International Day

On March 7th 2013, my school celebrated International Day. It's a day where students and parents are able to expose the countries they come from with traditional apparel, music, dance, food and other products. A lot of work goes into this celebration and it is all well worth it!

As I watched the parade of nations and I walked around checking out all the booths, it was quite evident that I loved the feel of working in an international school with people from all over the world.

In particular, there were a few special booths that caught my attention:

1. The booth from Canada. Seeing the Canadian flag, the Québec flag, hockey jerseys and Tim Hortons products made me feel at home for a short moment!

2. The cluster of booths from Latin America. Everyone knows part of my heart lies in the Spanish World. Hearing the people speak Spanish is always music to my ears!

3. The booth from Brazil. Definitely one of the best places I have ever visited. Seeing the Brazilian flag always puts a smile on my face!

4. The booth from Africa. Seeing the people in their traditional costumes reminded me so much of my students back in Canada. They are to be thanked for exposing me to the African culture I have grown to love so much!

I really enjoyed seeing people so happy and so proud of where they came from. It was truly a beautiful event that I look forward to celebrating next year!

Comments

Ready. Set. Go.

“Once in a while, it’s good to challenge yourself in a way that’s really daunting.” Since returning to Dubai in January 2020, I have participated in numerous fitness events around the city, mostly in pairs, trios or teams of 4,5,6 athletes ( aside from our internal community weightlifting/powerlifting throwdowns ). Many of these events have challenged me with new formats ( e.g. Hyrox and Primal Race ), movemenents ( e.g. swimming and sled pulls ) and/or equipement ( e.g. the worm and the yoke ). Being part of a team has been a whole lot of fun, and I’ve been so incredibly blessed to team-up with some really good athletes who have pushed me to achieve great things, both in training and in competition. That said, for a little while now, I’ve sort of wondered what it’d be like to compete individually again. Are my body and mind still up for this kind of challenge? Throughout my time living in Vietnam, from 2017 to 2019, I became fully invested in the sport of CrossFit. I thoroughly enj

The power of a PAUSE

“Don’t underestimate the power of a PAUSE; it allows you to reflect, recharge and refocus.” We live in such a fast pace world. These days, when people ask how we’re doing, we regularly say “I am so busy!” and “I am so tired!” When we are not occupied, we think something is wrong, we feel lazy, and we immediately try to find things to do to fill up our time. We’re constantly looking to move forward; to go, go go and to do, do, do. Why is it so difficult to stop and take a break? For me personally, when I am in ‘work mode’, my routine is pretty consistent; work, gym, eat, sleep, repeat. In the past, I was really hard on myself when I didn’t feel productive and accomplished, but over the last few years, I have really tried to look for and embrace ‘down time’. Now, I am more aware of my needs and my boundaries. I am capable of laying on the couch and watching TV without feeling guilty. I can also turn down weekend plans if I don’t feel like socialising and would prefer to have a restful n

Jack of all trades, master of none

“Sometimes we strive so hard for perfection that we forget that imperfection is happiness.” At a very young age, my parents signed me up for ice skating. They invested lots of money over the years, on skates, outfits, coaches, private lessons, and competitions, and I of course invested lots of time into improving my skills. Throughout my childhood and teenage years, you could find me at the ice rink most days, trying to prepare for my next test, competition or show. Now, I was a decent skater, but realistically, I wasn’t on a path to the Olympics. Once I went off to university, some difficult choices needed to be made, and for some reason, I decided to quit skating and invest more time in my education and career, as well as playing soccer during the summers. For several years after college, soccer became my main sport. Especially when I first moved to Dubai; I played indoor, outdoor, 7 aside, 11 aside, womens leagues and mixed leagues. Some weeks, I was playing 6 consecutive nights,

One Rising Star

Search This Blog