Week 13 - Unlucky 13

Superstitious people for some reason seem to believe the number 13 is unlucky. Well, for me, it seems this 13th week of me being in Sri Lanka seems to have also been unlucky!

Twice within this week I have been taken to hospital for a minor injury, which in the UK I would never have worried about. I tripped over a step, of no more than 5cm high, in the middle of the night, subbing my toe in the process. I shook off the pain, at 3am in the morning, still half asleep and crawled back into bed, not even thinking to check what the injury looked like. I woke in the morning, showered, and got ready for school – there was no pain in my toe, and I was walking absolutely fine, however I had noticed part of my nail had actually broken off. 24 hours later, I woke on Thursday morning, in excruciating pain, a swollen toe, and a fountain of blood springing from this tiny wound.

A day full at school on Thursday, complete with my two additional ESL classes, I called for help from the director of The Paalam Project, who also used to be a nurse, to check over my toe and help me bandage it up. Since, I have been taken to hospital as the pain only intensified, and I began to feel throbbing on my toe. Thankfully, I was accompanied to the hospital by Sweette Aunty, who having used the same A&E department over her 18 years of being the Children’s Home Manager, knows every nurse, doctor and check-in attendant, and I was seen immediately. After being put through some rather painful dressings, and re-dressings, I was prescribed anti-biotics, and instructions to return for further check-ups, whilst I was assured the hospital staff spoke English, and no translator was required, not one word was uttered to me. After all, this is Sri Lanka!

Apart from being the walking wounded, this week seems to have been a good one, including a trip to Pizza Hut, Parents meeting at school and intense discussions about the upcoming Sports Meet. Only a few weeks to go now!! Two years ago I was in Jaffna for the sports meet, which was a great opportunity to spend time with the school children and see them compete in the games, a year ago I was here for their sports meet practice, but unfortunately was back in the UK for the meet, and this year, I will have been around for the practice, AND the meet. So much has happened in these past two years, and I am honestly so thankful for this amazing opportunity, as well as all my past ones here in Sri Lanka.

My weekend seemed to be nice and relaxing, allowing me to get back into the swing of things with planning my next ESL lessons, getting my ‘craft on’, and organising my side of the school. Having not only my classes to organise and oversee, I also have been given the responsibility of ensuring Angel Class, Faith Class and Dove Class are working sensibly, correctly and keeping a close eye on the teachers. There’s a lot to do, and so many improvements to make, but we’re heading there – I’m excited to see how much the school will have developed over the 9/10 months I am with them, and I hope there will be a clear vision for the future too.

We are searching for English natives to come and work in the school after I leave – my leave date is yet to be decided. We have come to the conclusion, there needs to be a constant stream of international teachers, who are up for a challenge/great year, to grow as an individual, bless a community, and serve in what I believe is the greatest capacity ever. If you know of anybody, or YOU may be interested – get in touch. To ask the questions you need answers for, or to find out some more information – get in touch. Pass this on to family and friends, and tell them to get in touch!

I guess you could say the number 13, is unlucky for some, but for me despite all the negatives, I still believe this week has been a good'un.