My second year living and working in Saudi Arabia has begun so much more quickly than I could have imagined. I landed in Riyadh a little over a month ago and since then I have been working non-stop. In that short span of time I have only had one weekend to myself. Every other weekend has been jam-packed with professional development, welcome-back parties, embassy events and other social gatherings. I feel energized, inspired and enthusiastic but now that a four-day weekend approaches, I am beginning to finally realize how exhausted I've truly been.
My summer was wonderful and refreshing. It went by too fast and I barely conquered a third of the goals I had set for myself at the start of the season, but I have no regrets. I spent some well-needed (and well-deserved, if I may say so myself) quality time with friends and family. I travelled, I made impulsive decisions and I allowed myself to take advantage of all the freedoms and opportunities that presented themselves to me. I didn't hold back and I allowed myself to feel good and enjoy my life.
Now that I'm back in Riyadh I will admit that things do feel slightly different. The honeymoon haze has worn off slightly and I've found myself growing frustrated with certain aspects of my life here. I am really resentful of my inability to get around by myself. I am frustrated by the fact that I can never just "go out". Everything in my life must be planned and organized in advance. As a result, I must be in much more control than is desirable. I have no impulsivity in my life, nor do I have the chance to just enjoy the present moment because I am constantly thinking ahead about all the things I need to do and plan.
Professionally -- I am feeling great! With a year of teaching here under my belt I feel much more confident in myself and my abilities. I am more familiar with the curriculum and the students in general. I know what to do to push them and I know when I need to hold back. I have pre-established relationships with students that allow me to do my job a lot more effectively. I can depend on certain students to help me plan events (a necessity due to the fact that I am now the Student Council advisor) and I have a handful of students I can look to in each of my classes to ensure that everyone is happy and working hard. It is very comforting and I feel very grateful to be at a school like this. My colleagues are incredibly supportive, hard-working and inspirational. I genuinely believe that this is one of the greatest English departments in the world. We are all young, enthusiastic about literature and genuinely positive people. I cannot praise my co-workers enough. I don't feel like I'm being watched or scrutinized or evaluated every two seconds. I am trusted not only by my students, but by my administrators and parents. It is a tremendous feeling and one that sadly very few teachers get to experience.
Socially I have set some small goals for myself...I would like to attempt to ingratiate myself into the Saudi community. I would like to forge meaningful friendships with Saudi men and especially women. I'd like to establish a life for myself outside of school. I'm currently looking into opportunities to do volunteer work at hospitals or potentially at women's shelters (a pipe-dream, I doubt a Western women would be able to gain access to such "forbidden" places). I would also like to try and see if I could join a women's gym. Again, it may be very difficult for me to gain access to such restricted places, but I am going to do my best and use my limited resources and means to try and achieve these goals.
