This week I have taken my photos from our lunchtime gathering and used them in my PL spread. I had such a lovely time with my teaching friends. I am going to miss each and every one of them but the happy memories will always remain with me wherever I am.
Thank you ladies - you are awesome. Stay in touch xxx
Plain and simple
Apr 7, 2013
Apr 3, 2013
Good friends
Another Farewell Gathering
I am finding it really difficult to find the right words to use for this post. How do I explain what these people mean to me and how much I will miss them when I leave. We do not see each other on a regular basis but when we do it is as if we have never been apart. I guess that is how it is with friends.I have worked with all of them, except Dallas, at Chelsea back in the days when it was still called Northway Junior Primary School. Dallas and I first met when we did OBE training when the first of many new curriculum changes were introduced. She ended up teaching with Sophia and then with Carol, both of whom worked at Northway/Chelsea. I could not leave without saying goodbye to them and others who have also been and gone at Chelsea, hence our lunch today. I do not have enough room at home so Di very kindly offered to have it at her house. As luck would have it today was cool and wet - unlike all the other days we have had these holidays! This, however, did not dampen our spirits one little bit.
There was a lot of catching up to do and the talk flowed along with lots of laughter. We had a lovely chicken curry with rice and salad followed by triangular cheesecake and apple crumble with custard. It was delicious. It was a very happy occasion but reality hit in when it was time to say goodbye. I treasure the friendships and thanks to Facebook and the internet we will be able to remain in touch across the miles.
A blast from the past when we all get together
I am finding it really difficult to find the right words to use for this post. How do I explain what these people mean to me and how much I will miss them when I leave. We do not see each other on a regular basis but when we do it is as if we have never been apart. I guess that is how it is with friends.I have worked with all of them, except Dallas, at Chelsea back in the days when it was still called Northway Junior Primary School. Dallas and I first met when we did OBE training when the first of many new curriculum changes were introduced. She ended up teaching with Sophia and then with Carol, both of whom worked at Northway/Chelsea. I could not leave without saying goodbye to them and others who have also been and gone at Chelsea, hence our lunch today. I do not have enough room at home so Di very kindly offered to have it at her house. As luck would have it today was cool and wet - unlike all the other days we have had these holidays! This, however, did not dampen our spirits one little bit.
Di,our hostess.
Janine, Lynne and me
Janine, Di, Me , Les
Lynne, Sophia, Dallas and Carol
Les and myself
Carol and Debbie
....and the talk flowed!
Mar 31, 2013
Project Life Week 13
I have finished Week 13 of my 2013 Digital Project Life . There were so many pictures I could have put in this week but I restrained myself and kept it to just 2 pages, however, I think an extra page may be necessary to capture the essence of my last week at school.
The two little boys in the bottom right photo are from my class. They each sang a solo then the rest of the school joined in - OH MY GOSH!!!! I have the words from the song and they will definitely be added to my PL album.
The last 2 weeks of PL I did not post publicly because they feature lots of photos of the children in my class and I am not sure how the parents would feel about me posting on the internet so I err on the side of caution.
What I experienced teaching at Chelsea was unique. A whole bunch of ladies who all got on well with each other with no unpleasantness that you might commonly expect to find with so many females in such close proximity 5 days a week. Many of us go waaaaaaaaaay back and have become good friends. We have seen weddings, funerals, births of our children and births of our children's children. We are in fact a family.
The children we teach are special to us - we worry about them like we worry about our own children. We are proud of their accomplishments and feel an enormous sense of reward at the end of the year when our job is done. I hope I can experience just a fraction of that as I move into a whole different environment in the UK. First I hope I find a job. Surely, I ask myself, if I can teach in South Africa I can teach anywhere.
The two little boys in the bottom right photo are from my class. They each sang a solo then the rest of the school joined in - OH MY GOSH!!!! I have the words from the song and they will definitely be added to my PL album.
The last 2 weeks of PL I did not post publicly because they feature lots of photos of the children in my class and I am not sure how the parents would feel about me posting on the internet so I err on the side of caution.
What I experienced teaching at Chelsea was unique. A whole bunch of ladies who all got on well with each other with no unpleasantness that you might commonly expect to find with so many females in such close proximity 5 days a week. Many of us go waaaaaaaaaay back and have become good friends. We have seen weddings, funerals, births of our children and births of our children's children. We are in fact a family.
The children we teach are special to us - we worry about them like we worry about our own children. We are proud of their accomplishments and feel an enormous sense of reward at the end of the year when our job is done. I hope I can experience just a fraction of that as I move into a whole different environment in the UK. First I hope I find a job. Surely, I ask myself, if I can teach in South Africa I can teach anywhere.
