Props to all the teachers in the world

Condoms! Condoms! Condoms! For the love of god I hope they use them. In the beginning of August I started a sexual health class with 7^th, 8^th, and 9^th graders and it is definitely.....interesting. And exhausting. Yet rewarding. And fun. Yet makes me question how anyone can ever be a teacher. To all the teachers out there, props to you! Seriously. Between these weekly classes and my half hour weekly health sessions with preschool-3^rd graders I am so tired. It's so hard. Granted the hour long walk each way in the hot Paraguayan sun to the school is definitely a little more taxing than the average American teacher commute. And I am teaching in a 3^rd language I am far from fluent in (I still secretly say “really?? wow!!!” to most things the preschoolers tell me. And it usually works). But not only do you have to keep 30 kids alive and have them not bite each other and to clean up after themselves but you also have to teach them something! The amount of times we have sang songs about wearing shoes (to prevent parasites which most kids have), drawn pictures about wearing shoes, played games about wearing shoes, did skits about wearing shoes is too many to count. When just a few hours after class a kid shows up to my house barefoot part of me dies inside. And to finish a full day with these lunatics and then go home and grade their homework and plan for another full day. How the heck do you guys do it? I have never had more appreciation for a job, and I also am learning that teaching is definitely not for me.

But in the meantime, I am learning a lot about myself :-). I enjoy the hugs and excitement to see me of the little ones so very much and I can't help but smile every time this one kindergartener calls me “Profesora Sevo'i” which translates into Teacher Parasite. And she honestly thinks my name is parasite so thats awesome. It also does feel really good when you see a kid leave the bathroom and wash his hands with soap (the little things in life). And they make me feel like a popstar walking down the red dirt roads of my community yelling my name from all sides.

But, I am really really really enjoying the sexual health class. It is making me realize that abstinence only education is just about as dumb an idea as you can get. I think back to middle and high school and all I can remember is watching a movie about a uterus shaped like a pancake and not wanting to eat pancakes for 3 years. And everything after that is plain experimentation which is exactly what we don't want. Teenage pregnancy is a huge problem here in Paraguay and I honestly think me being a 25 year old, single, with no kids, and happy is the most successful project I will have here. Almost everyone I know has kids by age 20 because that is the culture, but we are little by little trying to change that.

I have had classes on everything from imagining our ideal boyfriends/girlfriends to talking about cultural myths about sex to thinking about the costs both in money and emotional of having a baby at a young age to just recently a condom demonstration where we talked about the myths associated with condom usage and then practiced putting them on bananas. And my favorite part was that the teacher thanked me for doing the activity because it is really hard for him to do it because the moms get mad and said he wanted to continue doing hands on activities with me! Which was awesome!!! Even one of the kids came up to me and said thanks for talking about it with them because all their parents are very closed and don't want to talk about sex but they have to learn from someone!

So all in all the school has been a wonderful experience and I am wrapping up in the next few weeks as the heat is already starting and summer break will arrive sooner than we can count. It has boosted my confidence and improved my relationships with the kids and adults with my community and I couldn't be more grateful for the experience. I mean, if I can spin a condom in the air while talking to kids about STDs in a third language then what can't I do???????