I guess you are here because you have discovered one of my books and enjoyed it enough to find out more about the author, me. Either that or you’re a potential employer who is investigating me to see if I would be a good fit for your organization. In which case, surprise, I write books as well as teach. Some might look at that as a bad thing, and if so, please explain to me how.
For whoever finds my site, I want to welcome you, and also allow you the opportunity to follow me on a regular basis. Anybody is welcome as long as you keep your posts appropriate, and respect the other followers to this site. As long as everybody follows those two simple rules, I won’t have to kick anybody off. Let the friendly banter begin.
I am hoping to create an interactive site that everybody can enjoy. Of course, I will keep you up to date on the latest writings coming out of my head, and I will also let you know when and where I will be in the world, so someday you might be able to meet me in person. Most people regret that decision, but who knows, maybe you’ll be in the minority.
I will also tell you about my world-wide travels as this is something I do on a regular basis. I’ll show you pictures from places I have been (this one is from Dubrovnik, better known to fans of The Song of Ice and Fire as King’s Landing), and tell you the exciting stories that happen to me along the way. You are also welcome to ask me any questions you may have about the place I have been, and I will try to answer them in a timely manner.
I know it all sounds amazing, and I can see you wondering why you haven’t been a part of this fantastic experience so far, but let me tell you about the most exciting part of following this site – the interactive part. You were probably wondering when I would get to that part I had promised you earlier. Well, I plan to create a list every month, and I want you to participate in its formation. I do love countdowns, but I am always disappointed in them. So I have decided to take matters into my own hands. You will be able to post your top ten of each monthly list and at the end of each month, I will comprise the total list to give you the countdown for that subject. Look for each new subject on the first day of each month, and the final list of the previous month by the fifteenth.
Otherwise, it is very nice to have you a part of this experience, and I look forward to all of our future posts together.
There was a time when snow covered the land, Hiding all of the world’s imperfections To everywhere that eye had spanned, Forcing us to run to our reflections. The icy landscape chased away the birds, Leaving behind a moment of silence. We took the time to part from our own herds So we could shed our facade of pretense. The cold would cloud our breath and bite our nose, Yet we would fight against the discomfort As we searched for understanding that grows, And through meditation we can support. But for today the only wind that blows Is in remembrance of days of snow.
Only a rope allow me to dangle From high above the forest canopy. Within its threads, my fingers will tangle To make sure that the ground I will not see Until I can find it with my own feet, And not from a free fall from the wire. Traveling by zipping, I will complete This moment of fear from being higher, And I feel like I accomplished something That was always buried deep within me, An irrationality that is holding From experiencing life that is free. It’s the way we conquer those things that scare, By overcoming that childish dare.
Do not take the river’s might for granted, For it has spent years carving this valley. It’s hard to follow what it has ranted As it rushes out to the distant sea, But if you stand upon its muddy banks, And pause from your busy day to listen, The river will regale honestly frank Tales of how the pride of men it’s taken. They have tried to dance upon its rapids In flimsy boats carved out of hollow wood, And though its rage absolutely forbids The challenges these men thought they could, Boats and men have both cracked in disarray And the river flows mightily this day.
We have left our technology behind And ventured out into society To see if we could start to be more king. It’s what it really means to be hands free. It starts with a little conversation As we probe into each other’s thinking. There might be some cause for hesitation To see if our deep beliefs are linking. We poke and prod trying to uncover, From the people we are getting to know, If we can handle what we discover Will agree with our opinions also. We will find with this quality time spent That we are really not that different.
I recently asked one of my students where people traveled to in Peru. He rolled his eyes, looked at me, and instantly said Cusco. I realized my mistake, and asked for clarification; where did Peruvians go to for their getaways. He talk about many spots along the coast, and then mentioned one spot not far in the Andes where Peruvians went in the Andes mountains not far away from the coast where some went to play on the river or around the surrounding mountains. There are ruins, and playgrounds set up for both children and adults. It is not well known by people outside of Peru, but it is a great getaway for those that live in Lima. I got to learn about all it had to offer as I took my students out on an experiential education trip to this region of the Andes Mountains.
There are many things to do in this valley, and a bunch of vans to take you up and down the main road that follows the river to take you to these activities. The travel only takes fifteen minutes at most from the furthest away hotel, and some of the hotels even have some of these activities available on their grounds. All of the activities are great outdoor experiences throughout the year because even in the coldest months, it is still warm enough to enjoy these activities.
The biggest problem with the whole area though is the river. There is always water in a very dry climate, and this creates the perfect conditions for mosquitoes. They are all over the place, and they are hungry. If you come to this part of Peru, remember to bring your bug spray because you will want it to keep these critters away. I had not sprayed any on me when I first arrived, and I had my one bottle hidden in the bottom of my suitcase. I thought I would be okay, but the bugs just saw fresh meat and they were all over my legs within seconds. There are still welts all over my body from those first few moments that I arrived, and I am sending out that warning to anyone that comes.
Do not let the bugs discourage you from coming. As soon as you lather yourself in the bug spray, the activities are a joy. There is rock climbing, high ropes courses, zip-lining, kayaking, rafting, bird-watching, camping, ruin exploration, and just taking a stroll along the river. Each of the activities take about an hour or two to accomplish which makes for the perfect trip experience where you take on a challenge in the morning, head back to the hotel for some downtime, and then heading back out for a completely different experience in the afternoon. It makes for the perfect balance of fun and relaxation so you can come back from the trip feeling refreshed and yet having experienced something that you can hold in your memories.
