As of a week ago, my 7th year teaching in Albania has come to a close. The year stands out in some ways, as the first full academic year working as a married man, as the first year working in a new high school building, and technically the first full year on the other side of the Covid-19 pandemic. A year of firsts. The year has also been a sort of stop-gap year, holding things together after major staff turn-over and change. I enter the summer hoping dearly that 2022-23 is the last year I step forward with my hand to the till, already quite burned-out from the start. I have reason to believe it will be.
You may recall from my last entry, waaay back in September last fall, that the GDQ high school had effectively been displaced by the sale of our rental property and that God provided us a new rental facility (one and a half villas in the same neighborhood as the “K-thru-8” GDQ building). God also provided an extremely capable English/History teacher, Faith, to “fill out” our currently-two-person full-time teacher roster. Administration was a sort of fluid experience, but largely handled by the dedication and perseverance of Elizabeth, filling the combo-role of teacher/Admin, as well as the support of our high-capacity school director, Lori. We are grateful for the leadership God has provided.
In addition to the many logistical challenges of moving to a completely new and different building, for some reason, we also had to overcome some new behavioral challenges on the part of some of our students. While I was, in the main, impressed by our student body’s mature and patient handling of the transition in setting, some of our students pushed against the limits of our disciplinary wherewithal this year—even requiring outside monitoring support and aid at times. While the causes of these isolated instances are likely very complex, one wonders if this apparent mal-adjustment has anything to do with aftereffects of the prolonged pandemic upheaval. Indeed grades aren’t what they used to be, generally, and many of us teachers also had to accommodate some students’ real struggles with anxiety and other difficulties. And rumor has it that these issues are increasingly common across—I guess—much of the globe. Please pray for mercy on our students, both in terms of spiritual and mental health. The needs feel very real.
As a positive update, the GDQ board has taken visible action in recent months to begin tackling the real problem of teacher burnout, from establishing a committee of non-administrators to interview the teachers on a voluntary basis, to temporarily restructuring some of their own job/ministry positions in order to prioritize recruitment and retention for the school. I think I’m hearing good things about how seriously they’re taking this challenge. Hopefully, God will honor their efforts and careful intentions by providing whatever the school needs most in the coming years, especially new teachers!
Meanwhile, on the home front, Ana and I have continued to get increasingly more settled in as a married couple living in one place. Though married last March, in truth we did not really begin the “settling together” process in any substantial way until August, after a very full spring and summer of many meetings and travel. It’s been good, though not without challenges, as we continue to build the friendship from the ground up after a largely long-distance dating relationship + engagement. Challenges include Ana’s developing sense of vocational belonging which is a bit at odds with our current setup, as well as my own low-to-high hum of culture shock in Tirana—after a six-year delay living and working in the GDQ English-speaking bubble. Thankfully, we were able to lean into the steady work of growing closer once Ana found a local job here in Tirana that is at least somewhat related to social development, working for an organization that is involved in political work and social reform here in Albania and the Balkans and Europe at-large. It’s very different from her experiences far afield in NGO territory. But it has probably been a net-blessing to our marriage this past half-year. We do praise God for real growth in our relationship, but we also ask for more and more grace, for deeper social connections and sense of shared community, and especially wisdom for future decisions.
I mentioned at the beginning of this update that I have reason to believe I can avoid future burn-out. Next year, I have committed to return to GDQ, but have downgraded to “three-quarters time”, reducing to only three classes that I’ve taught to a high level of familiarity (practically no lesson planning needed), and to only come in to work three days a week. While still making a significant impact on the students’ lives and the school’s needs, I will finally be giving myself serious time to rest, heal, and hopefully grow. In the “off-days” I plan to make a serious dent in my language-learning burden (something I’ve not been able to tackle well at all so far), and to carry out a number of projects on the side including much learning and study on my own, and possibly some real brainstorming for my own vocational future. Ana and I are praying that God will continue to lead and grow us in noticeable ways in the coming year. There’s a lot of life to live and an adventurous, mission-minded King to chase, wherever he leads—including adventures that require staying-put. Thank you for all your support and prayers. We can’t involve ourselves in Kingdom business without your help and involvement in our lives! Thank you!
