Ready, Set, Go

So let’s not get too worked up here… tonight? Am I leaving tonight? I have hardly had a moment to get a decent night of sleep in the past few weeks, let alone internalize the fact that in less than 12 hours I will be getting comfy (as much as possible) on a plane with A that will get us to London, then ultimately Nairobi in a short 20 plus hour trip :). There are many unknowns, but a few important certainties. Our curriculum is as complete as it can be (prior to any input from the CYEC staff). Our line upon the commencement of this project is as follows:

Lesson 1. Introductory Lesson

Lesson 2. Self-Awareness of Emotions

Lesson 3. Managing Anxiety

Lesson 4. Managing Anger

Lesson 5. Conflict Resolution

Lesson 6. Self-Awareness and Identity

Lesson 7. Leadership

Lesson 8. Healthy Leisure, Motivation, and Time Management

Lesson 9. Beating Boredom and Developing Interests

Lesson 10. Concluding Lesson

I could not be more excited about what we have come up with. Reading through the result of the many hours of careful consideration, collaboration, and creation, I can truly say I am proud of what we have to present to the CYEC. Of course I acknowledge the vulnerability of our curriculum to being turned completely upside down as we work closely with the CYEC staff. However, I feel confident that our intention for this curriculum is clear and I do believe the CYEC will see benefit in sharing these ideals with this special group of children.

In light of the initiation of my second project at the CYEC, I wanted to share a bit about the interview questions I have created to ultimately answer the question… what does happiness mean to this specific and unique population? I realized that in order to most effectively and appropriately accept the unbiased and unexpected answers to my questions, I should do some self-searching and answer the most primary one myself. What does happiness mean to ME? When I asked myself this question, I caught myself simply smiling as I evaluated the most concise, articulate, understandable way to explain what I feel when I feel happiness.

To me, happiness means feeling truly content with what you have, who you are, and what impact you have on the world. Happiness means feeling self worth, independence, and pleasure in your own company. Happiness means bringing joy to the lives of others. It means appreciating yourself for your strengths and weaknesses. It means feeling truly proud of yourself. To me, happiness elicits the need to smile for no reason other than the fact that there is no reason not to. I hope that makes sense…

As I jump in the car to head to the airport, I find myself scatterbrained and confused with a variety of emotions – mostly because I don’t think I’ve had a moment to really move from “final exam mode” to “yay you’re going to Africa mode.” No doubt I will be there very shortly. I am unsure as to how frequently I will have internet access, but I will write separately and post as often as I can! So I guess I’ll see you in Kenya!