Carols

Monday was the last day of exams. On Tuesday, I spent the day doing something I never thought I’d do... I spent the day as a music teacher, which is crazy because I don’t know anything about music!

This is the first year Ancilla school has decided to put on a Christmas program of Nine Lessons and Carols. Each class was to present a lesson and sing a Christmas carol, and I was drafted to teach some of the classes Christmas songs. I taught “God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen” and “Jingle Bell Rock” to Class Six, and “What Child Is This?” to Class Five. As I was rushing to lunch, Ellen, the teacher of my favorite class, said that her students were asking when I would come teach them. I can’t resist Class Two A, so after lunch I taught them “Angel We Have Heard On High.” I say “taught” because most of the kids had never heard any of those songs before, which surprised me quite a bit. By the end of the day, my voice was shot from a combination of singing and yelling at the kids to get their attention when they were talking amongst themselves.

Today they had their show. The children brought their chairs to the playground and arranged themselves by class under the shade of the trees. A representative of each class, dressed up with colorful African-print fabric wrapped around them like an Indian sari, read a bible verse, and some of the younger students dressed up and acted them out. After each lesson, a class sang a carol. It was so precious!

I took many pictures... but unfortunately, the school’s wireless internet is down, and I don’t know how to post the photos from the internet cafÈ, so you’ll have to wait to see them.