Taste of Ms. Alexander

Chapter 1

Saturday | 3:55 pm
Grantley Adams International Airport

AMANDA "ASIA" ALEXANDER

My eyes were glued outside the window of the aircraft. It had been four long years since the last time I had been home and boy was I anxious! Those four long years were spent studying in Barbados at UWI. The migration process from St. Vincent and the Grenadines to Barbados was never an easily transition. For the first three weeks, I was bound to my dorm room sulking like a baby. This happened every single day after classes. I never left my room unless it was for food or to go to class. Home sick at its best! It wasn't until my mother convinced me to go out and socialize that I started to fall in love with their culture and people. Not a strong love like Vincy, but it put a ban-aid on my sore for the time being.

The sole purpose of me being in Barbados was to get my bachelor's degree in accounting. Funding of my degree was spearheaded by mother, aunt and the little savings I had from prior jobs back home. This was due to my negligence in being proactive in the deadline for the scholarship that the government was offering at the time. I could have saved soo much money, but that was all my fucking fault. Nevertheless, I pushed through and made it to the finale. Two months prior to graduation, I had sent out applications to different organizations as I knew I was returning home. Some pertaining to my qualifications and some just to at least have a cash flow. After all, I still had a balance hanging over my head in student debt. Less than $5000 EC remaining, the last time I checked.

Throughout my scout for jobs I got back a good amount of responses, but one from the St. Vincent and the Grenadines Community College stood out. Honestly the amount of jobs I had applied to caused me to completely forget which job I had sent in an application for. I initially had applied for the secretary job posting as it was the only one available at that time. Prior to attending the UWI, I had completed the secondary two year program at the St Vincent and the Grenadines Division of Teachers Education. During that program, I was on attachment at the Thomas Saunders Secondary School to teach Form 2 students. Teaching was never really what I wanted to do, but I saw the opportunity as a way to make something of myself. It is only so many job options available to those with zero connections to people in high paying jobs. If you don't know someone, your chances are slim to none in even getting an interview.

My time at Thomas Saunders was very much an eye opener to dealing with different personalities. Especially in a school community consisting of female and male students. It taught me to have a lot of patience and to never take students remarks to heart. In the beginning I realized that normal teaching methods never kept them excited about learning. So I got creative in constructing classes that would keep them engaged. Whether it be incorporating movies or trending music and putting an educational twist to it. Boy did they love that! No class was better than Ms. Alexander's and they loved to brag to the other teachers. Every single student passed Principles of Business with A's. That was the generalized subject I thought at that time. The months I spent at the school was one of my best times and I'm grateful for those I taught and everything I learned.

However, on the day of the phone interview, I was extremely excited to hear of a different job offer. I was informed that the previous accounting lecturer was retiring and they were in dire need for a replacement. The job offer proposed itself at such a coincidental time in my life when I started to give up faith. Schooling took a toll on my finances and I never wanted put a burden on my mother or my aunt. They sacrificed so much for me to get this far.