So I haven't written a post in a super long time. You're probably like: "Is that a good or a bad sign?" "Is teaching really that busy?" "Should we be concerned?"
The answers: Both, most of the time, and no.
I could tell you minute, fine details about my weeks at school. I could share my frustrations and stresses - there are definitely daily doses of that. But I'm not going to. Instead of telling you when and how my kids can frustrate me, I'm going to share with you the ways my students, their families, and the staff have blessed me in the past nearly one semester.
I am blessed.
I am blessed by the smiles and "good morning" I get from eighth graders nearly every single morning as they put their backpacks in the far back shelves of my room.
I am blessed by the challenging student who is behind in reading and writing, but instead of blowing off a project I've assigned, pokes his head in my room to ask for help. And I am blessed when I am able to give him a good grade for his work.
I am blessed to watch nearly two months of work on a speech and spelling fest, months where I wasn't entirely sure how this whole process worked, pay off at a region-wide festival where my students get mostly all top scores. I am blessed to be able to just hang out with my students all day at the festival, being invited to eat lunch with them, and even getting surprise candy left in my bag from some of them. I am blessed to see how supportive they all are of one another.
I am blessed by a mentor who throws his support behind most everything I am doing or trying. I am blessed when he allows me talk about way too much during our meetings.
I am blessed by the relationships I have with some of these students, relationships that fill me up and remind me how much I love this job. I am blessed by the energetic sixth grader that reminds me of the girls I've watched grow up, and I am blessed when she is begging me to help her with her homework or is insisting I must be on her team when we go bowling in a couple weeks. I am blessed by the student who would potentially be challenging but with whom I get to spend time after school in study place, where I get to ease off some of the teacher-type command and just get to know her for all her silliness. I am blessed by the girl who never fails to give a compliment or share a short conversation about non-academic topics that are important to her or to me. I am blessed by the student who will often catch my eye to share a smile or tries to quiet his classmates when he knows it's getting out of hand. I am blessed by the student who I admit I wouldn't mind spending time with outside of school because conversation flows easily with her. I am blessed by the student who all the other teachers said used to be a challenge, but whom I see blossoming into a positive leader and a joy to have in my class most days. I am blessed to watch a student call out his peers about unwise decisions or inconsiderate conversations, for I feel blessed to be teaching a young man of such godly character and boldness. I am blessed when my classes can get me laughing or smiling even on tense days.
I am blessed by the parents who come to conferences already open to what I have to say and ready to stand behind me and take my side. I am blessed that they are so invested in their sons and daughters that they want them to be doing their very best, and that they see the value of education, which isn't always the case with parents at every school.
I am blessed when what I am working on doing in my class sticks in the other classes, so that students are pulling out daily grammar books to remind themselves what an adjective is so they can find them in the social studies text or are required to write story problems in math.
I am blessed when a group who struggled with one chapter of an old text stick with it and end up begging for more. I am blessed when students admit they struggled to read a story with vocabulary or sentence structure they weren't comfortable with, but then they end up liking the story regardless and grasping the key ideas I want them to glean.
I am blessed by the room parent coming to ask me if I want the eighth grade to throw me a bridal shower. I am blessed by the family who opened up their home to wild eighth graders on a Saturday night. I am blessed by the students who took charge to pull together food, games, and gifts for the party. I am blessed by fourteen families who sent recipes and ingredients with their student as gifts for me. I am blessed by three quality gifts bought by the pooling of money from each family - all of it more than I anticipated.
I am blessed by a principal who sends me encouraging emails, cards on special occasions, notes of thanks for snacks on my required day or for sharing something insightful during a meeting, and holds a "yay you survived the first quarter" check-up with me. I am blessed that she joins this team to teach and mold the middle schoolers' hearts and minds.
I am blessed by coworkers who are just as open to hear my suggestions as they are willing to give them when I need them most. I am blessed when they look to me for guidance in areas I have been trained in or instructed about during my college years.
I am blessed by the teacher who with one look on a particularly crazy morning says "you seem stressed" and then checks in with me later that day.
