Tia-dom

Last week was my last time working as a tia here at NPH…and man am I glad it’s over. I love my girls and I always will. And it is nice to get to spend a lot of time with them and be with them in the section. But I don’t think I could possibly be a tia otra vez. It makes me incredibly happy to have my job as a teacher and just straight up volunteer in the section, and not work as a caregiver. I’m so happy that I will have no more “girls do your chores,” no more vela nights with crazy lack of sleep, no more “where is your plate? Why don’t you have a plate? Where did you PUT your plate? Now where is your spoon?,” no more ridiculous attitudes from my 22 little heathens. WHEW.

Yes, this week was outrageously hard. Yes, I had my patience tested time and time again. Yes, I almost killed several of my children several times and needed to take a “time out” for myself…but I survived (and without killing any kids!) AND I learned a lot more about my girls and how they live and how much I truly love them….even if they piss me off… We spent time playing soccer, reading stories, walking to Parramos, being in a children’s processional in Parramos, going to church (a lot…), dying Easter Eggs, having an Easter Egg hunt (one of my girls even won first prize – 140Q!), watching movies, and being together. In addition to spending time with my girls and learning more about them, I learned a lot about myself too. I learned that I have an incredibly short fuse and that I should have more patience. I learned that lack of organization REALLY makes me angry…and that I should be more flexible in general. I discovered that when I go back to the states, I think I’m ready to take on a new kind of job that deals with adults for awhile! And I learned that while my girls can sometimes make me crazy, there are some children that can make my heart melt and make me remember the reasons why I’m here in the first place.

Yes, being a tia was incredibly difficult. Yes, I’m glad it’s over. And yes, even though they drive me insane, I still love these kids…although again…I’m glad it’s over :-p.