Teaching: I've am teaching music again this year, and am also teaching 6th grade Math, History, Spelling, High School Speech/Yearbook, and 8th Grade English. Yep. I'm very busy at school. While I welcome the busy schedule as opposed to last year's slow schedule, it has been difficult to juggle everything. I have discovered that I LOVE being in the classroom with the 6th graders and have been considering the options of whether to pursue music teacher positions or elementary teacher positions. I am currently still undecided.
Church: I am still attending Koza Baptist Church, the same church I got involved in last year. I love my church family and am involved in the Music Ministry and the Youth Group. I have actually taken an internship-like position as the Worship Assistant and work a few hours each week helping send out emails, prepare for the weekly music, and anything else music-related that needs to get done.
Friends: I have a great group of friends that have become like family. I am so sad that many of us are going our separate ways this spring. We are currently in a Bible study together that meets weekly at my house. The rest of the week we just hang out and goof off.
Events: Because it has been such a busy year so far I have hardly done much other than my weekly work and church routine. I went zip-lining with my friends, went to a student's ballet recital, and helped out with several Youth Group and church events.
Running: Running is my latest passion. Last year, I started a diet that worked for a little bit, but completely failed in the end. I gained back all of the weight that I lost plus a little bit. When I left Arizona this summer, I decided that my only goal for health this year was to get in better shape. I didn't know what that would look like, but I knew that my diet and exercise habits had to change and that getting in shape (even if I didn't lose any weight at first) would help me be more motivated to eat healthier. At the beginning of October, I decided that the easiest and cheapest exercise plan was to run. I'm surrounded by military people who are always running and are addicted to it. I have always HATED running, ever since I was a kid. I only ran out of necessity for sports, and even then... I hated it and it hated me. Knowing that, I decided to attempt to get over my hatred of running. I downloaded an application on my iPod touch that uses the Couch to 5k running program. The program is 9 weeks so I made the goal to run a 5k by Christmas. The Couch to 5k program works you up to a 5k very slowly through integrating jogging and walking ... which is exactly what I needed. I run 3 days a week and have gone from 20 minutes workouts consisting of 60 seconds running, 90 seconds walking to running 30+ minutes. The program lets me listen to music and then it interrupts the music to tell me when to run, when to walk, how many minutes are left, etc. It has been a great program to use, because I don't have to think about anything other than getting out there and enduring until I heard "Chime, chime, chime, WALK." I am running my first 5k when I am home for Christmas break. I am so excited at my progress and can't believe I have made it this far. I hit a tough spot at about week 6 and was finally able to break through around week 8. All and all it has taken me 11 weeks to complete. I have already downloaded the next program to train for a 10k which I'd like to run by April or May. I still can't say that I LOVE running, and I don't think I ever will. I love the progress I've made and I love the feeling of accomplishment after every run. But the actual running part is pretty much torture... pure torture. Running has helped me develop a better awareness of how important endurance is in life. Most of the good things in life are difficult, and rarely fun while we're in process. However, the rewards are great when we endure. I don't think I will ever love the physical act of running... but I am addicted to the sport. There is always a challenge, always one more goal to work for, whether it be to add time, distance, or increase your pace... there is always the push to do better, to be better.
Well that about sums it up... just in time for me to FINALLY board my plane from Osaka to San Francisco. I'm sure there will be plenty of hassle on the other end... because I'm pretty sure I will miss my connecting flight. But I will stay positive because I will be home for Christmas, and that is worth the wait.