I am blessed by four-square and the opportunity to bond on the blacktop as well as the classroom.
I am blessed by the fact that many of my students are nearly as excited about this wedding as I am.
I am blessed by the parent who thanks Kyle and I for the witness we are to the students simply by the fact we aren't buying into the cultural norm of living together, which stimulates conversation between the kids and between the parents and their kids about the why behind our choice. I am blessed to know God's truth can shine through our lives in that way, and that maybe we're making a difference to these kids' perceptions in this post-modern world.
I am blessed that I now come home every night to a man who listens to my stories, holds me when I'm having a particularly rough day, and gives me snacks, chocolate, a back or foot massage, or whatever I desire. I am blessed that in just 19 more sleeps he'll be able to call this apartment home as well and won't have to leave.
I am blessed by this and so, so much more. I am blessed by Sheboygan Christian, I am blessed to be exactly where God has called me, and I am blessed to be doing a job that still hardly seems like a job.
Sunday, December 14, 2014
Thursday, September 18, 2014
For the Love of my Calling
Today it hit me I get paid to do this.
My paycheck came weeks ago, but it was today I realized I'm doing this for money; not for grades or for practice, but this is my real-life, serious career. I'm doing something that feels nearly as natural as breathing every day, and it's my job.
This is why they call it a calling.
I'm nearly finished with the third week of school. In some ways, it doesn't seem like it. Each period goes by in hardly any time at all. Before I know it, we're at lunch, then the end of the day, and I'm thinking whoa, 8 hours are over already? Then all of a sudden it's nearly or past 5:00 and I realize I should go home for dinner. The next day goes just as quickly. I can hardly believe we're nearly at October, creeping closer to speech festival, convention, and the end of first quarter.
Yet, in other ways, it seems like I've been doing this for far more than three weeks. I know these kids. I can predict in first hour how the kids will probably be acting when I see them again in fifth hour and adjust in my head if needed. I'm understanding who needs what level of firmness and what kids have a hard time working with what other kids. And the kids have figured me out some too, I think. They know "eyes and ears on me" means they stop conversations and look at me. They know when I look at the clock, I'm counting minutes they're wasting and they quiet right away, afraid of staying in at break for wasting my time. Unconsciously, I believe I've gained "the look" that works on 90% of students because I can just look at someone who's talking too much and if they catch my eye they apologize and stop. They also know that when they're focused and not having their own side conversations, I will be able to actually have some fun and share my life or experiences with them and listen to theirs. They know I want to choose interesting things to read, some of them a little out-of-the-box. They know if they give me good attention during the week that I actually love watching videos that relate to our topic. So really, I feel like it's been far longer than three weeks because I feel so settled into what I'm doing.
I also have to brag about this staff. Seriously - the best. I have yet to feel like a total novice because they don't look down on me. I freely ask questions to anyone on staff and their answers come back as if they're just gently reminding me of something I knew - which I didn't, but they don't act like I should have - or they even blame themselves for not telling me. Even more than that, everyone is looking to me for advice and fresh ideas, and that makes me feel like they believe in me. Okay, not just feel like they do - know that they do.
Even though I could speak about any of my colleagues, I'll just pick out the four that have been the greatest support. One and two - my fellow middle school teachers, Laureen and Steve. They're the ones who get some of the daily questions because they're the ones who have a break at the same time as I do and never yet have I felt sheepish coming to them. They just explain it with a smile and clarity of ideas, and we move on in our day as a team.
Then there's Kathy, my principal. It feels a little strange thinking of her as my boss because she's so un-boss-like - in the greatest way. She's a lot of times in the trenches with us - partially because she's also helping teach 6th grade, and partially because she just wants to immerse herself in what the teachers are going through as well. She isn't ashamed to tell me when she doesn't know something.She is like one of us in ways that few principals I've ever encountered, in any placement, have been. She's not the authoritarian who sits in her office dealing mostly with the trouble students or the voice that controls all conversation at the staff meetings. She is a teacher, through and through, who also happens to be head of the school. Yet she's so knowledgeable and aware of all the teachers, all the students, and all the goings on of the whole school in ways the principal should be. She's like the perfect mix and I love that she's my boss because I feel so comfortable with her.
