High School Memory: Religion Teachers

When I was in the first year of High School, we had this super cool and fun and funny religion teacher. He was a big, tall, dark-skinned man with glasses. He had HUGE hands (he could hold a basketball with one hand) and yes, he loved basketball so much. His body did look like the body of an NBA player. He used to throw lots of jokes and each session was fun, so all the students loved this cool and laid-back teacher. Each teaching session was just as laid-back and relaxing and fun as the teacher himself.


He resigned when I was in my second year of High School for some reason (I can't remember anymore), though he did start teaching us first. In my second year of High School, I was in a notorious class. There were around 40 students altogether in a class and there were 7 other classes. This religious teacher was replaced with an older, serious guy who was rather "rigid" in teaching the class (Who wouldn't if they were compared with the first teacher?). 

He started off the first day of teaching by citing some rules and I could feel the whole classroom's spirit went down drastically. He was a systematic teacher, so he wanted us to write down systematic notes as well (if I remember correctly, the notes would also be a part of his grade system for us). He'd write plenty of notes on the blackboard (yep, back then we still used chalks and blackboards) and he also expected us to write down a weekly Sunday sermon report in our own respective churches and he wanted us to add the church's stamp on the side of each report. We had to give him this report each month or so for him to check. And of course this weekly report was also a part of his grade system. 

I remember that one day one close friend (let's call her P) who was in another classroom had forgotten to write down one Sunday's report, so frantically she asked for help. Fortunately for her, one classmate was active at her own church, so she had the church's stamp with her at that time. So P copied that classmate's Sunday report and added the stamp. Problem solved! So she thought at that time. After all, there was no guilty conscience because she DID go to her own church that Sunday. It's just that she had forgotten to write down the report that week.


After the teacher took all the reports and returned them, he asked P to come and meet him and he gave her a punishment (I can't remember anymore what it was, but it must've been related to writing more reports or something like that). Apparently the Sunday sermon report that she had copied was the sermon that had happened in the teacher's own church and he knew that P wasn't a member of the church. Doh!!!

Anyway, back to the teacher and our class...after being taught by this second teacher for a while, my classmates became more and more restless. They were unsatisfied and they wanted the first fun teacher to come back to teach us. One day out of nowhere a classmate gave me a slip of paper filled with my classmates' signatures. On top of the paper somebody had written: "We, the students of class 2-8, want to protest about our current religion teacher. We want the first teacher to come back to teach us bla bla bla bla bla..."

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I felt pressured. Even though I liked the first teacher better myself, but it was a tough call to finally sign the paper. I didn't want to be the odd one out, you know? I didn't want them to think that I was rooting for this second teacher (which wasn't true), but I did respect him as a teacher and human being...but anyway, in the end I signed it anyway. Apparently after all our signatures were there, someone took it to the headmaster he he he he...

And yep, not long after that the headmaster asked us all to come to his office separately (his office couldn't possibly hold all 40 of us at once, so first he called all the boys and then the girls). Diplomatically he reasoned with us about why the first teacher couldn't be brought back and that we should give the second teacher a chance. I don't remember anymore what he had told us, but he managed to appease us all anyway. I gotta hand it to the headmaster, though, who was able to be the peacemaker only in one sitting and it even took less than half an hour 'coz I don't remember being in the office for a long time. Actually, it was the first time ever that I had ever been in the headmaster's office ha ha ha ha ha ha ha...

3 Years Ago vs Now

Went to a bar with hubby and brother and girlfriend and noticed something that didn't happen 3 years ago nor 2 years ago (last year we didn't go there 'coz we were in Rhodes at that time). Three and two years ago when we went to the bar(s), the only people I knew were hubby's cousin, brothers, and their partners. Yesterday I met so many familiar faces, the people I'd met through different training places and some of them had a chance to chit-chat with me. Mind you that I didn't chat with some of them 'coz the place was just so crowded.

One of the people I had a chit-chat with was the teacher at the daycare. I told her about my part-time job (which will happen soon) and she said she did two summer jobs in the same store. She also said they missed me at the daycare and that she hoped the work report she wrote for me was useful (every boss had to give me a kind of work report after I finished any type of training - stating the kind of tasks I did there, how long I was there, etc.) and that if anyone needed any job reference about me from them, they could call the daycare to get it. Then she stated again what she had written on the work report, about what she thought about how I did my job and I'm TRULY ABSOLUTELY thankful for it.

