The Return to Samoana...Dun Dun Dun

This week I was finally able to make my return to the great Samoana HS. PiCED is working on a special 6 month leadership program, and we are looking for 6 Youth Leaders and 60 participants from around the island. We have a team of 2 staff members that are handling the project, but I decided to make the presentation to a group at Samoana. I was nervous to be on campus again...would the kids be excited? 

We pulled up in front of the history building, and as I got out of the car all of the kids in the building ran up to the windows and outside of the class screaming, “Ms. Jessie!! Ms. Jessie!! Hey Ms. Jessie!!” It was adorable and heart warming and amazing....... (I have to pause for a proud teacher moment)..... They were so cute and excited to see me, and I think I was ten times as happy to see them! (Though, from an onlookers perspective it probably looked like one of those “Save Africa” infomercials.... All the kids running towards me, others looking through the classroom windows longingly.) They begged me to come back and be their teacher and replace those of their least favorite, current teachers, but everywhere I looked there were smiling, eager faces ready for acknowledgement. 

As we made our way through campus the shouts continued, and I knew I had made the right choice coming back to work with the American Samoan kids again. We entered the classroom where we were presenting to the NHS, and I waited in a corner until the kids started trickling in... I knew lots of familiar faces would soon fill the room. As the students entered many of them did a double take... “Is that really Ms. Jessie”... and then ran over for “Hellos” and hugs. Oka, I missed them! After I talked about our project I hung around to catch up with some of my favs and they promised to come to PiCED a lot this year. I love my work as Project Manager but I miss seeing my kids in that classroom environment everyday! I start teaching a class in a week and a half...I can’t wait!