HOME - I am coming home!

Yesterday was our last day working as exam invigilators at a rural secondary school. Today, we made our way back to our own school. I’m so grateful because even though I faced challenges keeping up with my daily posts on Hive to earn the yearly author badge on Hivebuzz, the school we were assigned to had a Starlink satellite dish. This meant we had internet access to stay connected to the outside world.

Here’s a glimpse of our return journey yesterday evening, from the school to the homestay we were staying at. The unpaved roads made the drive a bit uncomfortable, especially with high tire pressure. Luckily, my car tires had less air in them, which made the ride a bit smoother compared to fully inflated tires.

On our final day, we took it easy and didn’t go fishing because of the hot weather. We didn’t want a repeat of the previous day when we caught nothing during the daytime. But I couldn’t resist the river, so I spent some time swimming and enjoying its beauty. While wading in the river, I came across an otter, which might explain why there were no fish around during the day, it was likely hunting. Despite that, I had a great time cooling off in the water. After the swim, I returned to the homestay and started grading exam papers for my two math classes. It took me from the afternoon until around 10 p.m. to finish marking and giving grades.

For dinner, we had fish soup, prawn soup, noodle soup, rice, and chili sambal. The fish and prawns were all from our catches over the past two days, 90% of which I caught myself. After dinner, I went back to marking papers. Around 10 p.m., once I was done, I went fishing again. This time, I used snail meat as bait. I broke the snail shells, removed the slimy but firm meat, and cut it into smaller pieces to have enough bait. I managed to catch two catfish. My friend, who joined me, didn’t catch anything.

We fished until around 2 a.m. I was so sleepy by then. Even though I wanted to keep fishing, I kept nodding off, even startling myself awake from my own snoring! I ended up sitting on a rock, dozing off now and then. Eventually, I gave up and told my friend we should head back because I was too tired. We packed up and went back to the homestay.

Today, we all headed back to our homes and schools. This experience of working outside our usual school was truly unique. Apart from enjoying the place we stayed, I feel like our bonds as colleagues grew stronger. Even though I wasn’t that close to some of my fellow teachers before, this trip brought us closer. We carried out our duties well and had fun despite the limited facilities.

When I got home, my dogs, Kokot, Lila, and Lomu, were so excited to see me. Kokot wouldn’t stop barking joyfully and clung tightly to my leg. I’m thankful that his wound, which had been infected, is healing well. The previously open wound is now closing up and looks much better. I also noticed that the flowers by our gate have grown taller and started blooming. My wife and kids weren’t home yet when I arrived, but it felt good to be back.