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So far I've done some type of training in 5 different places and I've got personal work reports from 3 of the places and I'm FOREVER grateful for them who took the time to write the personal work reports. Even if those reports don't mean as much for my future employers, they DO mean A WHOLE LOT to me. Without the support of all those people - and some others I've met along the years (too many to count or name) who have helped boost my confidence in learning and speaking Finnish - I wouldn't be where I am today.

I'm also thankful for having WONDERFUL close friends who are GREAT listeners (who don't judge me and who want to support me the way I WANT to be supported), all my blogging friends who have always been there for me (sharing my ups and downs, supporting me, praying for me)...I wouldn't have made it without all of you...

I just want to send some gratitude to heaven...and may God pour blessings on those thoughtful people who've made a difference in my life...

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A Mother's Instinct

While blog-hopping, I came upon a blog idea he he...When I was in High School, we went to Bali on buses and then a ferry. On the way there, our bus had an accident. Apparently the driver was sleepy, so our bus hit a car. I don't remember anymore what had happened, but it was surely rather serious, 'coz the car was small and our bus was HUGE. If I remember correctly, the car driver and passengers had to be taken to a hospital.

At that time most of us were sleeping 'coz it was such a LONG way from Bandung to Surabaya, but the noise woke us up. We didn't really feel the impact of the collision 'coz it was a huge bus, but we heard people talking outside and the bus had stopped moving for a while. In each bus there was at least one teacher, so we didn't have to deal with anything.

The bus driver had to go, so there was a LONG delay while we waited for the bus company to send another bus driver to drive us to Bali. We were supposed to arrive in the hotel in the evening (or late evening), but we finally arrived at around 3 am.

The next day, the students wanted to call their parents, so we all went to phone kiosks and we queued to be able to contact our families. Back then there were no mobiles yet in Indo, so we had to do it. I couldn't talk too long with my Mom 'coz there was a long line of students behind me, but when I told Mom about the accident, she said, "Oh, no wonder I was SO restless and I couldn't sleep well. I could only fall asleep after around 3 am."

Coincidence? Probably a mother's instinct he he he he...

Hectic, Fun, Funny

I've been helping out at the daycare for 4 days now and every day I realize that each child carries potentials. If they take wrong decisions in the future, they can get into lots of trouble. I realize even more the roles of parents, teachers, daycare teachers or daycare nurses, or any adult available nearby. They would help shape the children when they're small.



Here are some things that have happened at the daycare:

1. The first day the smallest girl in the class didn't dare do anything much, but on the second day she'd poke me with her finger and then she'd want to sit on my lap. On the third day as well she sat on my lap a few times.

P.S. I found out later on that there was another small girl, but she only came today - the kids don't come every day so the number of kids in the classroom varies daily. I'm still somewhat confused with some of their names, esp. those who've only come once or twice (those who don't come every day). It's easier to remember the girls' names 'coz they have different hair, but it's harder to remember the boys' names 'coz there are many more boys there.

2. On the second day, one boy (not the boy I mentioned in my earlier post) hugged me with both arms when I came into the classroom - when I said "good morning" to everybody. That day he kept on hugging me every now and then with both arms - and he'd do that for a few seconds at a time (not a rushed hug).

3. One boy asked me to read a story from a book he chose, but a few minutes later he lost interest ha ha ha...another one did the same and again it happened. He then asked another girl to play My Little Pony with him in the corner and when I approached, he told me, "You can't play with us. Go away." LOL LOL!!!!!

4. There have been some hectic moments when some kids quarrel and I have to think first on what to say 'coz I have to understand the situation first - it's not easy to understand what the problem is when two or more kids complain about something at the same time - in FINNISH! So usually I end up letting the teacher or the daycare nurse take care of the situation 'coz they can understand the situation faster than me he he...

Other than that, I think the situation is still under control. One of the helpers there ends her training tomorrow, so we'll see how I manage to take over once she's gone he he...but I've been enjoying myself and I look forward to going there every day. I call one boy The Smiling Boy (I didn't say this out loud to him or anyone else except R2) 'coz whenever our eyes meet, he'd give me the BIGGEST GRIN ever. I LOVE seeing his face he he...



It's interesting to see different personalities in the classroom. One boy is a sore loser. When there was a race outside the other day, he came back sulking and pouting and almost crying and saying to the teacher about the winner, "He's stupid!" Of course the teacher reprimanded him, but I guess he'll have to be taught about "playing is not all about winning" over and over again 'coz today during "gym" he also got upset when he lost...oh dear hi hi...it's funny but also understandable in a way.

