch and during their morning "Wiki." (short recess).

The students in my ELL class are especially awesome. They come from a number of different backgrounds and they have diverse language backgrounds. Ilocano (a Filipino language) and Marshallese speakers (language of the Marshall Islands) make up the largest part of my class. There are also Samoan and Korean speakers and a lone Spanish speaker from Puerto Rico. Along with these unusual languages, students also bring unique cultural identities. While I wasn't terribly thrown off when I noticed some students taking off their shoes after entering the classroom, for example, belief in supernatural demons was one cultural trait I wasn't expecting. . .

On Halloween, my mentor teacher prepared a lesson in which students would read ghost stories from several different cultures. One story we read was a Marshallese folktale in which a pregnant woman, after being left alone by her husband for months on end, turned into a mejenkwaad, (Mejenkwaad is a Marshallese word meaning "demon.") It was an eerie story to be sure. Upon the husband's return from his long trip to find congratulatory presents for his wife, he discovers his wife's transformation. He quickly deduces that she has eaten everyone on the island, as mejenkwaads usually do. Students were asked to write responses and reflections about the folktale and the response of one Marshallese girl stood out. My mentor teacher asked her to share her reflection with the class.

The seventh-grade girl, who is one of the brightest in the class and a natural leader, proceeded to tell her classmates about the time her aunt turned into a mejenkwaad. Without hesitation and maintaining full seriousness, she described how her uncle found his demonized wife in the middle of the night preparing to eat one of their children! Luckily, the student explained, her uncle had Holy Water in the house and was able to splash his wife back to her normal self. Another Marshallese student added that the moral of the folktale must be to keep Holy Water handy if your wife is pregnant!

After class, I respectfully inquired more from the girl. I was genuinely curious, and I wasn't about to voice my disbelief skepticism, even though I felt it through and through. After all, I am still a rookie in my new Pacific home. The last thing I want to do is alienate my students by telling them their beliefs are somehow wrong or erroneous. In their own time, they can re-examine and challenge and decide for themselves. That's what a good teacher lets students do, right? Besides, I am a student in my new world, too. Maybe I ought to re-examine and challenge my own beliefs in order to better understand my student's odd and implausible story.

Earth(quake) Day

I was just barely awake when my cat Quincy and I felt our bed shaking this morning. (For those of you wondering, George is away at a month-long training program, so he experienced this lovely earthquake up near Schofield Barracks.) Both the Q-man and I had the same reaction: this bed is shaking, so we'd better get out of it! Ummmm....yeah. Of course as soon as I stood up I realized the whole house was shaking. In fact, the whole ISLAND and the whole ISLAND CHAIN were shaking! Wierd to think about, huh? So there was my first earthquake. And about 20 minutes later came my first aftershock. A few neighbors were out in the street checking to see if everyone was ok and verifying that yes, indeed, it was an earthquake. Overall, it wasn't that bad, though I admit it rattled my nerves. And while phone service was tricky today, I spoke with George and he is doing fine, too.

The quake caused an island-wide blackout, so after several hours of sitting around the house reading, I started to go stir-crazy with boredom. So, I trekked up to Schofield Barracks. Surely the Army Post would have back-up power, right? While they do have it, they weren't using it. Maybe to conserve their supply should there be prolonged outages? Not really sure. Anyway, my hopes of watching the Cards vs. Mets game or doing anything else to fill the boredom were dashed.

Later in the afternoon, my boredom sent me venturing out again, this time to the North Shore. I really like it there. I had a hunch there would be nutty surfers undeterred by the possibility of dangerous waves or a tsunami. I was right. I watched with envy and admiration as surfers traversed some rather large waves. I am vowing to take lessons as soon as I have some extra cash.

The whole day was a reminder of the immense power of nature. Did I mention the part of the island where I live has had virtually non-stop rain for about three days now? The rain, the earthquake, and the powerful waves are all far, far beyond human control. As mere humans, all we can do is stand and watch and maybe take some measures for safety. But, we can't lock ourselves in the basement, crawl under rocks, and hide from everything. Mother nature is still right there with us.

As I stood on the North Shore, looking out to the Pacific Ocean, I couldn't help but feel dwarfed by the vastness and deepness of the ocean. It is hard to comprehend just how far away land beyond the islands is. I felt like I was on the edge of the world. Frightening and awe-inspiring and comforting all at the same time. An amazing, nerve-rattling, boring, and exhilerating day.

Note: I took a few more pictures that may convey the feelings I've had all day. You can see them here. Be sure to view the slideshow, as the thumbnail versions just don't do justice to the scenes.

Fear the Gecko! (Ok, not really)

Geckos are a common sight in Hawaii. In fact, they are even somewhat common indoors. Luckily, they are completely harmless creatures and they actually eat some of the more pesky insects. They even chirp! Their sound is akin to the clicking noise you'd make with your teeth and tongue to call a horse. Quincy (my cat) is very familiar with this sound now and he is often eager locate and catch the gecko when he hears it. Luckily for the geckos, he is not usually successful.

