Mixco Matthew's Teaching Adventure

Welcome, folks, to another month in my life--the most chaotic one yet!!  No, really, the last month has been SO BUSY. I can barely keep my head straight. And yet, every day I thank God that He placed me in a country where I can speak the language. That was, after all, one of the primary factors behind my choosing this place over a competing offer from Cambodia last year. I feel supported strongly by local friends and expat colleagues alike, and it is truly a blessing that God has surrounded me with such a "great cloud of witnesses" here in Guatemala.  And so, here is the story of the month that was--the good, the bad, and the ugly.  Well, right after I published my last update, I went on a retreat with my coworkers at CAG to a retreat center on a parent's property overlooking some volcanoes. One of them, Fuego--the country's most active volcano by far, responsible for a catastrophic eruption in 2018--was belching smoke again that day. While we were many miles away and...

Hello everybody, and welcome back to another year of life in the Land of Eternal Spring!! I am thrilled and overjoyed beyond belief to be back working at Christian Academy of Guatemala this year. As mentioned a few months ago, my class load is increasing considerably--even though it looks a bit different than expected.  This year, I will be teaching 8th grade English/language arts, Middle School Novice Spanish, 10th grade World History, and 11th grade Dual Enrollment U.S. History. I am very excited about all of these classes (even if it does mean more middle-schoolers :)) and cannot wait for World History in particular. My 9th grade World History teacher, a man named Ted Russell, is one of my favorite teachers. He is as responsible as any single man can be for inspiring my love for all things international. I sincerely hope that I will be able to replicate a sliver of his expertise in showing young boys and girls how their decisions affect the world around them.  Of course, th...

Hey there everyone, it's so good to be writing to y'all again!! School is done, life is weirdly slow (more on that later), and my schedule has never   been this open!  The end of the year at Christian Academy of Guatemala is always a solemn occasion, as we say goodbye to the teachers and graduating seniors who contributed to making CAG the amazing home that it has been for me. In particular, our valedictorian (we'll call her Eleanor)--who gave me the idea to re-found Debate Club, leading two students to awards back in February--will be matriculating at my own alma mater, Georgia Tech, this fall!! While Tech is admittedly not a Christian school, that does not mean God is not alive and working on that campus. As many of you may know, I was heavily involved in a campus ministry called Campus Christian Fellowship (CCF) during all four of my years at Tech. That place was more of a second home for me than any school or church I had been to previously. Whether it is at CCF or else...

Well, here we are again!! I apologize for not posting on social media last month. April, as it turned out, was an incredibly busy month--well beyond what I had initially been planning. As a result, I'm writing this a few days earlier than usual to make up for it.  Anyway, why was April so busy, you ask?? Well, for one thing, Prom was this month. That was actually fun and relaxing, but watching students stress out about it (no matter how often you remind them that nothing about it really matters) is definitely not fun. Mercifully, it is all behind us now, and we got plenty of good laughs (not to mention mountains of free leftovers for us teachers) out of the evening!  Additionally, we had the team from Association of Christian Schools International (ACSI) visit our school for accreditation last week. After passing through our classrooms, hosting focus groups, and individually interviewing our administration, the team (composed of visiting administrators from peer institutions) ...

Since this is a faith-based blog, I would be remiss if I didn't mention that today is Easter. It is because He rose that I live freely and can share this Gospel message far and wide. Happy Easter, everyone! He is risen indeed!! Well, March was another positive month--God is just so good. I'm writing this paragraph from the Atlanta airport--the world's busiest and one I know well--after saying goodbye to my family after an amazing Holy Week spent in Savannah (where my parents currently live) and St. Louis (where my sister and brother-in-law live). It was a great time, filled with life-giving conversations about my future in Guatemala, God's blessings in each of our lives thus far, and of course, amazing food and coffee!!   My family and I celebrate after solving an escape room near St. Louis. L to R: me, Brendan (BIL), Maddie (sister), Jen (mom), Jeff (dad) As for my life at Christian Academy of Guatemala, that continues to go well, too. I had parent-teacher conferences ...

Hi there, everyone!!  It's so good to be back--your prayers are felt now more than ever!! For instance, right after publishing last week's blog post, I went on that retreat with the high schoolers that I asked you to pray about. But here's the thing--it almost didn't happen.  Yes, the devil does have a tendency to get pretty crafty, doesn't he? In my case, it was an attempted blackmail from a parent based on nothing but bad vibes. Suffice to say, my bosses had none of it, and I decided to go anyway. And it was a hit!! While my sophomores only finished third in our many competitions, I still got to witness great worship, facilitate refreshing spiritual chats, and laugh at teenage antics. A little slice of heaven opened up to me that day, and I am forever thankful for it.  But the blessings just kept coming. Even after moving down here by myself, I've apparently already made enough of an impact on my students that I got several Valentine's gifts! I included a ...