Do we stay or do we go?

This question always arises in the fall, before teacher contracts have to be signed. International school teachers have to decide if they walk the plank, don't sign their contracts for next year and take a leap of faith they'll find something else. Something better.
OR
They piddle around on job search sites seeing if anything catches their eye before that December due date in which their contracts have to be signed. Not really getting serious about the job search but looking just in case.
OR
There are those that just know they're staying. They love it where they're at and they want to stay another year.

I feel like we've been in category two, the piddlers, for two years now. And I think it's the worst place to be. Who knows what we're doing? Who knows if we're satisfied where we're at? Has the bug to move hit us or are we just hitting the shorter days of winter and feel a little sunlight deprived?

When people ask us what we'll do next year, we usually say, We'll probably stay. Which we totally mean. Until we see job openings in Lima and Prague and think, maybe we should apply and just see. But then we don't have all our application stuff together because you need references and current photos and updated CV's and hours to spend filling out little boxes on whatever site that school uses to recruit teachers. And then half way into filling in all those little boxes we think, We'll probably end up staying. Is this worth a try?! And of course it is, but who wants to spend all their free time filling out little boxes and making sure our teaching licenses are the right PDF size?

As you can see we're definitely not in the ready-to-go category. Because you really have to decide that in September and spend all your free time job searching. And we're just not ready to commit to that. But then we wonder... What if? What if we fill out that application and end up on a grand new adventure?

I guess we'll know by December 10th when our current contracts need to be resigned. After that we don't have to deal with it until next fall when we ask ourselves again, Do we stay or do we go?

Not so popular on Facebook...

A month ago I posted an article on Facebook. It didn't get a single 'like' or 'comment'. Not one! I realize I'm not so popular as to get loads of comments on my Facebook feed, but when I looked back, EVERYTHING else on my feed had some likes and comments. EVERYTHING, except this one article. Why? Because this is what it said:

Why You Need More Muslim Friends

Ok, don't stop reading yet.
Just read a little further. 
Please. 

I realize this is a hot topic. A hot topic in America. A hot topic amongst Christians. A hot topic amongst Muslims too. And since most of the people reading this blog are the Christian/American side of this hot topic, don't get frustrated or annoyed or think "here goes the Christian girl who has become liberal" yet. I just want to say...

This article is actually from a CHRISTIAN magazine. Just consider reading it. Whether you agree, disagree or think I'm totally crazy (aka liberal), I really think it reflects the WWJD idea. And whether you believe in Jesus or America or Christianity, it really reflects human decency from a regular American Christian guy. And we all need a little human decency in our lives these days. So be encouraged at the good things still happening in this world and take a look at this article. I think it shows that all we need is love. (Ok, that last comment was cheesy, but it's true!)

It's getting sticky in Hungary.

Hungary has been in the limelight recently because the politics here is crazy! Here are the recent highlights...

First country in the world to put forth an "internet tax" to Parliament, so that every gigabyte of usage is taxed.

Hungarian government officials are the first ever to be blocked from entering the US because of corruption issues.

The current Hungarian prime minister, Mr. Viktor Orbán, is making headlines for his stance against Western ideas of government and his illiberal (or non-liberal) ideology. He likes the Russian and Turkish authoritarian regimes.

So politics is part of expat discussion a lot lately. What will happen in the next few years in Hungary? That's what we all want to know. Will we be moving on to other countries or will outside economic and political pressure force Hungary to move back to the EU/Western/Democratic politics that Hungarians have leaned toward throughout their history? I guess we'll see.

Thousands protest against the internet tax in Budapest.

Viktor Orbán, the Hungarian Prime Minister, is making enemies,
but he still has many Hungarian supporters too.

The 'pros' of a place

Living and traveling in various places has given me an appreciation for what each country has to offer. The pros of a place.

In China the delicious spicy cuisine was a pro. 
In Kenya it was the relaxed atmosphere (which I have to admit was sometimes a con as well).
America has the best customer service in the world.
Hungary the quietest people.
The Italian and Swiss Alps win for stunning views.
Denmark has amazing boutique shopping.
Zanzibar the best beaches in the world.