I have seen quite a few since I've been here, but they can be elusive to photograph. They move very quickly, especially when they sense motion, so by the time you have your camera handy they are usually gone. Sorta like trying to photograph the Loch Ness Monster. Well, maybe not that hard. Anyway, I'd been trying to catch on one film and I finally got a good snapshot! I had to zoom way in since he was high on the wall and then still I had to massively crop and enlarge, but I thought it wasn't too bad for the first one captured on film. The gecko pictured here is approximately 4 inches long. Most of the ones I've seen indoors are smaller: maybe 1-3 inches in length. The little ones are so cute! Click here for the larger version of the photo.

On Being an Army Wife

"Army Wife" is a role I never saw myself filling. Until recently, I subconsciously viewed the "Army wife" as the antithesis to the modern, independent woman. I never envisioned myself being an Army wife or finding Army wives to be the kind of women I admired.

Once again in life, I am finding myself looking a little closer. Of course there are many kinds of Army wives. Maybe there are some Army wives who fit the stereotype, but many do not. Many are educated with their own career paths, others are devoted mothers who have made sacrifices for the sake of their families. A quick look at the blogs of Army wives indicate that many of them, like me, oppose the war in Iraq itself. For some of them, it is because they are Army wives that they oppose the war.

I certainly hope that no one will judge me narrowly because I am an "Army wife." While I very much support my new husband in his work, that doesn't necessarily mean that that is my only role in life and it certainly doesn't mean that I always support the actions of his employer and his ultimate boss, President Bush.

Still, as much as I can, I support George (my husband, not the President!) at work and at home. Since we've been married, I have been the one with more free time for a change. I've been cooking for him a lot, folding laundry, and working to keeping the house organized and clean. I don't do these things because it is my role as an Army wife, I do them because I love George and I know he would - and has - given me the same kind of support when I was the busier one. I never would have survived without George's support through my crazy schedule of full-time work and full-time graduate school this past spring! Now it is my turn to return the favor. It is this kind of give-and-take that I hope will make our marriage a strong and lasting one.

* * *

There are lots of funny and quirky things about the Army. Everything has an acronym. Sometimes when I'm around two or more Army personnel who are talking shop, I feel like they are speaking code! Luckily, I've managed to get good translations for a lot of the acronyms so I don't feel so ignorant when they talk. I love shopping at the PX and the commissary, especially since there is no Target in Hawaii. It is funny, however, to see parking spaces reserved at those places though for high-ranking officers. I really appreciate how courteous people are on post. People follow the rules of the road very carefully and politeness abounds among Army folks and their families. There is a real sense of family (or "ohana" as they say in Hawaii). When George and I first arrived, none of our household goods had arrived from the mainland. We were very appreciative that the wife of one of George's colleagues lent us pots and pans, bed linens, and even a little table until our belongings started arriving.

I am also becoming aware of how lucky I am right now that my spouse is still here with me. A large number of soldiers from Schofield Barracks are deployed in Iraq and Afghanistan right now. Most of the deployed soldiers are infantry, which means that they are in some of the most dangerous places with the most dangerous duties. As a result, there are many families who are here without one of their loved ones and know that their loved ones are living in dangerous conditions. I cannot take for granted that George is here and I need to be respectful and aware that the spouses of many people I meet here may be on the front lines.

Being a military spouse in Hawaii in particular has some unique features. First off, as a white person - or black person for that matter, it is not difficult for locals to guess that you are associated with the military. While not all white and black people are military here, a large number are. By contrast, a large percentage of the local life-long residents have Asian or Pacific roots. In other words, I stand out. Add to that a sometimes tenuous relationship between some life-long residents and the military operations here and you begin to understand. There is a strong sentiment among some locals that Hawaii should return to being an independent and sovereign nation and the U.S. military should leave. While this sentiment is rarely expressed towards military people individually, there are occasional flare-ups. For that reason, I try to tread lightly in my new home and be respectful and receptive to the local culture. As a female who does not have to sport a buzz-cut, it is a little easier for me than actual soldiers to blend in. Maybe it even helps that I'm a brunette and getting more tan by the day! Overall, though, I've received far more "aloha" and genuine warmth from locals than anything else. My sponsor teacher, for example, brings me goodies to snack on nearly every day!

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WOW. I had no idea I would have so much to say on this topic, but I guess it is something that has been on my mind! While its required some self-examination, I think I'm adjusting rather smoothly to my new role as an "Army Wife." In the end, the introspection required for this adjustment will help me strengthen my core beliefs or re-evaluate them in light of my new insights. For that, I am thankful for the opportunity and experiences I am having here in Hawaii as a new Army Wife.