After a two-year hiatus from opening the school years with high-school retreat, we finally returned to form in August 2022. It was memorable, if only for the rough-and-tumble state of the venue we chose which had not been used for student retreats for almost the same length of time. Pictured top left we have the famous GDQ parent, Chad, coordinating meals to feed many mouths with a half-working kitchen. Above-center, some of us had to literally sweep piles of sheep/goat droppings from the sports field that had been used for pasture! Gross! (Despite my best cleaning efforts, my poor sandals still smell very special when they get wet! That’ll be another replacement this summer.) 
At one point Ana and I enjoyed a date at a new wine-and-painting startup here. We both had a blast and were impressed by each others’ talents! 
I’ve discovered one of Ana’s chief joys is the opera! Since the Tirana Opera has re-opened after a multi-year long renovation, we’ve gone a couple times. I feel so cultured! 
My wife is a musical talent–though she hasn’t had much opportunity to tap into that in recent times. Here one of Ana’s friends and a former colleague works to help her produce a song she wrote that eventually was broadcast on the radio here! 
Our dear HS secretary/office controller/manager-of-all things on the ground, Alma, has also taken up language tutoring a number of the K-12 staff after hours. After my umpteenth break from lessons that I started in 2020, I tried to pick them up again this year–but without the energy and time to build a discipline of daily practice the long-term retention has been non-existent for me. As I write this I can tell you the top one means sister (I hope), and I only have guesses for the bottom two. Oh did you know? –We decline our nouns here in five cases, like old Latin. Next year….Next year…. 
The new high school facility has much less outdoor space–and no greenspace to speak of. But some of our students did a great job decorating what we have. We did our best to accommodate the recess/break needs of our students. Here we have Gjergji (Jair-ji), our grounds-keeper/technician, mounting the new basketball backboard with some help. 
The K8 building continues changing too. Here we have the new covering for outdoor seating. Partly a legacy of pandemic rules requiring everyone to eat outside, probably partly just a spacing issue at this point. 
High school chapel on Mondays has been host to some high-lights this year, including one Albanian student’s parent coming in to display some historical treasures to celebrate Albanian independence (which, interestingly enough is comprised of two back-to-back holiday dates commemorating independence from Ottoman rule in 1912 and liberation from Nazi control in 1944, respectively). 
The luxury apartment/office-building construction boom that started in 2020 continues, dizzyingly so. And sadly I’m convinced that it entirely contradicts the old American sense that such industry is a sign of economic progress–it can also be a sign of corruption, money-laundering, and poor prioritization of basic public infrastructure. It can also be a sign of an influx of an expat population putting serious stress on the cost-of-living for nationals. All amidst an apparently massive, sustained brain-drain. Things may turn out okay, eventually, but for now I’m deeply concerned for this country’s not-too-distant future. 
Football!! International schools are slowly returning to our small sports league that used to be a pretty solid group across Tirana and nearby Durres. In any case, it’s nice to have sports back on the schedule. 
In November, Ana and I went to the Tirana Book Fair and stopped by the booth of the “Institute for Albanian Protestant Studies”, run by some well known missionary personalities. They’ve published important biographical books over the years. A key historical personality of their study is none other than the namesake of GDQ, Gjerasim Qiriazi, who was instrumental in the modernization of Albania in the late 1800’s. There is a whole trove of history of Protestant Christian influence inside society that was pushed out of national awareness into the darkness of archives by Albania’s oppressive communist regime in the 20th century. It is the work of these historians to bring all that legacy back into the national memory–and to recognize that evangelicalism is not just some weird, new thing encroaching from the outside. A major author and historian, John, at right, is also one of the founders of GDQ school, and it’s been a pleasure to get to know him a little bit this past year. 
We were able to get down to the southern Albanian coast for a little fresh air and nature during one weekend. Every trip needs to include at least one visit to the ruins of a castle. 
Although the floor plan of the new school has some challenges–as it was originally intended for multiple residencies–it supplies enough classrooms for our high school subjects, for now. Meanwhile, my teaching style has gravitated more and more to projector use over the past couple years. 
This past fall I finally got around to learning how to make hot apple cider from scratch. Tasty warmth! 
