Ian’s school seemed horrid at first. Kids were always in the office bad mouthing the staff, fighting, and just being typical brats. I was also insecure because my son has had troubles with speech in school and I feared he would experience ridicule from his peers. I didn’t like his teacher because he was sent home with a naughty note because he needed extra help. I even went the extra mile of having a meeting with her to scold her on her tactics. She felt horrible and changed the name of the form sent home to communicate with parents. Nevertheless, I feared that moving Ian from Antelope was a huge mistake on my part.
Five months later, I take back everything I thought of Charles Wright. My son started school there unable to retain the sounds of the alphabet. Now, he can read and write. He knows so many science facts that I learn something new from him each day. His teacher was the first teacher ever to seek me out in a crowd to tell me my son is amazing. He had enormous growth there. He excels in Math but always has. Recently he was given a project of having to create a Math Kite where he is given a number and he has to come up with equations to equal out to that number. He was given the number 1. Most kids did things like 3-2=1 or 6-5=1 but Ian did 200-99-99-1=1 all on his own.
His teacher was so sad on his last day. Her eyes filled with tears and she told me of how proud she was of him. I hugged her for quite a long time. Ian cried too because he was losing his favorite teacher and the great friends he had made at Charles Wright Elementary. She is such a great teacher who really does care about all the children she teaches. After giving her a chance I must say she is the best first grade elementary school teacher I have ever met.
Brittany has made lots of friends. She didn’t do so well in school but she is happy in this community. She says when she finally turns 18 she wants to move back here to start her life, opposed to Sacramento, which is a shocker I am sure.
It’s also hard because this is the first house that Iniya ever lived in. The house I turned a perverted male blow up doll into a memorable Valentine’s Day for my husband… (okay, that sounds weird but it was a joke). I feel were all happy here, or at the very least comfortable and content. I’ve grown close to my step dad. We love him. I haven’t had a chance to spend much time with my mother who just graduated college for the second time last night.
Obviously because she has been busy but it is nice being near her. Our cat Jakarta loves this house. I reconnected with old friends. We made a couple new friends. It’s just sad to be leaving Merced again.
So, where are me and my family going? We’re going back to Batam, Indonesia to stay with my father. The economic crisis took a toll on the Limousine business. I am going back to school to get my Bachelor’s in Business Administration with a concentration on Global Business Management (online classes). I will then be applying for an MBA program in California in a year or so. We’re going to save money while were there so we can reinvest in something that will work. Iniya, Ian, and Brittany will get a chance to see other parts of the world (Ian already has), exposure to different cultures, language, etc. It is priceless experience. They will get to know my father’s side of the family, our customs, our history, etc. It is still so sad to go. I have my concerns, my forever endless list of concerns… but I guess there are pros and cons to every situation. I just hope that when we come back we can settle into a stable and successful life. I love all of my family so much and I know these changes are not easy on everyone.
