It is that time of year that most Internationals dread; transition time.

It is time for my final project for the Culturally Relevant teaching course to go "live". I have spent the past few weeks writing blog posts, searching the internet for activities, thinking of all the things I have experienced or created myself that I want to share. Gosh there is a world of information out there, from pictures, to quotes, to blogs, to books, to video's and even songs. It was hard for me to keep the focus on activities and tips for the classroom and as I have worked on this project; it is very clear to me that this blog will continue to be a work in progress. I hope that, together with other teachers, this space will become one where we can learn from each other, laugh with each other, share with each other and know that there is so much personal experience out there just waiting to be explored.  I look forward to hearing from you.

It is April and in about 2 more months the school that I work at will finish the 2015-2016 Academic year. This is a stressful time for all of us; the end of a school year always is. However, for us expats there is another stressor that I feel is often minimized. At the end of a school year there is a lot of transition. Students are moving on, that fantastic classroom parent is moving on, the colleague who has become your friend is moving on, and on goes the list. Everyone of us knows that saying goodbye is part of moving. We all have different ways of participating in the process of goodbye. Many of us are not good at saying goodbye. Because it hurts and because we have to be vulnerable, and being vulnerable is scary. However.....

So my first tip as a blogger: is that we all participate in the act of goodbye. Whether you are the one moving on, or the one staying behind. There is a lot of information out there on how saying goodbye or not saying goodbye impacts the leaver. Slowly the focus is shifting to the ones who are staying behind. I have shared some blogposts that have been written on this topic by a cross cultural trainer by the name of Jerry Jones. It is a good starting point for those of us who do not move every three years however watch everyone else around us move. The challenge to you is to stop watching but to participate in the goodbye, because you have been a part of the "leaver's" journey and they of yours. 

“If you go away from a place without saying good-bye to it – not just to people, but to the place itself – you’ll carry this strange anchor behind you. You can’t say good hellos if you haven’t said good good-byes (Pollock 1989).”

It will be difficult to welcome new colleagues into your department if you have no "room" to say hello. It will be challenging to open yourself up to your classroom if you have not acknowledged that great group of seniors, or that one student in your class who made a difference to your teaching, or your day. There are more students like that out there but if we are not willing to say goodbye to the "old" ones, I strongly believe that we cannot welcome the new ones as well.

As you see on my blog, I have shared activities and at the moment mostly those that focus on goodbyes. I have shared some articles which I think are interesting and written by other bloggers with goodbye as a theme.

My second tip: is to start your goodbye's soon. Take it from me the last few weeks of school for those who are leaving are filled with packing boxes, filling in paper work for the new country, end of year functions, etc. For those not moving it is a time to finish schoolwork, maybe move houses, maybe move classrooms and in many cases try not to think of the people who are leaving. If you plan a last weekend away, a shopping spree, dinner at that favorite restaurant, making that photo shoot now; there is emotional room to enjoy it, to feel it, to share it, and to remember it. Instead of it becoming another check off on the list of things to do before I go while mentally, emotionally and physically drained from the ending of a school year and a time in this place.


My third tip: don't say goodbye, say see you soon; and focus on that.
The world we now live in has become so small. Gone are the days of having to wait to receive a letter by airmail, or making an appointment with the dispatcher to make an international phone call. There are all sorts of ways to stay instantly in touch, no matter the time difference, no matter the language, no matter the distance. Which also makes the transition easier, you can "walk" through the new house on skype, you can take a picture of your new favorite coffee place and instantly share it. The possibilities to stay connected while not near each other is so much easier now in 2016.

My last tip for my first blog post ever: Be kind to yourself and those around you.

All of us experience and travel through this journey in our own way. However, there is a lot of recognition, there is a lot of shared experiences. And although our emotions are our own and so are our memories sharing the load makes the ride a whole lot easier.  Smiles and Tears, and heart ache and joy, sadness and anger, may be spelled differently in all of our languages, they may be demonstrated differently, they may be celebrated or frowned upon in different cultures. However as human beings, as Internationals on the inside we all have feelings. Allow yourself to feel them, it will help the transition. Trust me, I know.