Kid Tested, Teacher Approved

Children’s Day can only accurately be defined as a day, unlike any other, to celebrate and rejoice in the lives of the Honduran children we teach. The objective is to pack in as much fun as we can into a half day of school and inject as much sugar as legally possible into their tiny little bodies. Controlled chaos is what it really is (the ‘controlled’ part may not be as obvious as the ‘chaos’ part). Would you accept that mission?

I always walk away from days like these and just collapse into a heap on the couch from exhaustion. I have this great, on-going inner debate about which is more torturous – teaching a full day with my munchkins or trying to entertain and manage them for a half day of mandated fun? The half days seem to always kick my butt a lot more than the alternative. Don’t get me wrong, I love getting to embrace my inner child and play alongside of them, but in reality the day is all about them, not about me whatsoever. I have to remember that I am the adult, I am the responsible one, and I am the one in charge so I have to act my age. (What a stupid notion!) Thankfully it is just a half day so I only have to survive until lunch when I can rejuvenate my body with a delicious meal followed by a well-deserved nap. And the real silver lining? I get to send my hyper and sugar-fueled students back home to their parents. Ha!

This year the fun of Children’s Day was not just handed to our students, they had to earn it. We still had the first two hours of classes in the morning. (If we were going to put up with that chaos to come, they would have to tolerate a little teasing of our own.) But it wasn’t long before the madness unfolded. Rachel and I decided to join forces and have a joint 3^rd/5^th grade event for our students. Our brilliant idea was to put on the Marshmallow Olympics! We would gather them all together and pass the marshmallow torch to commence the games. Then we would test their balance and speed in a marshmallow relay by balancing a marshmallow on a spoon and making them carry the spoon in their mouth while running down the court. Following that race we would require them to step up their strength and hand-eye coordination in a marshmallow toss to see who could throw the farthest while their partner caught the marshmallow in a cup. The ultimate challenge was the last one: a battle royal with marshmallow shooters. They would need to either become sharp-shooters aiming the marshmallow ammunition at the others running by and trying to nail them, or be swift while dodging through the marshmallows to get to the opposite side. (If all else failed we had planned a task for the stretchy-cheeked: the classic ‘chubby bunny.’) Our expectations were high for the Marshmallow Olympics.

Our event was not executed as perfectly as we had envisioned it. We couldn’t get the marshmallow torch lit to pass amongst the students. They outsmarted us with the relay by licking the marshmallow and sticking it the spoon so it could not fall off. We didn’t even make it to the marshmallow toss. And the marshmallow shooters all broke one by one as the balloons snapped off the cups. Thankfully we were playing with marshmallows and what child doesn’t love those sugary little puffs? Most of them quit at one point or another and just feasted on the marshmallows we had given them. (So it’s almost like we played chubby bunny!) Although you probably won’t be seeing our Marshmallow Olympics featured on ESPN or ABC News, the day was not a total loss and the kids had fun with it!

As well, the 11^th and 12^th grade students were divided up amongst the primary grades and asked to put on a few activities for each class to help with the day. I was very glad to hand over my little ones to these guys. They started by playing a game where pairs of students competed against each other to hold an orange between their foreheads while dancing to music. They looked so goofy dancing while their heads were stuck together! Then they adorned everyone’s faces with face paint. The girls looked very pretty with swirls and flowers dancing across their faces. And then boys looked ferocious with war markings splashed across theirs. With fresh paint they headed outside for silly races. My students competed in the traditional potato sack relay (except here in Honduras we use rice sacks) and the race that requires you to spin around in a million circles before stumbling back to your line. Those kids spent the majority of each race on the ground in a fit of laughter. They were just not coordinated enough to finish each race. I was laughing equally as hard on the sidelines.

The day finished with the mayor making an appearance and handing out toys to all the students, a giant conga line around the school, and candy of course. I let out a big sigh of relief when the bell finally rang for all the students to go home because all the sugar and noise left with them. I am genuinely glad to spend the day celebrating my students. I love watching them being kids and just having fun. I think it’s healthy for them run around screaming their heads off and inhaling sugar in various forms (once in awhile). I love them dearly and will always accept the opportunity to celebrate them. They are giant blessings my life and deserve a day to recognize how incredible and delightful they are.

Although Children’s Day is all about the students, I am sending up prayers for the teachers. Pressure is coming from all angles. Some are beginning to move past the honeymoon period of moving here and really feeling homesick for their families, friends, and comforts back home. Others are being tested and pushed to their limits by the students. Whatever the reason may be, we cannot afford to have anyone throw in the towel and go home. Pray that the Lord reaches their needs, whatever they may be, and gives them the strength to fight through. I feel like this is a common pray that I have here, but it is completely necessary. Our efforts are not enough for this job. We all need the Lord to guide us. I pray that he works through the students and teachers alike to ease the tension and make this job a little easier for those who are feeling weak.