The year of 2014 is coming to an end, and with it, comes again the time of reflection and recollection of our achievements, growth and of course, the failures and disappointments that we have experienced for the past 360-odd days. I prefer to focus on the good and memorable events in life, rather than to dwell on the negatives, as these only serve to stifle and pull us down.
For me, 2014 has been an extremely busy year, both at work and in my personal life. Or is it my subconscious desire to keep myself busy that is making my to-do list nighmarishly long? Hmm... maybe I should re-condition my mind to picture more relaxing scenes more often, like watching sunsets at the beach while lying comfortably in a hammock under a coconut tree and sipping a glass (or maybe several glasses) of cold lemonade, or lying on my bed, tucked in warmly under a blanket and reading a novel on a cold, rainy day, or taking a leisurely walk in the countryside with the invigoratingly cool breeze brushing against my face...
But I digress. In my entire career life spanning 11 years so far, work has never been this challenging for me. I think I shall name this year as The Year I Could Have Gone Crazy At Work. As I was appointed the Head of the English panel in school, I had had my work cut out for me since January. Managing meetings, delegating tasks, organising English competitions, defusing 'time-bombs' (i.e. avoiding potential crises among the English teachers)... all these had to be done alongside my teaching duties (i.e. preparing lessons, collecting and marking homework, setting and marking exam papers) and other administrative duties that cropped up from time to time.
But like I said earlier on, I shall focus on the positive side of things. Well, what have I gained from running around school like a headless chicken all year round? One thing is for sure, I have learnt the importance of time management. With everything screaming for my attention all at once, I learned to stay calm and focus on the most urgent task at hand. Deadlines must be kept. In trying to maintain the peace in my panel, I learned to be patient, sensitive and tactful in my words and actions. One wrong word or decision might start a crisis which requires more damage control from, who else, me.
In the midst of all the 'excitement' in school, my personal life has also become more exciting with the purchase of a new house. So needless to say, more decisions had to be made. Furnishing an empty house with bare walls into a cozy home of your dreams is definitely something that requires a lot of thought. So, I took my time to decide on the concept I wanted for my house, design the layout of the rooms, buy the right furniture and decor, choosing the colours of the walls, adding security features like grills and autogate, etc, etc. And from the whole experience, I have learnt to be prudent with my money, as so much had been invested into the house that I needed to watch my spending on the remainder of my savings, so that I don't end up with a nice house to stay but no food to eat.
All in all, the only relaxing period that I managed to get began only last week. With the school year ended and my house almost ready for moving in, I can take a break and allow my mind and body to recover from all the stress. Speaking of which, it is time for my afternoon nap now, so ciao!
