We got that attitude! – 19th November 2019

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Imagine your 10-year ‘future self’ has just been asked the previous task. He comes back and talks to you. What’d do you think he’d say?

I couldn’t quite answer this question until I asked these two questions of George and for this one he replied “Keep up the good work.” He asked me why I was struggling to answer and suggested the first thing that came into my head.

And that was to stay strong in my convictions because they often turn out for the best. Stay positive even through the tough times. Keep that confidence that I mostly feel because it has proved to work well for me. Remember also to live day by day as if it may be your last. Make it count. Try your best in everything you do. Give your sincere smile to everyone. Appreciate the time you have and make the best use of it. I’d like to think I can say the same thing as George – to keep up the good work.

Gratitude Journal

I am so happy and grateful that I was able to sleep early yesterday and that Amy takes care of cooking, cleaning and washing up for me. I was starting to feel a little under the weather after a day of shouting in class and after coming home and dealing with a gecko I also had time to read a couple of chapters of my book. This made me quite sleepy though and I didn’t last much longer after dinner. I am grateful that I feel better this morning so far!

Catch my eye a new slogan – 18th November 2019

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I had a nice though busy weekend and managed to cross a few things off my to-do list.

Time does seem to go too fast though and I often try to recall that feeling of being bored and struggling to think of things to do – but then using my creative mind to start something. I still have some remnants of this and now never struggle to find new ideas and activities to pursue.

We have so many more options now – not just for entertainment and relaxation but for everything. Everything is at your fingertips – when life has no struggle it can be difficult to give it meaning.

Gratitude Journal

I’m so happy and grateful to have the chance to travel around South East Asia whilst helping other people with their music. If all goes to plan I’ll be able to again in April and finally make it to Kota Kinabalu and Yogyakarta. I’m really excited and looking forward to new adventures.

14th Apr 2021 – Covid 19 pandemic spoiled these plans.

He’s the rebel on the underground – 17th November 2019

~ shaun tenzenmen ~ 1 Comment

If you could travel back 5 years what would you tell yourself? What lessons have you learned that you would like to pass on?

I think about 5 years ago I had just embarked on working at Woolworths after helping May with Doodee in Sydney. Working at Woolworths was a weird change of pace for me that ultimately didn’t work out for me. I put my heart and soul into new work and I do that for myself. That internal reward drives me but I guess, looking back now I would have to tell myself that that reward is good and should be enough.

I also needed the positive reinforcement from other people such as the manager who behaved in a very undermining manner towards my work. I needed to be able to accept that rather than go through all the difficult times I did. I tried to make the best of a difficult situation in the end until a better opportunity arose. I think I could have jumped ship a lot quicker if I had been that confident in my abilities.

Gratitude Journal

I am so happy and grateful to sit this morning as the sun rose and pick off the grass seeds from my trousers. The countryside was quiet except for birds and critters making their morning noises. The sun was warm against the cool air and the somewhat arduous task became easy.

The Chiang Rai Alternative Hour #12 – 16th November 2019

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Music from Ibrahim Maalouf, Pm 7_Jupiter, Vialka, Doctor Coffee, The Fugs, The Fall, Pavement, The Dickies, Turnpike, France Gall, WannFunTastiKlons, uSSSy, Birthday Party, Ween, The Who and And So I Watch You From Afar.

Gratitude Journal

I am so happy and grateful that I have learned not to be afraid to stand up for what I believe in and also accept those consequences even if they are not in my favour. Others may do things differently and that’s their choice.

11th Apr 2021 – You’ll have to keep reading to find out more about those consequences – the period between September 2019 and March 2020 was very trying indeed! The last sentence mention of ‘others’ is just about the advice given by other teachers to me and how some considered that it is impossible for a farang to change and improve things within any Thai system. I fought against it and arguably, I lost – at least at the time. Longer term though I consider the minor changes I did create were worth the effort. Being a teacher is not about taking it easy for me, it’s a responsibility. I see others putting up and shutting up, but to me, that is just lazy. Never give up.

*Yes, no, you can’t, but you can if you know why – 15th November 2019

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12 Questions

Who do you spend your time with?
Is this in my control?
What does your ideal day look like?
To be or to do?
If I am not for me, who is? If I am only for me, who am I?
What am I missing by choosing to worry or be afraid?
Am I doing my job?
What is the most important thing?
Who is this for?
Does this actually matter?
Will this be alive time or dead time?
Is this who I want to be?

21st Aug 2021 – As yet, still unanswered, although probably considered and written about since. I’ll get back to this.

Gratitude Journal

I am so happy and grateful to meet George and Bee yesterday even though I will meet them again tonight. They are interesting and offer stimulating conversation. I can smile a lot around them.

We got that attitude! – 14th November 2019

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Gratitude Journal

I am so happy and grateful today for meeting all the kids at the school gate this morning. The happy ones, the tired ones, the shy ones. They all make me smile. I was grateful for the opportunity to talk with Said this morning too as we haven’t had a chance to talk much yet. I was also happy and grateful to stand in front of the school assembly and make the kids laugh and have fun. I was happy and grateful to see a small smile on Puifai’s face when I helped her with some difficult work. It’s very gratifying to see the kids thinking hard and then suddenly getting it!

We got that attitude! – 13th November 2019

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This week I still have some remnants of uncertainty. I’m going to be very busy with things at home as well as at school and it won’t leave as much free time as previously. I’ll have to plan carefully as I still haven’t managed to schedule in time for meditation and exercise. I’m pretty exhausted when I get home from school already. I just feel like chilling in my room or watching TV shows. I know I have to try and push past that. I can do it, right?

Whatever you do willingly, you enjoy. Whatever you do unwillingly, you suffer.

Sadhguru

Gratitude Journal

I am so happy and grateful today to the student in P5/3 who told me after a lesson that I am the best teacher in the world! It made me so happy though I’m not sure why she thought that. The class did go much better than the previous two though and I’m just glad that there was some appreciation. There will be some kids who think the exact opposite I’m certain!

We got that attitude! – 12th November 2019

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Slept deeply last night – for some reason the stress of standing up for myself on a small issue has made me very tired.

Yesterday was also a little frustrating as my students seem to have mostly forgotten what they did last week. Not all of them but enough to show that this will be a struggle. I do remember having a similar feeling in CRPAO soon after I started. I guess I need to adjust my expectations – teach to the top/middle – keep them interested.

I woke up tired but feel reasonably confident this morning. I only have two lessons today so can spend a lot of time preparing more lessons.

Gratitude Journal

I was so happy and grateful to watch the sunrise this morning. It came up over the mountain behind the temple spire and it was amazing. Every day the sun comes up. Long before I was here and long after I’m gone.

We got that attitude! – 11th November 2019

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The end of the week felt good. But this morning I felt a little anxious as I push back against having to work next weekend. I worked so hard at CRPAO that I don’t want to fall back into that trap.

In this past month, I have learned that I can be more confident with my skills at teaching. I can feel that I make a good impression on the students and that in general, they are happy to follow what I ask of them.

Gratitude Journal

I am so happy and grateful for the many beautiful birds that come to visit our garden. I wasn’t sure there would be any as it seemed there were none when the building was going on. Now there are lots of trees and bushes there are many that come to visit. Even despite our cats, who don’t seem to be smart enough to catch them. Some of the birds are not so spectacular but they are mostly all new to me, being different to those in Australia and the UK.