Mar 29, 2013
Emotional Rollercoaster of a week!
Farewell Assembly - Thursday 28th March 2013
Final assembly with me in the hot seat! |
The decision to leave has been hovering for the past 2 years and recently several factors led to me taking that final plunge. It was not an easy decision to make but having made it after lots of discussion, prayer and weighing up the options, the deed was done. So here I am - unemployed for the first time in over 20 years. A lot of people have said "Aren't you scared?" but strangely enough, I am not. I feel at peace and believe I have made the right choice. I am not just leaving the school but also the country that has been home for 47 years. After leaving Scotland as a 10 year old I now return to the island where I was born. I can't say country because I was born in Scotland but will be living in England.
Obviously it is not just me that is affected - it affects Chez, Ciaran and Caelen as well but I think we are ready for it. Time for change and new beginnings. Yes, it is a little scary venturing into the unknown - but it is not completely the unknown. I will be staying with my sister Rhona and her family. I have stayed with them many times over the years when I have come over on holiday and I feel quite at home there - one of the family! The rest of the family live close by and I am really looking forward to spending time with them.
Michelle, our music teacher who is leaving to go and live in America. I taught her in Grade 1! Good luck Mish, will be thinking of you. |
Mar 17, 2013
Time to reconnect revised version
Time to reconnect
Hi again,
I haven't posted for 2 weeks because my laptop decided to cease working whilst I was busy doing my Week 9 Project Life pages. One minute I was going strong, the next I had ground to a halt and was staring at a blank screen. It would not switch on at all. I changed the battery pack, swopped to different plugs, switched the router on and off but nothing worked so I had to admit defeat. I was very disappointed because I really enjoy my weekly PL fix at the weekend. Anyway, the good news is it is fixed and I have spent the last 2 days playing catch up! The results coming up now.......
I haven't posted for 2 weeks because my laptop decided to cease working whilst I was busy doing my Week 9 Project Life pages. One minute I was going strong, the next I had ground to a halt and was staring at a blank screen. It would not switch on at all. I changed the battery pack, swopped to different plugs, switched the router on and off but nothing worked so I had to admit defeat. I was very disappointed because I really enjoy my weekly PL fix at the weekend. Anyway, the good news is it is fixed and I have spent the last 2 days playing catch up! The results coming up now.......
As you can see from my pages it has been quite a busy time and on top of it I have not been well. I ended up at the doctor and was off school for 2 days plus still need ed the weekend and even then was still not feeling great. I had to get a repeat of my antibiotics making it a 10 day course instead of 5. Happily I can now say I am feeling much better.
I also spent some time ( a considerable amount of time....!!!) scouring Pinterest and the internet for Freebies and ideas. I ordered a couple of digital items to start adding to my DS (Digital Stash). I want to try some things out for myself but right now I am under a wee bit of pressure because it is only another 6 weeks until Caelen and I leave Africa for the UK. I am going to miss Africa and .........too many things to mention but I have made my choice for the best of reasons and will be looking forward not back. I think Change and Forward are going to be my "Words" for 2013.
Chez and I went to look at a flat this afternoon - oh my goodness! It was so small it could fit inside our downstairs living area and there would still be room to spare! If you close the 2 bedroom doors there is no light in the area they call the lounge. I don't think you can squeeze a double bed in either bedroom and the kitchen will only hold 1 person and our fridge won't fit. You can stand in the "lounge and see into every room in the flat. I could go on but will spare you the details. You may presume right we did not elect to take it further. I think Chez is quite worried that he and Ciaran will be out on the street if they can't find anything soon. Lots of prayers needed.
First of the Farewells with BFF from College
Yours Truly, Robynne, Denise and Gooch (real name - Felicity, Maiden name - Gooch, AKA - Flick)
Instruction from Gooch - "Right girls, chins up, slightly surprised, bite the apple." Much hilarity and mirth, Chez took about 10 or more photos and I really battled to get one where we were all looking the way we like to think we should look!
I think this proves my point!
We try to meet regularly but some years the gaps were quite big as we each got on with our lives and families. Denise and Gooch lived in Zululand and Robynne and I lived a lot closer to each other so I saw a lot more of Robynne than the other two but whenever we meet up there is plenty to catch up on and lots of laughs to be shared.