We don’t have a vehicle of our own, as of yet, but we were able to borrow a car from a friend to go on a few road trips this past fall. Here’s Bovila Lake situated just behind the Dajti range. Many Albanians haven’t taken the time to visit various beautiful spots in they’re own country like we ravenous, touring expats! That’s my hammock flying in the wind. 
TeachBeyond Thanksgiving! This year Peter has taken on formal responsibility for the group and is doing a great job coordinating. Their family has also become the defacto hosts for gatherings. 
One winter weekend many GDQ staff traveled south to attend a wedding of two of our own: one expat and one Albanian. Eric has been a fun addition to the group of K8/high school split staff, serving in part as our new high school guidance counselor. And as one of us few male teachers, he exerts a special, likely needed influence on our students. 
Christmas as a couple! We really enjoyed decorating our cute little apartment. God’s given us a very pleasant place to call home here. 
My budget projector still works! Though it really requires the room to be pitch black to work properly. 
This years’ World Cup was a big deal–the last one of Messi’s career. Can you tell that my wife is a fan? 
For New Years’, we made a short visit to northern Greece, just across the border. Our destinations were the beautiful, small costal town of Parga, and the larger town/city Ioannina, the former capital of the region and the seat of power of the infamous Ali Pasha–the Ottoman warlord-turned-rebel. 
Visiting a museum a short ferry ride across from Ioannina, we learned more about Ali Pasha. Here’s a painting of his head being brought to the Ottoman sultan for…inspection? 
We’ve both been working on our cooking skills this year! Here we have a homemade pizza by Ana, and my attempt at reproducing/augmenting Panera Bread’s broccoli-cheddar soup! (It’s better than Panera…) 
Trying out different hobbies–we’ve decided we enjoy puzzles as long as they make fun, non-repetitively patterned images! 
My new look this year. I figure I might as well enjoy the red beard while I have it. 
Here we have a funny little panoramic of my Worldviews class taking a quiz on their Chromebooks, all facing the wall. With the advent of AI chatbots like ChatGPT this year, the academic integrity of computer assignments is under threat like never before. Yay, more challenges! 
Fast-forwarding to the month of May: AP and IGCSE testing season. We have a tradition of the subject teacher praying for the class right before they head up to the test-taking classroom with their test proctor (who obviously has to be someone else). Here Faith prays for her AP English class. It’s a special highlight for each of us teachers. 
Testing materials have to be locked away in a secure location, per protocol. Our testing materials this year were literally locked away under the stairs. Here’s Lori carrying out her AP coordinator responsibilities, like Gandalf at a Hobbit house. 
I complained earlier about false signals of economic prosperity and possible bad prioritization of public funds. Well, at least people can have a fun time at the occasional public concert, convention, or festival. Here we have a celebration akin to the Indian Holi festival! 
With the re-implementation of high school internships at the end of May, teachers can get back to the never-ending project of meeting to review and edit the school policy handbook. This diagram illustrates (with exaggerated knees for clear reference) the perennial problem of managing the school dress-code amidst a sea of diverse cultural norms. Question: If shorts can be shorter than dresses, what happens if students wear shorts under shorter-than-policy dresses? Don’t worry, in this case we got to the bottom of the issue. 
This year Student Council tried something new: an end-of-year STUCO Trip at an Airbnb resort villa. I promise the chaperones had a better time overall than this image implies, but the trip certainly contributed to my end-of-year exhaustion. 
Graduation. Here Elizabeth gives the main speech, reflecting back on our graduates’ development through the years and dishing out some helpful advice and well-deserved thanks to the mothers in the audience. 
Another GDQ wedding! And another international couple! Albanians certainly know how to celebrate. A fun way to close out the year. I wonder what God is going to do with all of our wildly diverse and disparate connections? 
I finish this update with a before/after image for illustrative purposes. Do you remember the image at left from one of my earliest updates after moving to Albania? This electric control box has had this painting of Lego Superman for probably the same duration as my time spent living here–and the accumulated wear shows. Looking at this relatable image, I find myself hoping for God to give me a fresh coat of paint next year.
Set Your Hope Fully on Christ 