50 Important things from 2008

Here it is, in it's fourth year, the list of important things:

50 important things from 2008.  



 

1.  My Friends.

2.  Dancing.

3.   Making it through another year of teaching

4.   Chicago

5.  My niece turning two.

6.  Learning that it does get easier with time.

7.  Finding out that when your heart breaks you will make it….. (Yes a repeat from last year and the year before but I think that maybe this will be a lesson I have to learn over and over and over and over and over….)


8.  Matt Walters.

9.  Joel Spencer. 

10.  New roommates, new apartments, new country, new life, new beginning.

11.  St. Patrick’s Day.

12.  Saying the hardest goodbye I’ve ever had to.

13.  Salsa dancing with Luis.

14.  Realizing love.

15.  Chalwa at Wild Wings


16.  Learning Spanish

17.  Finding friends even when you think you can’t.

18.  Learning and learning and learning who I am.

19.  Days that I wake up with only my dance shoes on.

20.  Losing the person I love to dance with.

21.  Satellite Crash Down Parties, glow sticks, and blue face paint.

22.  Lindsay Scarborough. 

23.  Jonathan Scales and his steel pan of greatness.


24.  Saying goodbye to students that I love.

25. Dancing in the Drum Circle.

26.  Going away Parties.

27.  Ed Woods.

28.  Photo Shoots in downtown Asheville.

29.  Writing poetry.

30. Painting.

31.  Finding Matt again, after I thought I had lost him.

32.  Highlights and I am Legend


33.  Rachel Harris Scales.  Because she made me laugh…. A lot.

34. Christmas Caroling at the Director’s House


35.  Seeing my friends again after four months.

36.  Realizing that sometimes friendships just end, for no reason.

37.  Panama.

38.  Family

39.  Cinco de Mayo.

40.  Mike and Rachel’s wedding, new friends, and fun times in Charleston!

41.  Poetry readings, Melodicas, and the Flat Iron

42.  Leaving a job, friends, a city, and a life that I loved.

43.  Distance.  Thousands of miles of it.

44.  Finding my own strength.

45.   Panamanian Tipica Dancing.

46.  Believing even when it’s hard.

47.  Giant Silver Beans and a moment that felt like home.

48.  Barak Obama

49.  Seeing hope in someone else.

50.  Ending 2008 with the belief that “Perhaps 2009” is the year for us.

We wish you a Merry Christmas, Feliz Navidad, and all that other business too!!

The countdown has begun:  Only 6 days until I arrive in the US!!  I woke up this morning more ready for NC and cold weather and friends and family than I had expected to be!!!  Last night we had a small Christmas party at my friend John's house.  It was filled with turkey, Christmas lights, eggnog, and caroling.  We stood around together, sang some songs, and then on an impromptu note, drove to the Director's house and the Elementary principal's house and sang to them.  It was almost like being back at home except that we were sweating our bums off!!  It was a good reminder of how you can find friends anywhere if you just try.......  So to further celebrate a Panamanian Christmas, here we are:  

It's a Panamanian Christmas

We Wish You a Panamanian Christmas....

And thus begins the Christmas season.  So as I am sure you can imagine it is super hard to get in that Christmas Spirit when it's 90 degrees outside and every one speaks spanish.  One night last week Jodie and I were walking to our favorite Lebonese restaurant.  On our way is a lovely park and as we passed on this night there was una fiesta grande.  There were singers, dancers, a drag queen, the coca cola bear, light up santa hats, and street meat.  If there is anything that can put a little yule-in-your-tide it is street meat and light up santa hats.....  You think that that was it, oh no, look at the awesome..... well I'm not sure what they are, but they were awesome.

As if it weren't Christmas enough...... this is what I got to do this weekend.......

I just love a hot sunny day at the beach at Christmas.

And lastly I think penguins, in the mall, with santa hats really just says it all.