I had said that as the time is drawing close for my departure to live in the UK , I would like us all to get together. This weekend was the only time when we were all available - all arranged in less than a week! Gooch and Seaton live on a farm - lychees, bananas, crocodiles...yes, I did say crocodiles. They invited us to all meet there. Denise lives in Eshowe, Gooch in Glendale, myself in Umhlanga and Robynne in Westville. Gooch is sort of central so it is easier to meet there. By the way, everyone else calls Gooch 'Flick" but we call her Gooch which was her maiden name when we first met. Everyone at College called her Gooch and it feels really strange to call her anything else.
Ladies at work
Our husbands from left to right: James (Robynne) , Chez (me), Alwin (Denise) and Seaton (Gooch)
Robs and Gooch - very relaxed listening to a tale from Alwin
Denise with the crocodile skull Seaton got for her to take home
The dining area
Chez and Alwin chilling over a glass of wine
Seaton looking very mellow
Our hosts - Gooch and Seaton
You can see the complete and utter blackness behind us - dead quiet and very isolated. Personally I would be very nervous staying there on my own but Gooch is not worried and takes it all in her stride.
Moving on to coffee and some serious discussion - or not! Note the skull taking pride of place on the coffee table.
Next morning most of us were up early. Seaton was being fetched at 7:15am to go to the airport - he was attending a Conference in George and had to leave early to catch his flight. We sat and had coffee, yoghurt and toasted hot cross buns for those feeling a bit peckish. I still managed to fit in some photos of the garden before we said our goodbyes. What a wonderful time we had. Thank you my special friends - I am going to miss our get togethers. We will have to make a plan for the future so that we can all meet up somewhere, sometime.
I love this wheelbarrow with these succulents
Looking up from the bottom of the garden - lychee trees in the background
Eye-catching - love this plant
Pretty!
Looking through the arch towards the house
The mosaic mirror reflecting life on the farm that Gooch made - a crocodile can be seen bottom left
Hand carved wooden hippo
Nguni cow
Beaded African lady
So true!
Africa, my home for the past 48 years
Feb 24, 2013
Time flies
I am starting off showing my week as per Project Life but then I am going to do individual photos.
Where did the week go to? That seems to be a common refrain because the other teachers at school are all saying the same thing. I thought this week would be quieter after the "busy-ness" of last week - not a chance! This week consisted of three meetings with parents, our weekly grade meeting, a swimming gala, a higher order thinking workshop for the whole of Friday afternoon followed by a family braai back at school. Chez fetched me from the Workshop, we drove home then I took the car and headed straight back to school. On top of that I went back to school on Saturday afternoon to mark books.
It was not all work though, because on Thursday I met up with my friend, Lynne. She started off as a parent at our school. I taught her daughter, Amy (who is the same age as Caelen) when she was in Grade 1. Then we parted ways when the children moved on. Years later Lynne got the job as secretary at our school and the friendship grew from there. We have had many fun "gatherings" over the years - not as many as we would like but great when they do happen! Chez and I housesat for her and Charles several years ago when they went overseas. After Lynne left Chelsea we continue to meet from time to time. Lynne is a lovely lady and we really enjoy our chats when we do get together. Thank you Lynne for treating me to my first experience of the Beverley Hills. It was fabulous - a memory to treasure. The setting was beautiful. You just feel important sitting there. For us it is a special treat, for others it is a way of life. We started off with scones and cappucino (delicioous) and ended up with a cocktail - Lynne had a Cosmopolitan and I had a Strawberry Diaquiri - I think I got the better deal!!!
The road leading to The Beverley Hills goes past our old flat.
The beautiful bar area downstairs where we had our cocktails
Lynne perusing the cocktail menu and getting some assistance from the friendly barman
Then today Di came and fetched me at 09:00 am to go to The Wonder Market. This is a market held once a month in an open park area near Gateway (our huge shopping centre). I had mentioned once before that I had never been to the market so she said next time it was on we would go together. We have been to the I Heart market at Moses Mabida (Emma, you remember that?) and I really liked the stuff they had on sale. This one was very similar to that. The goods are high quality and made by local crafts people. There is some lovely stuff on sale - you have to be quite careful or you could get carried away!
This is what you see as you walk in - then you have to decide what route you are going to take. This was still early so it was fairly quiet - it was a lot more crowded later on....
I particularly liked this sign - I think we need one of these for school!!!!
Look who we met there - it's Jude and Bevan. Jude teaches with us at Chelsea.
Always on the look out for a good bargain.
Such a pretty setting
Entertainment for the kiddies - he had these two little girls enthralled.
Pink Flamingo - drinks for the grown ups. We just loved the look of this stand.
The ingredients looking very tempting...
Mixing up a batch of Pimms - so pretty!
2 Pimms coming up .............
2 happy ladies having some R&R after shopping!
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