Apples and Chalkdust

Qualities of Great Teachers There are many kinds of teachers as there are stars in the heavens. Each, though of variant brightness, provide us light even in the darkest nights. What are the qualities of great teachers? Let us spell them. Teachers... Touch. Everytime a teacher comes into our lives, she or he can not not touch our lives. Great teachers foremost reason for teaching is to touch our lives. Great teachers make us feel even more the beauty of life, the greatness of our soul, and the joys of our spirits. Long after they graduate, we will forget most of the information fed on us, but we will never forget how these teachers touched our lives. Electrify. Thunder is good. Thunder is impressive. But it is lightning that does the work. Great teachers cause sudden and intense excitement, they startle us, surprise us, they arouse our desire to learn. They make us look forward to every session. They make us thirst. Aspire. Great teachers always aim for the most noble values.

I went home early today. We just reported for half-day with which we celebrated our teachers day. There was no fun-fare. It was simple and communal. Somehow, it is much better this way. The other days I received messages from my former students from Jubilee greeting me happy teachers' day--something absent in Northfield. I feel that it is not really a culture here to celebrate such day...maybe because there are so many celebrations that an additional one would not matter so much.

It has been decades since the last time I was here. There had already climbing mountains and breaking down hearts. I want to fly, but seems that I am down. I canot write more of this. My eyes are beginning to close.

It has been ages since the last time I wrote here. I have been busy for the past few days panning for my new-found business and mapping out my life. I am dreaming big and I dream a life of significance. This is the first time that I am not excited for the first day of class. Maybe because I still don't know the people that I am going to meet. or maybe because I am not so much excited with the subject I am to teach. I know that this is temporary, once I meet my students, I know things will certainly change. There is so much life into teaching that death would not be able to conquer. I know enthusiasm will soon come back. I hope that in a few days, I would be able to write down my dreams. I want to feel, smell, see, hear, and if possible, taste it. I want my dreams to become flesh and blood reality. By the way, tomorrow i will be delivering a speech at the Metro Manila Toastmasters Club. My tentative title is DREAMWEAVER. I will post the speech at smarspeech soon.

There are still so many things that need to be done. I have to work to live. I have to live to do my mission. I don't feel good today. Same as yesterday. It feels like the world stopped spinning but only on me. I am down and cannot do anything. I have to move though. So today I will construct my last two syllabi wash my clothes write my 2nd speech for the toastmasters construct my daily schedule make affirmation cards...I need this for I am now out of balance... go to church chat with a friend clean my room, and try to be myself again. I have to do this and stop waiting for the manna of chikka to come online this morning....

For three days, we stayed in Corregidor. We went inside its tunnels and caves and foxholes. We went over its mountains and dove in the sea that surrounds it. There is so much to be said of the experience. This I will do in the coming days. Stay connected! God bless you. cliche: I was here!