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[naturegirl321]

Lots of plans

I want to get an MA in TEFL.
a DELTA
work in a variety of countires.
Learn to speak Spanish fluently, I"m so close. Chinese, Romanian, and French.
Adopt some children.
Get married, if I ever find the right guy.
teach TEFfl overseas with my kids in tote so that they learn different languages and cultures.

[dduck]

I want to be happy.

I used to want to be a fluent Spanish speaker, now it's not so important. I speak enough Spanish to get by, and some more. I don't see the point in putting any more pressure on myself.

I considered getting more qualifications, but I realise that's only secondary. I want to be a better teacher, more qualifications aren't necessarily the answer.

I've no particular interest in getting married, earning more money, or owning a house, or my own school. In all, I don't actually want (or need) that much. Having friends is important.

Iain

[MixtecaMike]

My goals: 1 Earn enough money to take my wife and kids to another country (outside of Latin America)

2. Build a house for for the kids (in Guatemala)

3. Get my kids to speak English. Everybody seems surprised that my kids can't speak English fluently. My answer is: Hell, they never do what I tell 'em in Spanish, what makes you think they'd listen any better in English.

4. Own a car that is less than 5 years old. (Current model is 1986, at least I finally have a car. LOL.)

5. Short term goal. Download LOTR3 and show it to my students before it appears in theaters here.

[Guest]

For once in my life (56 years) I now have some definite goals - thanks to coming to China!

CHANGE LIVES

At the moment I am talking with various charities in the U.K. about sending a baby girl over there for heart surgery. She is on the critical list at the moment - on oxygen most of the time and I have just bought her some special formula which I hope will build her up a bit. She was seen 4 weeks ago by an American Heart Specialist but he said he could not help her as her case was too "complicated" . The Orphanage have given up on her but I just cannot do that while she is still alive. She holds my hand and looks into my eyes and I am a goner.

The second one is a little boy who has arms like flippers. He cannot sit up or roll over although he would be nearly 1 year old. His legs go out at right angles from his hips. I have seen the staff hold both of his feet in one hand so his legs will point down, but when you let go again - they stick out at right angles. This boy has not a hope in hell without surgery.
The Chinese doctors have also given up on him. I am trying to ge thim to America for surgery. He is one of the ones who worried me most when I first visited the Orphanage at the beginning of September. He did not show any emotion at all. He never cried, never smiled, never did anything and I just knew that he was in danger of simply "fading away" through lack of one on one contact and attention. It took me 6 WEEKS to get a reaction out of him and when he finally cried I nearly did also. Now I can get him to smile and even gurgle at me. This however is not enough he need surgery if he is to have any quality of life whatsoever.

The third one (and there are 60 children there - most with handicaps) is a 14 year old girl. I had been under the mistaken impression that she was a daughter of one of the workers. Nobody speaks any English at the Orphanage so I cannot ask questions. Anyway, I found out a few days ago that she is an Orphan too and has lived there all of her life. I HAVE TO GET HER OUT OF THERE. I do not know how, I just know that I will not sleep until I have improved her life. She is a lovely bright, intelligent girl with nothing wrong with her except she has been living in an "institution" all her life.

After Christmas I want to try and drag this Orphanage into this Century. They have no foster programs, no weekend programs etc. This girl needs to be exposed to life outside the Orphanage before she turns 18 and is released into the world.

I have just seen the first 2 year old girl adopted into the U.S.A. from this Orphanage and it was a very emotional time for me. I am delighted that she has a new loving family but it is the ones left behind that I must concern myself with.

I am going to take each child (one at a time) out for a day on a Saturday after Christmas and treat them like a King/Queen for a day. Take them to places they never get to i.e. KFC, The park, the Zoo, the Movies.
I am looking forward to that myself.

As I only teach 10 hours per week, I now find that the Orphanage is taking up 70% of my time and the school 30%.

Yes, my aim is to CHANGE LIVES IF POSSIBLE.

[Roger]

A great post, Rhonda! YOu have moved me deeply! I can visualise those kids you are trying to give a push towards the door to life beyond the orphanage.
I know it sounds shallow to say: "I would like to help but I can't..." I just don't have the power that you have, Rhonda.
Boys with feet that point at right angles are so common here among the beggar population. Every day when I go to some town nearby I notice beggar children, some with deformities, and I have to chase them away. Not far behind those 3 year olds (up to perhaps 7 years of age), hover the tarts; yesterday both the girls that just reach up to my kneews and those that can look in my eyes with hardly any tilting of their head said "I love you!"
So that's the new business mantra: "I love you!" and then the rouble rolls.
It would be a good thing if the Chinese cared more for their own human outcasts. You know the current regulations allow people to move anywhere they want; in the past there were severe penalties for undocumented residency, loitering and being a public nuisance. No more. And that means ever more poor and not-so poor peasants and others come to the brightly-illuminated cities to make easymoney.
Not that I envy them their income.
I just wonder where the hell is this leading to? It is getting ever more difficult, if not dangerous, to walk unmolested.

Meanwhile, continue your good work, Rhonda; those in the orphanages are the most hopeless members of this society - beggars are another chapter in my book.

[ls650]

I plan to stay in TEFL/TESL for a while.
1) finish my current contract.
1) teach next in Latin America.
2) earn an MA in TESOL - probably by distance while working.
3) maybe return to North America permanently to teach.

[naturegirl321]

Rhonda, thats awesome!