Lately, waiting for my students to show up or not feels like I'm in the play Waiting for Gadot. I'm in some sort of weird existential existence where no plans actually come to fruition.
I know I have talked, previously, about how I love that each day is a surprise - one never knows what might happen... but this is just getting ridiculous.
For example, this week, five out of my seven private students have canceled or not shown up for their lessons. The craziest one is the boy who lives in the house I live behind. How is it that he doesn't show up when we share the same laundry area and I can hear all conversations that happen in the house?
Today, nothing has gone as scheduled - which is actually getting to be normal. My 10:00 student dropped out, my appt got canceled (but when I showed up we decided to have a business meeting about helping with publicity in English), I had an emergency meeting with someone at the high school about grades (which are already due... go figure), and then the boy in the house didn't show up.
It can be very frustrating, to say the least. I always have other projects to work on, though, and stay busy. And also, I remember when I visited my friend in Peru during her time in the Peace Corps; she would hike 3 hours through the Andes Mountains only to have one person show up to her community meeting that had been announced several times over the radio (the source of all information there). So, there's that.
I think it is time to come up with a new business plan, though, - like making people prepay for lessons. Either that, or switch professions.
I remember you telling us how Sam would walk an hour to class and find out it had been cancelled, and she wasn't told?
ReplyDeleteOr stories like that.
So welcome to Cental/South America....where anything goes, and who knows what when?
You're doing great...!
We're so proud of how you're using everything to your advantage, (one of the teachings of MSIA).