I haven't had time to blog-hop 'coz I get tired after coming back home and then every other day I have to cook and sometimes go to the supermarket first, so I just don't want to do anything much. But I promise I'll blog-hop during the weekend, OK? I should also clean up the house tomorrow. I've got a stack of dirty dishes in the kitchen, but I don't want to deal with them yet he he he he...

My First Day At The Full-Time Course

A VERY interesting day, everybody!!! I woke up at 7.10 am and had time to do Taebo with Billy Blanks, then I had breakfast and packed my lunch and read some notes to prepare myself with my Finnish course and then I was off.

I was a bit late (I left home at around 9.50 am for my 10 o'clock lesson), so I walked fast. Along one road, there was this one old guy who turned around and started talking to me in FINNISH!!! Talk about practising Finnish HA HA HA HA HA HA...I told him that I didn't understand him since I only spoke a little Finnish. He then asked where I came from and upon reaching the traffic lights, I hit the button and he said that we had to wait until it turned green. That much I understood. He kept on chattering merrily even though I couldn't understand all of what he was saying hi hi hi...I understood the part when he said that the day was cold and when he asked me if there was snow in Indonesia ha ha ha ha...Then gladly we parted ways and I said goodbye to him. It was nice, though, meeting someone that friendly. *grin*

Anyway, I reached my class 5 minutes before it started. It didn't start at precisely 10 am since they were waiting for all the students to come. Upon arriving, I noticed an Asian woman sitting already and she noticed me right away HA HA HA...There were 3 rows of tables and 4 chairs on each row and I sat at the back row. The Asian woman sat on the second row and she kept on turning around HA HA HA HA...

Then my Brit friend MC called me since she couldn't find the place. I knew the place already since Arttu took me there once. After all, it is on the same floor as where his office is. After I gave her proper direction, she found the place and she came into class not long afterward.

Then the introduction started. Our Russian teacher doesn't speak fluent English, but gladly she understands most of what we're saying in English and she has an online dictionary to help her translate the words into English HA HA HA HA HA...THANK GOD for technology, eh? There are 3 computers in the room, so it helps!!!

Before we started the introduction, we were given a folder along with the writing paper and the pencil, pen, and eraser. I also noticed a table filled with two hot thermoses and cups and buns. Turned out we had two coffee breaks and OF COURSE I took the bun since it looked SO delicious and it was really YUMMY HO HO HO HO...Free buns!!! YEEEESSSSSSSSSSSSSSS!!! ;-D What can you say? I'm a foodie HA HA HA HA...

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After that, we introduced ourselves to our teacher (after she introduced herself to us, of course). There's an older Swedish guy, a French guy, a Thai woman, a Russian woman, a French woman, me, a Turkish guy, my Brit friend MC and her husband. There's going to be another student coming later on, so there'll be 10 of us.

From what I gathered today, the Turkish guy, the French woman, and the Thai woman don't have much knowledge about the Finnish language. Even though my own Finnish is still limited, at least I have the basic grammar in my mind and some vocabulary. But those three people really suffered in the class, I think. I had time to speak to the French woman during one coffee break and she was totally confused. The Asian woman also expressed the same thing.

The teacher tried to translate her words into English or Russian, but still she started at a pretty fast pace. I'm SO THANKFUL that I had had time to learn some basic Finnish grammar and vocabulary before I started this course. Otherwise, I'd also have to either learn REALLY hard on my own or be as absorbent as a sponge (read: be a genius that absorbs everything very quickly). I understood at least half of what the teacher was saying in Finnish to us. But of course after her added explanation in English, it all became MUCH more clearer ha ha ha ha ha...

Today we've got some homework. We're asked to write down what we expect from the course: the lessons, grammar-wise, exercise-wise, and everything. GREAT idea!!! I have an idea already on what I expect, and it's going to be fun since the other students will also give her ideas, so it's going to be helpful. ;-D

I'm pretty optimistic about this course even though the teacher doesn't speak English fluently. After all, there's always a silver lining behind every cloud, right? HE HE HE HE HE HE HE...

After I got back home, I felt SO sleepy, yet I couldn't take a nap due to coffee. I only drank 3/4 of a CUP of coffee, can you believe it? Tsk tsk tsk...I think tomorrow I'm gonna look like Zombirella (a female zombie) HA HA HA HA HA HA...

Anyway, starting tomorrow we'll get a full-time course, so it's gonna start at 9 am until around 3.15 pm. I don't mind getting lots of homework later on, since I really want to make the best out of this course before our baby program starts. After all, without a kid to take care of, I can really focus on this course HE HE HE HE HE HE...

