Thanksgiving

As I sit here, at Xavier High School on Thursday, November 27, 2008. It is Thanksgiving. Today is unlike any Thanksgiving of my life. When in I lived in Europe I spent Thanksgiving with many very close friends in Ireland. It was wonderful even if I did feel a twinge of loneliness and longing to be with my family. That twinge easily dissipated with laughter and friendship as we had one of the best (extended) weekends of my life.

Today is different. I love Chuuk. I am learning so much from my time here, but it is not easy. I have met people here who fast turned into role models and have taught me more about life and development than any class ever could. For them I am thankful.

Today I give thanks in the manner of most of my days, subdued and quietly. I give thanks for my basketball team. We are now 3-1 with our first blowout under our belts (75 – 52). They have taught me how to coach more than I have taught them how to play. My lesson started the second day of practice when I was coming down pretty hard on one of the new and very tentative freshmen for not attacking the basket. His defender was one of our 2 captains, a senior and the best perimeter defender on our team. On the very next possession T.J., the senior captain/defender extraordinaire let the freshman go by him. But he did not let the freshman (Kay Kris) know. Kay Kris did not stop smiling for a week. And I am very thankful to say that Kay Kris was our second leading scorer with 10 points in our last game.

I am thankful for T.J. teaching me Chuukese. He teaches me language, but he teaches me how to be Chuukese, how to lead like he does, how to live humbly like they do, and how to help each other in the Chuukese way.

I am not trying to say that things here are perfect because they are far from it, but there is beauty everywhere. I love going to bed at night listening to the wind stir up the branches on the nearby coconut and breadfruit trees. I love listening to them, rustling louder and faster until a storm comes in, carried by the westward wind. I love the calm after the storm. It is so still. The night becomes hotter and more humid as the rain evaporates until the slow sea breeze comes back and cools us off.

I love listening to the students who arrive early for school. They talk outside of our apartment window. They play and they sing. I love Chuukese singers. They have the most beautifully haunting voices. I do not have the words to describe them, but they are truly remarkable. Moreover I love how accepting they are of each other. In school I was always the most self conscience when it came to singing because my voice is not that pleasing, but these students, whenever we have a few extra minutes in class they always want to sing. And everyone sings! It is beautiful. No one can help but smile as they watch and share in their song.

I am Thankful for many things today especially Chuuk. But I am also thankful for everyone back home. The support I have been given through these past four months has been remarkable to say the least. I never feel alone and always feel loved, no matter what is happening here. While I am often saddened to think of Gracie walking or Gabi talking and how far away I am from all of that. I am not sad for long. I think of, and am thankful for, how much I am learning here, and how much I believe that will help their lives.

So while I may not be able to walk into Viafore’s and talk with David and Debbie as I eat my sandwich, I am still in a wonderful place and it is becoming a home. There are challenges but they are nothing more, or less, than learning experiences and opportunities to grow. So thank you all for your support and love. Because I am thankful for many things on this day and if you are reading this then you are one of those supports from home topping my thanksgiving list.

first game

So this is going to be very short, but I've been asked by a lot of people how the season is going. Our second game is tomorrow.

Our first game started very well. At half we were up by 12 in what wound up being a 33 point game. The kids were playing 'd' and responding to all of my instructions. Then came the fourth quarter and the game had tightened, as had my players sphinctors. We wound up committing 8 turnovers in the 4th quarter as giving up 12 points to their "best player" and losing by one. 34 - 33. I was less than thrilled with our utter meltdown in the 4th quarter. I also was less than thrilled by the sideline coaching that some of the parents were doing. We gave up 24 of the other teams 33 points to one player. When he shot, even from behind the 3-point arc, which he hit 5 of, his shot did not go any higher than 10'8" off of the ground. It was like a laser beam.

Our offense was stagnant at best and there was a lot of moaning and groaning. But we are developing a good sense of family and I think they will rally and continue to figure it out. I had to bench one of our best players for showboating in the game, which really hurt, and the island is not used to our style of defense so, by the end of the game, we had 4 of our 10 players with 4 fouls... That hurt. But we all mad emistakes, including me, but I did draw up a play with 2 seconds left in the 1st half that go us a layup and I felt like a real coach after that. I fully expect to win a lot this year, even though I feel like our talent is subpar on the island. But that is all for now and I'll try to write more later. Feel free to write a comment if you enjoyed or didn't. Just let me know that someone is reading this other than the fam! Toodles.