Most recently my adventures took me to Scotland. And I think they have 'friendliness' going for them. Everyone was so nice. Always willing to chat. Generous. Their generosity and friendliness came out in full force when we went out one night with friends. We visited one of our co-workers in his hometown. His dad took us from pub to pub in the little town of Eyemouth (which you say exactly like it's written: eye mouth). Hanging out with intoxicated old men in a small Scottish pub showed the true friendliness of the Scots, especially as the night wore on.

At our last stop, our host showed us a photo hanging on the pub's wall that he took some years ago. I went back to look at it a little closer, then returned to the group for another drink. In the midst of my meandering back to my glass, another man in the pub went home and came back with a framed copy of the same photo I had just been looking at. He had snagged it some years ago and wanted me to have it, since I was admiring it on the wall. Seriously?! He went home and brought it back for me just because I was looking at it! I trekked the photo back to our host's house. I didn't feel good keeping it, since it was really a family keepsake. But I was astonished at the generosity and thoughtfulness of every Scottish person I met. Truly, the Scots are some of the nicest people in the world.

To my mommy friends

I'm not a mommy. But I have a lot of mommy friends. And lately a lot of you have been expressing the pressure you feel as moms. I've heard you talk about it in private conversations, emails, blogs and when I ask you how you're doing. When I hear you express your stress, guilt, fears of judgement and the pressures on you to be super mommy, I want to cry. Because that sucks! None of us should have to live with that kind of pressure. So this is what I want to say to you...

Ignore the pressure. Screw the pressure. Forget the pressure. I know that is easier said than done, but that pressure has nothing to do with your kids. Because your kids don't really care about the themed birthday party or the matching outfit or the organic lunch. And here's how I know...

I grew up with a single mom with three kids. She wasn't there for all the ball games or music concerts or school plays. She had to work. (And let's face it, she was TIRED!) We didn't have bento box lunches; we had peanut butter and jelly sandwiches on wonder bread with two chips a'hoy cookies and a few potato chips from the big bag at home. We didn't have the newest clothes; we ordered the same five shirts, three pairs of pants, one package of underwear and one package of socks from the Sears catalogue every fall. We lived in a trailer for several years; our friends lived in two story houses with matching furniture in every room.

My mom's friends saw my sisters and me in our Sears catalogue clothes and eating no-frills lunches. They saw that my mom didn't always come to our events at school. They saw our mismatching furniture when they dropped off our friends for a sleep-over. But it's the things they didn't see that make me say please let go of the mommy pressure...

They didn't see that my sisters and I laid on my mom's bed every Saturday morning and talked and talked and talked. And my mom would just listen to our childhood and teenage ramblings. They didn't see my mom rush from work to make it to the band concert just in time. They didn't see her take me to the fabric store to pick out a homecoming dress and make it for me. They didn't see her mow the lawn or make dinner or put a band-aid on my finger. They didn't see her be my mom day in and day out. But I did. And even though we didn't have all the other things our friends had, I never felt without. Even when my mom said go outside and play, I didn't feel like she didn't want to be around me (although she probably didn't). Because I knew I was loved. Love. That's all your kids want. Kids are easy that way. Because the simplest things make kids happy...

This is what made me happy as a kid... I loved getting the Sears catalogue every fall and picking out what I wanted. I loved sitting on my mom's bed in that mismatching house every Saturday morning. I survived on peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and chips a'hoy cookies allowed me some good lunch trades at times. I liked when my mom let me do the decorating to our house, even if it wasn't the nicest looking. I felt extra proud when my mom made it to a school event because I knew it was hard for her. I loved eating her fried halibut and helping her plant flowers in the yard. It's only when I look back as an adult that I realize that the things I loved as a child would have been looked on very differently by adults. Maybe my mom's friends thought I was without and that my mom wasn't a good mommy. But I didn't. And that's the best part - kids don't care what other people think; they just care what their mommies think.

So mommy friends, please don't let the pressure from others, pressure from yourself or pressure from society make you feel stressed, inadequate or judged. You are super mommy already. Your super power is love.