Breakfast: One cupcake, one glass of milk, one bowl of oatmeal.

Eight days have passed and many things have happened inside the small and cozy school where I try to hammer grammar and composition rules into my students’ heads.

In English class, I was discussing about the various differences between the education systems for a topic on persuasive language in Grade 6.

Out of nowhere, a student asked a very weird question:

“Sir, with the things that you know and the success that you have previously and even out of school hours nowadays, why did you even enter the teaching profession? You could have become a millionaire easily!”

I quickly gave the student a honest answer:

“Frankly speaking, I’m not ready to answer that question. Maybe in a few years, let’s see if I can actually have a proper answer to that one.”

Between that question and the thoughts that I had inside my mind at that very moment, I really wondered what does teaching actually mean to people.

I’m not going with the usual lines of “teaching is a noble profession, teaching is a service to the country, teaching is something you can sanctify yourself, etc.” – we have already have heard of it a ton of times.

Let’s keep it real and simple: Teaching is not the place where you earn money and it is a place where your tact, patience and consistency are put to the test, five or six days a week (give or take) – and if you happen to be one of those teachers who handle the elite competitive programs for top or contending schools, one might have at least a week of summer leave taken off.

But on the other hand, what I like most about teaching is the social interactions that you have; the opportunity to make, break or observe people’s lives closely and to steer a person’s future into the best possible way.

Bottom line, teaching is something that is important as having unlimited rice and water in this cutting-edge, fast-paced century.

Even if it’s not the plum posting that I dreamed of.

Lunch: Spaghetti, chicken, rice, fruit shake

I was visibly surprised when I saw a foreign (Turkish, to be exact) student’s lunch box.

The contents: Rice in soy sauce and pan-fried fish.

Holy. Crap.

“You really eat this?”

“Yes, sir, I eat this dish sometimes. It tastes okay.”

Firstly, I remembered my home when I saw this food. Too much nostalgia, I guess.

Secondly, I never thought that people would actually start eating in the way that the locals eat their fish, but then, many people who have been living here in the Philippines were able to adapt and integrate it into their own lives.

Dinner: A burger, rice, two glasses of water

After many days of working hard for the musical production, my legs and hands finally gave up. Before I realized it, I slept for 10 hours and went for another two in the afternoon.

It was one hell of a ride, but I guess I can say that it was worth it.

There are other things that I wanted to say, but I already forgot them.

Oh well, time to go back to academics by tomorrow!