And finally, Joel. my mentor teacher (though he kind of resists the label sometimes because it feels too official) and someone who's quickly becoming my friend. I can't tell you how many times I've just gone to Joel with a small plea - "help!" - or a "So, there's this problem..." or "I have an idea but I don't how it'll work." Sometimes I go just to talk, air out my thoughts on the day, and hear his advice or empathy. The amount of time I've been in that fourth grade classroom is second only to my own classroom. And never have I felt like Joel just wishes I would go away so he could work in peace (even though sometimes I probably should wrap up my conversation with him sooner so that he can get to work). Never have I felt like there's this divide between elementary and middle school teaching like I sometimes did in education classes, and that he can't relate to what I'm doing in sixth, seventh, or eighth grade. And once again, I haven't felt like a novice around him. He's one of the biggest supporters of my ideas. That's why I share so many with him - because I know he'll love it as much as I do, or maybe make me love it more, and then give key tips for implementation. He knows more about me and my thought processes and my frustrations than anyone at that school. Even though he has a family and there's a seven year gap, I honestly call him a friend.
I re-met the parent who was on the interview panel at the school's Open House/Parent Awareness Night tonight. He gave me a hard time for not remembering who he was, but it did start spinning wheels in my head back to that time I sat in Room Three, which is now where I give devotions every morning and seek Steve out if I need him, nervous, unsure of what God was planning, and not certain that I was doing well enough in the interview to land a job. Joel was there, on that panel. So was Kathy. And Laureen. Steve was going to be, but couldn't make it that day. Since that time, I've found out about other candidates who were vying for the position - thankfully for my conscience, they also have teaching jobs they love now. But the interview panel picked me. In less than a week, they knew I was the one. It was more than just the fact that I'm able to teach in most of the capacities that needed to be filled - English, social studies, and Bible (side note: when I picked up a history minor, it was with intention to have it as something that I could pull out for extra qualifications... who knew how that would play into the exact position I'd interview for, as I picked up what Reid left). It was more than my education, my level of experience, my grade point average. I'm sure all those things helped - I mean, you have to hire a teacher who you're confident knows how to teach well. But mostly it was God.
The days - months - of applications that returned no results, the worried heart as graduation approached, seem like a haze now, but I was struck with the memory that it was until literally two days before graduation that I was concerned and clueless. That phone call the week after I interviewed shocked me - they were interested in me, I was near the top of the list. Then, a short time later, they confirmed that they wanted me. Me! God knew before I even got the email to set up an interview I'd be sitting in an apartment a block away from the school that has become a place I love. He knew I'd be in Sheboygan, which is an ideal city for me - small, but not cut off from malls and a downtown, and by the lake. When I told my family that I thought the interview went well but I thought the interview before mine sounded like it went better from snippets of laughter I heard, and I thought it could go either way for me, God probably laughed to himself, knowing the phone call I'd get the next week. Knowing that I'd start my career right out of college in a place that is better than I could have picked for myself.
I won't say these students are perfect - trust me, there are daily struggles with these squirrelly middle schoolers. Neither is the staff. But it's where I need to be. It's where I love to be. That's more than enough now.
My paycheck came weeks ago, but it was today I realized I'm doing this for money; not for grades or for practice, but this is my real-life, serious career. I'm doing something that feels nearly as natural as breathing every day, and it's my job.
This is why they call it a calling.
I'm nearly finished with the third week of school. In some ways, it doesn't seem like it. Each period goes by in hardly any time at all. Before I know it, we're at lunch, then the end of the day, and I'm thinking whoa, 8 hours are over already? Then all of a sudden it's nearly or past 5:00 and I realize I should go home for dinner. The next day goes just as quickly. I can hardly believe we're nearly at October, creeping closer to speech festival, convention, and the end of first quarter.
