Inspired by the blogs of Danielle and Scott, in which they so clearly describe their Australian adventures, I decided it was time to brush the dust off my own little online journal and reflect on the last month or so of my London life.
In short, it's been amazing. It's been two months since I last posted something here, and a lot has happened since. Christmas. New Years. Hellish days in the classroom. All of these have come and gone, and I can look back on these experiences as a different and wiser person. I'll break up the last two months into the significant events that have transpired in that time.
Swimming: I may have mentioned this before, but every Friday I take a grade six class swimming and then to the library. Now, this might sound sound a blessing, because once the kids are in the pool I should be able to relax. Well, wrong. It is a curse. From remembering inhalers, making sure no kids get lost or left behind, keeping them quiet in the bus, quelling conflicts, keeping track of swimming progress...this job is anything but relaxing. I would rather teach math all afternoon. Granted, there are some good days. Sometimes the kids cooperate. Sometimes they do what they're told and manage to refrain from climbing up the walls or rolling around the floor. Sometimes. Most times it is the hardest part of the week. With each challenge, however, comes the opportunity to grow professionally, and I have learned a lot from this class. This past Friday was a fairly good day. One funny incident:
Student right in front of me: *makes a ridiculous noise while everyone is reading quietly*
Me: "Please don't do that."
Student: "It wasn't me."
Me: "Yes it was. Don't lie to me."
You could tell he was thinking of a comeback, but he had nothing. I felt pretty good that I had won an argument with a ten-year old.
Secondary: Sometimes teaching secondary is amazing. In a good school the kids are relatively disciplined and generally do as I ask. But sometimes I end up in a rough school in rough parts of inner-city London. Signs on the way into the schools have messages that basically warn students that the police are just a phone call away. The kids are tough and refuse to do any work. They throw pencils at each other and me when I'm not looking. They punch each other. The swear. They scream. They throw paper around. They find out I'm Canadian and say that Canadians are pussies. They fight. They insult me to my face. All in a day's work I guess, but usually these days I'm counting down the minutes until I get to go home. A sample incident from grade eleven:
Big, intimidating student 1: "I like you Mr. Hayward. You're firm, but fair."
Me: "Thank you. I'd really like it if you did your work."
-Twenty minutes later he is speaking to another student across the room in harsh tones. Their quick speech, accent, and slang make them impossible to understand. It becomes evident that their "discussion" is becoming quite heated.-
Me: "Boys, this has to stop or I'm calling in the head of department to take you out."
-Neither student seems to notice that I exist, let alone have just said something.-
Student 1: "All right, that's enough. I'm going to fuck you up."
-At this point student 1 gets up and rushes across the classroom and grabs big, intimidating student two by the shirt, pulls him out of the desk and slams him against the wall. They seem capable of killing one another. I eventually stop it by standing between them before they managed to start punching each other in the face. I learn that teaching secondary is sometimes less about teaching than it is about keeping everybody alive.-
Yep, just another day at work.
The same day, though, I was teaching another grade eleven class and two students were horsing around and play fighting. Understandably, I was hyper-sensitive to conflict and so I got after them for it. At the end of the lesson:
Nice student: "Sorry for misbehaving in your class Mr. Hayward. It can be difficult for a teacher to step into someone else's class and teach someone else's lesson. I just wanted to apologize for our behaviour. Thanks for teaching us today."
I could have hugged this guy. It almost made up for the fights earlier. Almost.
Christmas: Christmas was quite different this year. I spent it in Epsom with some distant relatives I had only met a few times before. They were so nice, and it was great to experience a traditional English Christmas. They even brought out the Christmas pudding, poured brandy all over it and lit it on fire. It was really neat, and I was grateful to them. I spoke with everyone in my family Christmas morning, and though it was nice to hear from them, it was still a bit sad. I could tell my mum was cracking up over the phone, and it's never nice to hear that. I think that marked the beginning of my first and only bout of homesickness. For the next couple weeks I really found myself missing family and friends back in Victoria. When work started up again, though, that feeling dissipated, and I was back to enjoying the London life.
New Years: I went out with my friends Cheryl and Justin to a buffet dinner/comedy club/nightclub. It was really fun, and we had quite a bit to drink. For some reason Justin threw half a bottle of wine into a garden and it shattered all over the pavement. We missed the fireworks, but we could see the sky lighting up over the buildings. It was a New Years to remember, for sure.
Social life: The friends I have here are great, and London is full of things to do. Last night I set out with Dunja and Kristen to see "The King's Speech." Unfortunately, it was sold out. At a loss for something to do, we wandered around until deciding that we could use dessert, and decided to check out the Hard Rock Cafe. Before I knew it I was sitting on Jimi Hendrix's couch playing Oasis's guitar. It was a surreal moment to be sure.
On Tuesday I played an open mic in Camden. Camden is basically the hipster-music neighbourhood of London. I'm told it's where Liam Gallagher lives. I was nervous going on stage, particularly because I didn't practice much and the duo before me was mindblowing. Still, I marched on up there and opened with an original song called "The Terrace In Italian." I also played a Ryan Adams cover and then another original titled "Not Going Down With The Ship." My friends said it was awesome, but I know my nerves got to me. I will go back in a couple weeks to try again.
So Cheryl and I are both quite into soccer, err...football! We both support the Tottenham Hotspurs and watch all their games at the local pub. On Friday we both bought memberships to the club and tickets to see them DESTROY West Ham in March! We are both really excited about that.
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My parents arrive in London in about 2.5 weeks for a two week visit. I am really looking forward to seeing them and showing them around my new city and life. I really feel like this is my life now. In no way do I feel like a tourist. I walk my neighbourhood and though I don't feel like a true Londoner, I feel like a part of the fabric of London society. It's a strange feeling when something foreign becomes familiar, and I'm wondering if Victoria will feel foreign at first when I return. I really hope not. I know a few people who spend so much time moving from place to place that they become unsure where home is. It's like they orbit nothing, and while that might appease the true "free spirits," I think that would just make me lonely and uncertain. That's probably one of the big reasons why I only decided to stay here for six months. And while I love this adventure, I am looking forward to returning to Victoria and letting my life unfold somewhere I can begin to sprout tentative roots. I am planning to record a full-length album in the summer, and hopefully take a more proactive approach to music, ie., getting gigs, playing open mics, and busking. I want to be a part of Victoria's music scene, and I think this summer I will have the time and dedication. I'm also looking forward to spending long summer days with good friends in old haunts, and taking full advantage of the wilderness that the West coast of BC has to offer.
I suppose that's all for now. I should really go and check on my laundry.
Until next time, take care and stay warm.
-Tom
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