Okie dokie, that's all my report for today. Oh yeah...it was around -12.5'C in the morning when I went to the course, but it got up to -11'C when I got back home. It was a sunny cold day. VERY beautiful.

Full Time Course and Moving

No, no, no, I'm not planning on moving anywhere, but yesterday we helped Arttu's second brother moving his stuff from the truck to his girlfriend's apartment. We arrived there at around 7 pm and it was -9'C. He said it was freezing HE HE HE HE HE HE...We stayed there a while after we were done with it. Well, it wasn't really done yet. He still has to go back to Pori twice: one time to get the rest of his stuff and the second time to clean up the apartment before he can finally settle down here.

It was pretty funny when he offered us tea or coffee, since the apartment was pretty new to him, so he had a bit of a hard time trying to find everything HA HA HA HA HA...His girlfriend's apartment is very lovely. It's actually like a small housing complex, so there aren't any second or third floors, so there are just plenty of apartments near one another. Her apartment has two bedrooms and it's clear that it's a girl's apartment from the moment I entered the hall HA HA HA HA HA...Even though single guys here can also decorate the apartment well and neatly, there's just this distinct female aura that I can't explain. I'm sure you know what I mean, though HE HE HE...

I LOVE the paintings she put on the living room wall. The big painting is a painting of autumn leafless trees on a long stretch of a road. The colours are mostly white and brown and black. Splendid!!! I also love her sofa and her antique cabinet and living room lamp. No, don't worry, I'm not envious about it. I just thought that it was a nice place to live he he he he...

Another funny thing I found out was that Arttu's nephew (his eldest brother's youngest son) actually wanted to move here, as well. When Arttu's second brother said, "But you have to go to school!", he replied, "I can move to the school in Sodankylä." HA HA HA HA HA HA...Apparently he really likes living here much better than in Pori! ;-D

OK, now let's talk about my full-time course. At first I thought that the first course would be at around 8 am, right? WRONG!!! I got a letter from the firm that organized the course and they said that it would start at 10 am the first day.

Not long after that, my Brit friend MC called me and said, "We have a HUGE problem!" Turned out that she had called our full-time course teacher and she couldn't speak fluent English, though she understood English. Well, at least MC has warned our teacher that the majority of the students will not be able to speak proper Finnish at all, so she needs to brush up her English. MC also said that we'd talk about the rest of the days of the course, whether we'd start at 9 am or 10 am.

Last night Arttu also mentioned this problem to his brother and we were joking about it. I told them that I'd better bring my thick dictionary to the classroom and whenever the teacher said something I didn't understand, I would have to ask her to stop and then I would have to look up the words in a dictionary. That would be "fun" HA HA HA HA HA HA HA...Ahem!!!

I know that it IS good if we're forced to speak in Finnish and to listen to Finnish all the time, but the problem is...if we don't even master the basics yet, how are we supposed to do it, right? It'd be more ideal to listen to Finnish during the whole class if we know some Finnish already and we're already in the intermediate level. Oh well...it's gonna be VERY interesting. That's for sure. I'd better brush up my Finnish, as well, 'coz I haven't studied it well for a while. Oops...there goes my New Year's Resolution HA HA HA HA...Not to worry, though, once the full-time course starts, I'll be studying Finnish more diligently than ever HA HA HA HA HA...

Okie dokie...now it's time to blog-hop!!! ;-D

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When The Student's Ready, The Teacher'll Appear

I can't believe this. Lately I've been struggling with some personal issues and I've been praying for answers. The funny thing is, I guess when you're really ready to get the answers, you'll find them EVERYWHERE, even in other people's blogs. This is just AMAZING!!! I'm really thankful for getting answers and I'm not getting them only once, but repeatedly. It feels GOOD to know that I'm getting the kind of encouragement that I truly need.

I'll write more later on. I have some stories to tell about my weekend he he he he...

Btw, here's the answer I got today and I THANK GOD for all His encouraging words:

Rabbi Harold Kushner writes, "I have seen weak people become strong, timid people become brave, selfish people become generous. I have seen people care for their elderly parents, for brain damaged children, for spouses in wheelchairs, for years, even decades, and I have asked myself, where do people get the strength to keep doing that for so long? Where do they get the resources of love and loyalty to keep going? The only answer I come up with is when we are weary and out of strength, we turn to God and God renews our strength, so we can run and not grow weary, so that we can walk and not feel faint." (Ron Newhouse)