From a Coffeeholic Blogger to a Coffeeholic Teacher

Hey Coffeeholics!!! I'm back!!!!! Yeah I know I still can't believe myself that I actually was able to NOT go online for more than a month. It was a conscious decision on my part. I had to do it for my sanity (lolz..), health, and rest. The major reason why I haven't been online these past few months is due to my work. I've been extending hours in school to train and coach several of our students for a week long competition where they will compete with other schools with the same curriculum as ours in the areas of academics, athletics, speech and drama, arts and exhibts (including photography and needlework), and music (vocal & instrumental). I coach/train students in the academics and needlework category. Plus I accompanied them during the competitions itself (which was last week). The training and coaching was tiring which explains my online disappearance. Most of the time, I go home wiped out and have no strength (seriously!) to open my laptop much less type. I really wanted to blog but I needed the rest. I know I missed a lot of events and good blogging opportunities (sighs.. >__<) But then.. the results in the end truly paid off! Here are some photos of some of the stuff my "kids" did which I'm so proud of.. proud that they were able to accomplish it and not only that.. bag medals because of it!

Oil Pastel - won 1st place!
(no I didn't coach them in arts.. hehe. just wanna show you guys their talent!)

Acrylics - 1st Place din sa competition.. one of my favorite pieces!

Watercolor - 5th Place
This is also one of my favorites! Its also the wallpaper on my cellphone now. 

AFGHANS (crochet)
3rd Place
I helped "coached" and train my student in this one. 

Embroidery - 1st Place

This is one of the most difficult pieces of embroidery that any of my students made.
The design came from an oil painting that she saw but the rest she did all by herself.
I just helped pick out the types of stitches she will do and gave some suggestions.

I can't help but be amazed by all the students' gifts and talents and hard work. They all did an amazing job and I'm so proud of them. Not all of them won but the experience and the lessons that they all learned through all of this will hopefully spurn them on to further develop their skills and talents and encourage them to give their best. I'm grateful to God that it all paid off! We went home with the overall award in academics and third overall in arts and exhibts and in music. Truly God has been good to my school and to the kids. So yeah, all the abstinence on the net and focus on them was all worth it. :) Seeing their happy faces especially when they got their medals was worth it.

So yeah, this basically sums up what I've been doing when I wasn't online. Hehe. Thank goodness for food supplements, vitamins, and a whole truckload of coffee to keep me up and running. I'm finally able to get that  much needed rest and catch up on my backlogs (ack. >_< super sorry about that!) this sembreak. Yay sembreak! Hahaha.. yes, the perks of being a teacher is awesome. So I'm glad to be back and yes.. Brew of  The Day is back in service. :)

A Time to Grieve - A Tribute to a Great Teacher

Photo credit here

To everything there is a season,
a time for every purpose under the sun.
A time to be born and a time to die;
a time to plant and a time to pluck up that which is planted;
a time to kill and a time to heal ...
a time to weep and a time to laugh;
a time to mourn and a time to dance ...
a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing;
a time to lose and a time to seek;
a time to rend and a time to sew;
a time to keep silent and a time to speak;
a time to love and a time to hate;
a time for war and a time for peace.


Ecclesiastes 3:1-8

Since yesterday, it has been a time to weep for me.. a time to grieve because I just found out that a close friend of mine passed away. I can call him friend now but before I used to call him Sir. Yes, Sir Noli was a great friend, a great teacher, and a great adviser. He is one of my favorite teachers. Oh I remember him, not only because of the actual lessons that he taught. I remember him because he was one of the rare teachers who was REAL. He took the time to listen to us, his students. And really talk to us. And you knew that he wasn't just doing it for show but that because he truly cared. His words of encouragement really cheered us up when there were times we wanted to give up on a certain project or activity that we had to do. I'm not saying he was the perfect teacher. Oh there were times he would shout at us and lecture us, or worse become disappointed us. It hurt and it mattered because he cared. I guess what really made Sir Noli a great teacher was simply because he BELIEVED in me -- in all of us. 

Photo credit here

I am overwhelmed by my memories in high school. After all, he was my teacher for 5 years. Knowing that he is gone for good still tears me up. This morning, I tried to explain my grief to my students (they weren't able to go through the privilege of having him as their teacher) and I couldn't stop shedding my tears. I cry because I don't remember if I told him that one of the main reasons why I'm a high school teacher today was because of him. His genuine heart made an impact on me during my high school years which challenged me later in my career to remain as a high school teacher and "give back" to the students what I got from him. He was a "Good Teacher".  One of those rare teachers that you will never forget. He embodied all the characteristics as described on the photo above - He RESPECTS students, helps students, and makes students happy (though not necessarily in that order). 

Photo credit here

So I dedicate this small spot here on my blog. A place where at times, I can quietly shed a tear. Thank you Sir Noli for the wonderful memories. I can smile despite this Time of Grief because I know you are in Heaven right now and having a blast and encouraging us on. Truly you have been an inspiration. I can only hope and pray that I will be able to give my best in teaching and that I will have the same impact on my students as you had on me when I was in high school. Thank you for being a good a GREAT Teacher! You will be surely missed. 

Me with Sir Noli - photo taken last June