One thing that I'm very worried about is leaving pets at home while traveling. Separation Anxiety (SepAnx) kicks in. I think most animal lovers can relate to this. It hurts me to see those puppy dog eyes, to hear those loud tweets, to watch those graceful strokes, and to feel and hear those lovely purrs before heading out for a day or a week.

"Do they get sad or lonely without us?"

I wondered if pets get really sad when we leave them behind. Based on my observation and research, they get sad. Some pets even get depressed. They stay near things with familiar smell of their owners. Or they look out of a window and wait for their owners' arrival. I am just blessed that our pets have not experienced extreme loneliness. But of course, little signs of loneliness and extreme excitement show whenever we reunite with them. Some fishes surprisingly die when my parents, especially my Dad, travels abroad. But I am so thankful that this has not happened to our bigger animals.

Kois

Totoro and Ratatou

Finches

Sachi

Yuki

Glad to be Back (the morning after he returned from an uninformed day trip)

:P

Big-eyed Jiji getting anxious

Sleeping on my foot the night before we left for Japan

I already thought about putting a pet in a travel crate. But I have never tried it. A few months ago, I was looking for a travel crate for my cat Jiji because I wanted her cage to serve a double purpose: Land and Air Travel. Luckily, I didn't have to buy any because my Dad bought a pink (so girly) travel crate for her last month. We usually use it when we make a visit to the veterinarian clinic. However, pets traveling by air can cost a lot. They even need microchips in order to travel from one country to another. One Datamars microchip costs around $39.50 (P1861.93). It requires a lifetime registration based on this Pet Travel Store. There is no need for this yet but it helps a lot if pets get lost.

I also wondered how our pets would react when my family and I would come back from a trip. We actually witnessed the difference between our pets' welcome greetings when we came home from Japan. Our dogs greeted us excitedly with their tails wagging and their paws touching our legs. Our cat, on the other hand, did not welcome us back with open arms. She avoided us and walked straight to her drinking bowl instead. When I lifted her up and carried her in my arms, she didn't budged but she looked at us with wide eyes and acted as if we were total strangers. When I released her on the floor, she sniffed our luggages and played with the straps and tags. She only started licking our hands and feet when she finished roaming around our things. She even gave Mom a scratch on the face due to her anxiety. She obviously missed us and felt lonely but couldn't show her feelings outwardly. The way a cat warms up to its owner is totally different from a dog's way. Cats are totally introverts while dogs are outrageously extroverts!

The language of animals is very difficult to read. It is similar to reading a person. But this is good because I am learning to be selfless through supporting and taking care of others and keeping a relationship healthy and intact. I feel like I have a child to take care of and converse with, and a companion to say goodbye and go back to every single day.

So I guess I am writing this blog to assure myself that SepAnx is AOK. Missing our pets and allowing them to miss us once in awhile have advantages too. Anxiety will surely occur for sure. But the owners and their pets absolutely need the separation or "some space." It is part of the owner-pet relationship, okay? Okay.

Last month, I have been thinking about my career in the next few years. After completing my thesis and graduating, what am I to do next? Should I continue teaching where I am at? Or should I teach in special education centers or schools? Should I pursue doing social work and teaching or developing programs for communities? I do not have any idea.

Then I came upon this quote from Malala Yousafzai in the United Nations Facebook page.

Source: UN Facebook page

I believe in this quote. I believe in a child. I also believe in myself that I can teach. It was not an obvious career to take though. I was not the brightest kid in my classes. I was not even chosen as a student teacher. But I knew deep down that I have the heart of a teacher and a great influence from a great family of teachers. When I was little, I would act out as a teacher, holding the chalk or whiteboard marker and standing in front of a room ready to teach a lesson. My students were my cousins or my family. I just could not remember what I was teaching or if it made sense. So being a teacher grew into a dream before I graduated from high school. I wanted to take Elementary Education major in Special Education in order to make a difference. However, it took 2 years before I was able to transfer from Manila to Diliman. Still, I was so blessed to know what I really wanted to do then.

The dream became a reality. 2015 marks my fifth year of teaching. Within those years, I have taught in 3 schools, 1 ESL online tutoring firm, and 1 reading tutorial center. Though I truly love what I do, I can't help but ask myself if this is really what I want to do in the following years to come. But every time I recall the reason why I'm teaching and the calling that God gave me, I always change my mind.

One question was left for me and my co-teachers to answer during the first week of classes last July. This was the question:

WHAT MADE ME FALL IN LOVE

WITH TEACHING?

It seems like a tough question to answer. But here are my answers to the question:

In teaching, you will never stop learning. You will surely get tired of teaching. But you will never get tired of learning from them and from your experiences. The art of teaching involves all areas. You are a performer when you teach. You use various skills. Though there is a tendency to become a master of none, teaching is an art itself that consists of a set of skills that you can master simultaneously with your heart, mind, and body. It God is a great example of a true teacher. He is my inspiration.

Changing the world can be done by reaching one child at a time. Being part of a village that has a huge heart for children is already making a difference. I truly believe that it takes a village to raise a child. I am blessed to be a part of a village in church and at work.

Now, I am going back to the questions I proposed in the beginning.  I think I already have an idea. I keep teaching. And I will do it wherever this heart of a teacher takes me.