The bark that lights the fire

The time to hesitate is through
No time to wallow in the mire
Try now we can only lose
And our love become a funeral pyre

Come on, baby, light my fire
Come on, baby, light my fire
Try to set the night on fire, yeah

Light my fire. The Doors

Her name is Lotti. Long blond hair, luscious and shiny. Slender legs. Seductive, yet kind eyes. A mature beauty. Patient and kind. She loves to read and is a great listener. She is intelligent, well-travelled and speaks many languages – German, English, and her own language of love.

Every Friday, she comes by to visit our classroom, and the kids love to see her. She stays for a while and hangs with us. Usually, she doesn’t say much. Just sits on the grass in the sunshine and spends time with them. The children love to read to her – the ol’ girl just closes her eyes and listens. Fiction or facts, fantasy or fun – she enjoys any type of genre. Food stories are her favourite though. Or books about squirrels. Though she would never chase one – this lady is way too cool and composed for that kind of behaviour. A Grande Dame. A wagging dowager. The princess of print.

Her name is Lotti. Lotti the story Dog.

Welcome to my school. Our school. The school of Lotti, the Story dog and crazy chickens running around. Of bush turkeys and big fat crows. Kookaburras, goanna lizards, and stick insects. Where little ducklings hatch and ponies roam the sports field. It’s a zoo – literally!

A year ago today, I returned to Sydney to finish what I had started – teaching the dream of living and working abroad. Time flies when you are having fun. At least most of the time.

I admit it – the start was a bit rough. Arriving in the middle of the school year and taking over a class that had a series of class teachers, wasn’t always easy. Animals help – in this case, it was a beaver I had brought over from Canada. Kasimir was his name, and he told the children stories about his adventures with his mate Frippe. Stories about baking and gardening, cooking and drawing. The simple books somehow appealed to the students, and together we created our own stories about Kasimir.

Off to a good start in the new school year – a trip to the Taronga Zoo with sixty students from all Grade 1 and 2 classes. In March, the Easter story reenacted with a donkey that did not want to come out of its horse float. Ducklings that hatched in the Kindergarten Class – very fluffy and surprisingly naughty. All these helped create an atmosphere of caring and belonging for the students and for me. The lizard in the classroom, the spiders under the classroom containers, the snake in the playground not so much!

And of course, Lotti the story dog!

Story dogs are part of a literacy program in Australia that tries to make reading fun for children. And my students love it! Each Friday, third lesson, Lotti shows up at our classroom and invites two children to come with her and read. The students run to get their easy readers and books, and off they go to find a quiet spot somewhere to sit and read to the dog. The accepting, loving nature of dogs gives this program its magic and helps the little ones relax, open up, try harder and have fun while reading to a friendly, calm dog. No judgment, no assessment. Just love and fun. The bark that lights my fire! Woof!

So when you ask me, what sparks light my fire while working at a school abroad, it is little moments like these. Seeing my students sitting on a picnic blanket, trying to teach the oh-so-patient Lotti to read a German book.

The quiet of arriving at school early in the morning, when the rising sunlight filters through the trees, the grass next to the sports field is still wet with rain, and the kookaburra sits on a tree stump, pondering life. The glimmers of joy. Kindy kids sitting on rocks, having a morning tea picnic. Primary kids making soup out of leaves and flowers and sticks. A girl sneaking chicken eggs into her schoolbag to take home (not sure if they made it).

In a city of posh private schools and school uniforms, of old-fashioned school frocks and straw hats, the sight of the students at our school is quite refreshing. Some maybe call it a bit of a hippy school (no offence, quite the contrary), I call it a place of many little sparks that light my fire.

In 2019, I came to teach in Sydney to reignite my love for teaching, and to rekindle my passion for being a teacher. And it did. No school is perfect, and neither is this one! But it has a lot of elements that I am looking for when I think about how and what I want to teach. I enjoy teaching in German again (no more dreaded French), working in a team, the freedom you have as a teacher when working at a private school, and of course, the beautiful location.

A year ago today, I returned to the German School Sydney for another two-year contract. Took the big risk of coming back. Breaking my own rule of “never go back to a place where you were happy before”.

I returned with the constant reminder in my head, that things would not be the same. Because they are not. Friendships have changed, teaching has changed, and the school has changed. I have changed. Things are different now than they were in 2019, but that does not mean they are better or worse – they are just different. Still plenty of tiny little sparks that light my fire. A year has passed and another one to go. And who knows what will happen then.

It is our annual Christmas Market at school this weekend and there will be sausages and mulled wine, waffles and fairy floss (spun by no other than me!). Children will sing Christmas carols, walk with lanterns, and roast marshmallows over the open fire pit. A big bang for a small school.

Lotti will be at home, and together with all the other animals, wait for the peace and quiet to return to our school grounds. And while I’ll be working at my sweet stall, trying to get the fairy floss out of my hair, I will watch for the little sparks rising up from the open fire pit and all the other little magical spots. The little flames that keep lighting my love for this place. For teaching. And in my head, I can hear Lotti barking. Woof!

• 😊 Blocking out students’ faces to assure their privacy 😊