Decisions decisions ...

It seems as though the school year has only just begun, yet already thoughts are turning to whether people will stay or move on to pastures new. Is it time to move on to a new place? Somewhere with a healthier wage packet, or is it a good idea to stay where I am quite contented,  most of the time? This is the dilemma that faces International teachers every year. We are asked to make a decision on our futures by the Christmas, so that the school can go to a recruitment fair in the January. While this all makes perfect sense, it is always difficult to project your thoughts so far into the future. What if you quit your job and can’t find anything else? What if you decide to leave a place and suddenly realise you would really like to stay for longer? I know for a fact that I enjoyed my second year in Colombia immensely more than my first, yet I had to set the whole job hunting process in motion in the October of my second year. It was only as I boarded the plane to leave that I truly realised I was deeply saddened to leave.  I spent my first few months in Uganda looking at my time in Colombia through rose tinted glasses. I am now entering my third year in Uganda and can hardly imagine leaving. For all the daily frustrations that I talk about, there is something that has got under my skin that I find hard to let go of. Maybe it’s the beautiful country, the year round sunshine or maybe it’s the wonderful people who brighten up your day … or maybe it’s the fact that I am a lazy little madam who likes having a maid in to do my washing or the little luxuries in life we can afford here that wouldn’t be available to us at home. It’s probably a mixture of all of them. So when I look at my options I wonder what the future has in store for me. Am I ready to go ‘home’? But what is home anymore and what sort of lifestyle can I afford to live? What do I do if I go home? For sure, we are spoiled rotten here, with our small class sizes, wonderful kids and ample free periods thanks to all the specialist lessons. I’m not sure I want to get back on the treadmill that is teaching in the UK. And what about other places? The Middle East is renowned for good schools, generous packages and a lively ex-pat lifestyle. But then I don’t think I could cope with the heat and I hate air-conditioned environments, so is that really the place for me? Then there is China, which would definitely have a rich culture, but is it too exotic and different to everything I have known before. These are tough choices and if anybody has any advice on the subject, then I am all ears …