My Life after CELTA

The quickness of the passing time is hypnotic, but simultaneously, it is shocking. Christmas is just over a month away, so the year's end is around the corner. I gave up pondering about the yearly cycles long ago because the notion of periodically making decisions as if something new had been going to start is futile. The Earth is circling around the Sun unceasingly in a galaxy we call home, which on a cosmical scale is merely a tiny little fraction of the universe, which is constantly expanding. And we all know how the young Alvy Singer in Annie Hall felt about this: "Well, the universe is everything, and if it's expanding, someday it will break apart...".  Anyhoo, even though the calendar indicates we are in the middle of November, the weather still doesn't exhibit the signs of late autumn. The trees seem to struggle with deciding when to lose the foliage, and quite surprisingly, some of them keep green leaves on the branches. This time last year, all the leaves...

The weather was horrible today. Except for the chilly but dry morning, the day was too windy, rainy, cold, and depressing. It wasn't the amount of rain that vexed me. Anyway, in six more weeks, 2023 will be over. I'm not going to ponder on how 2024 will be or how the world will see Biblical portents. I will only focus on: Ági - she's been and will be the most important person in my life. Focusing on our future, getting old together, and planning our last decades on Earth is my number one topic. Abby - this little rascal wagged herself into our lives quite forcefully, but after three and a half years, she is one of us. My English teaching - I'll continue to hone my skills, my English learning and teaching. My focus should be on my CPE exam plans despite the long road. Securing our future - somehow, we must come to terms with the fact that time is not on our side anymore. The dangerously fast passing of time scares me sometimes, so we need to take precautions in time. As ...

Today is All Saints' Day, and tomorrow is the Day of the Dead. Only today is a public holiday in Hungary, and tomorrow, everybody must get back to work. And it's just as well. It's good to stop for a moment occasionally and think back to the times when we were much younger. Recollecting memories, even those that might be painful, helps us remember where we came from and what we've accomplished so far. It reminds us not to make mistakes our ancestors and parents made but to focus on our not-so-long future. Even though we are not old, although, at the age of 53, one wouldn't make preparations for their first ball, five decades bear a tangible weight on our shoulders. If things go well, we can enjoy ten more productive years in the job market, but beyond our sixth decade, employability becomes uncertain. And it's just as well. However, life is short. And the few decades we might have will be going so fast that we won't be able to recognize the speed at which ye...

I still can't believe I completed the course. And so did my peers. All of them completed the course. Not because I hadn't worked a lot during the last 17 weeks but rather than being fully aware of my preparation, my abilities, and my English knowledge. I'm not saying that I wouldn't be able to teach. On the contrary, the CELTA course highlighted a couple of areas of my English that need a lot of attention.  I am OK with improving my English, so my next milestone is sitting a CPE exam this or next year. But till then, I'll follow my schedule. I devised a plan that I think will be appropriate to follow to improve my English: Starting with processing my A1, A2, B1, B2 and C1 language and grammar books, which will take at least three months. The A1 and A2 books will be the easiest ones to deal with, but as I progress with the books and the level gets higher, the process will gradually slow down. It should be OK with my CPE preparation as the two are interconnected and s...