All My Bags Are Packed…. by Margaret Denny

All My Bags Are Packed….

by Margaret Denny

Finally, after months of planning and anticipation that has rivaled those of my long ago childhood Christmases past, it is here. Chile, ready or not, here I come!  For sure, getting this trip off of the ground for all of us involved, has not been easy or without its challenges. Just a few days ago issues surfaced that severely tried our patience and our southern civility. But for every problem there is truly a solution (of this I’m most assuredly convinced)! Good thing for me, that I have such a sunny disposition and have been dubbed by colleagues as the “Polly Anna of travel”! It is a title I’m enormously proud of and try desperately to live up to any time I get the opportunity to go somewhere, anywhere…

So now I find myself sharing this wonderful adventure with my husband, Ken, our colleague and friend, Kenny, and some wonderful students, past and present. I can’t believe by the end of the week, I’ll be in Concepcion, Chile! I will board that plane with no preconceived perception as to what to expect. It is not that I don’t have high expectations for this trip, because I certainly do, but that I will allow it to unfold and envelope me like that high Louisiana humidity I’ve grown to know, appreciate, and respect. I look forward to meeting new people, experiencing new foods, a different culture, and even not hearing my native language spoken as a first language (though I’m pretty sure I’ll be really happy when I get back on native soil!).  I look very forward to experiencing how young minds are shaped by their eager teachers and getting insight into the issues teachers grapple with in this foreign land.

One thing I know for sure, I will savor every minute of this trip like a very rich triple chocolate “something or other” dessert after an outstanding meal.   So as we are fond of saying in Louisiana, “L’aissez les bon temps  roulez”!