It is definitely not the first place you should choose if you are coming out to Peru. Go to the Sacred Valley if this is your first trip out here. But for those who live in Lima, and have done all of the big things that Peru has to offer, and are looking for something new and exciting, Lunahuana is a great place to consider. It will give you a unique experience out in this country that you might not have thought to have in the first place.
A weird thing always seems to happen during the last couple of months of a school year in the life of an international school teacher; a bittersweet moment between those who are moving on to their new lives and the ones that are staying around for another year starts to occur. It ends up being the busiest time of the year and not just because final grades are being completed and the final units are wrapping up, but because there are gathering after gathering that happens in order to say that final goodbye. But it is part of the lifestyle, this constant first impression that is brought on by the new group of teachers that will arrive the next year while maintaining a bunch of relationships with the friends that have been created over the years that have been spent with the group that you have spent a year or two with. A tickle always happens in the back of my mind every year, thinking that I will see most of these people again in random places all around the world, but after eleven years of teaching on the international scene, I have come to realize that it is only a select few that I keep in touch with in the way that I would have thought at the end of the school year.
This phenomenon is not uncommon in other industries as well as this one, but the difference comes with the fact that at the end of every year, it is guaranteed to occur in the international school community. There is another big difference as well; when this group moves on, they really move to places like Switzerland, and South Korea, and back to their hometowns in America. It is not like they are just leaving the job, but whose paths can still cross because we still live in the same town. The only way we find out about each other is in passing through social media which does not feel the same as the face to face contact.
This year, I will be saying goodbye to a lot of great colleagues that I have gotten to know over my first year in Peru. It will be sad to see them go though I have only known them for a year, but in that year, I have been able to share some great memories from them, and learn new ways of exploring the profession that I have been a part of. I also know that they had the hardest year out of any of the other people that I worked with. The ones who are departing have a different mindset than the ones who are staying behind, and for those new individuals that show up in that last year, it is hard to make strong connections with them, especially if you know that you are one of the ones leaving. The ones who have been in international teaching for a long time know that the relationship that they will make with the new group will be a short one, and they are also aware of the possibility of never seeing those people again, so it gets hard to push to build that strong relationship in the first place, especially with all of the other things that they have going on during the school year. Still, it is hard to make it through a school year when you work so closely with some people and not to make those relationships to last in the first place, so by the end of the year, they find themselves saying those hard goodbyes to the people that they believed would not have been on that list at the beginning of the year.
It doesn’t make it any easier for the ones that are staying behind. There is the friend group that is staying behind, but if there is a piece or two missing, then the friend group does not feel the same the next year. This group also has to contend with the backlash that is felt by the students as their favorite teachers move on to other exciting adventures around the world. They have to console those students the next year as they go through the remembrances of those that made the school a great place in the first place. Those teachers also have to welcome the new people in who are taking the places of maybe some of their best friends of all time, and trying to find a way not to compare them to the person who has just left. They are never going to be the same person and they will always do things a little bit differently. It is not a bad thing, but it is still change. And though an international school teacher has learned how to do deal with change, it is still never an easy thing for anyone to have to experience.
The day’s departing sun is the perfect image to capture the feelings that are going through people during this experience. On one hand, it is always beautiful to watch the sun dip below the horizon on any given night. The sky lights up in a dazzling display of colors, and we can’t help but just watch it go, knowing that it is moving on to the place where it is supposed to be. At the same time, it marks an end of a day well spent. It gives us pause to reflect back on that day and what it had to offer. Did we get the most out of that day or were there some things that were left undone or not said? If there were, then it is too late to go back and correct those mistakes because the day is now done. It is this bittersweet moment that we are running to every night to witness in the hopes that it can fix those conflicting emotions we have just by making sure we are there.
This is what the end of the year feels like for international school teacher. It is not just about getting excited for that time off to spend away from grades and with family; it is about saying goodbye to the friends we have made, and preparing for the memories made with new ones.
A dark blight has settled upon the Reach And we’re scrambling for what’s left behind. We will use ev’rything from war to speech, Securing a position for our kind. We can only claim it as ambition Whether we are a tyrant or warlord, But Space will not be a destination, And out here we live by our own accord. There is a court that has a little sway Over the direction that we can take, And if you ambassador came to play, There is a deal with them that you can make. We are trying to leave behind our marks That can be rewtold in our story arcs.
We were planning to go across the bay To enjoy a restaurant we knew there. Uber was meant to help us on our way, And we could sit back not giving a care. But we ran into a little traffic On the only road getting out of town, And a return trip may be horrific, So we asked the car to turn around. He dropped us off not far where we started, And we found another kitchen to dine. We questioned if we should have departed In order to save an amount of time. It just showed that life can be unfair, Taking a car trip that led to nowhere.
So what if our shit covers the island? Who are you to say we are animals? We did not ask you to invade our sand With your strict demands and obnoxious rules. We find comfort with the way that we live, Free from the judgment delivered by man. We were not the ones who were asked to give To contribute to economy’s plan; We were just looking for rocks to hop on Away from the watchful eyes of people, So we like to strut on these rocks with brawn, Claiming these crags have become our steeple. We only ask that you stay far away From this island outside Paracas Bay.
It may not be the fanciest of walks With its bricks being worn by the weather, Leaving behind potholes and broken chalk Which visitors will never let gather. Vendors will be willing to show menus Of their food that’s the same as those before. Through their big speakers blaring out the blues Makes me feel like I know what is in store; It invokes in me, a place far away. In the sea air, the spoken word of Spain Is the communication that’s in play, And causes my normal banter refrain. Still, it is nice to be here with my drink; I wish to make the final spoken link.
John Collings 