Yet, in other ways, it seems like I've been doing this for far more than three weeks. I know these kids. I can predict in first hour how the kids will probably be acting when I see them again in fifth hour and adjust in my head if needed. I'm understanding who needs what level of firmness and what kids have a hard time working with what other kids. And the kids have figured me out some too, I think. They know "eyes and ears on me" means they stop conversations and look at me. They know when I look at the clock, I'm counting minutes they're wasting and they quiet right away, afraid of staying in at break for wasting my time. Unconsciously, I believe I've gained "the look" that works on 90% of students because I can just look at someone who's talking too much and if they catch my eye they apologize and stop. They also know that when they're focused and not having their own side conversations, I will be able to actually have some fun and share my life or experiences with them and listen to theirs. They know I want to choose interesting things to read, some of them a little out-of-the-box. They know if they give me good attention during the week that I actually love watching videos that relate to our topic. So really, I feel like it's been far longer than three weeks because I feel so settled into what I'm doing.
I also have to brag about this staff. Seriously - the best. I have yet to feel like a total novice because they don't look down on me. I freely ask questions to anyone on staff and their answers come back as if they're just gently reminding me of something I knew - which I didn't, but they don't act like I should have - or they even blame themselves for not telling me. Even more than that, everyone is looking to me for advice and fresh ideas, and that makes me feel like they believe in me. Okay, not just feel like they do - know that they do.
Even though I could speak about any of my colleagues, I'll just pick out the four that have been the greatest support. One and two - my fellow middle school teachers, Laureen and Steve. They're the ones who get some of the daily questions because they're the ones who have a break at the same time as I do and never yet have I felt sheepish coming to them. They just explain it with a smile and clarity of ideas, and we move on in our day as a team.
Then there's Kathy, my principal. It feels a little strange thinking of her as my boss because she's so un-boss-like - in the greatest way. She's a lot of times in the trenches with us - partially because she's also helping teach 6th grade, and partially because she just wants to immerse herself in what the teachers are going through as well. She isn't ashamed to tell me when she doesn't know something.She is like one of us in ways that few principals I've ever encountered, in any placement, have been. She's not the authoritarian who sits in her office dealing mostly with the trouble students or the voice that controls all conversation at the staff meetings. She is a teacher, through and through, who also happens to be head of the school. Yet she's so knowledgeable and aware of all the teachers, all the students, and all the goings on of the whole school in ways the principal should be. She's like the perfect mix and I love that she's my boss because I feel so comfortable with her.
And finally, Joel. my mentor teacher (though he kind of resists the label sometimes because it feels too official) and someone who's quickly becoming my friend. I can't tell you how many times I've just gone to Joel with a small plea - "help!" - or a "So, there's this problem..." or "I have an idea but I don't how it'll work." Sometimes I go just to talk, air out my thoughts on the day, and hear his advice or empathy. The amount of time I've been in that fourth grade classroom is second only to my own classroom. And never have I felt like Joel just wishes I would go away so he could work in peace (even though sometimes I probably should wrap up my conversation with him sooner so that he can get to work). Never have I felt like there's this divide between elementary and middle school teaching like I sometimes did in education classes, and that he can't relate to what I'm doing in sixth, seventh, or eighth grade. And once again, I haven't felt like a novice around him. He's one of the biggest supporters of my ideas. That's why I share so many with him - because I know he'll love it as much as I do, or maybe make me love it more, and then give key tips for implementation. He knows more about me and my thought processes and my frustrations than anyone at that school. Even though he has a family and there's a seven year gap, I honestly call him a friend.
I re-met the parent who was on the interview panel at the school's Open House/Parent Awareness Night tonight. He gave me a hard time for not remembering who he was, but it did start spinning wheels in my head back to that time I sat in Room Three, which is now where I give devotions every morning and seek Steve out if I need him, nervous, unsure of what God was planning, and not certain that I was doing well enough in the interview to land a job. Joel was there, on that panel. So was Kathy. And Laureen. Steve was going to be, but couldn't make it that day. Since that time, I've found out about other candidates who were vying for the position - thankfully for my conscience, they also have teaching jobs they love now. But the interview panel picked me. In less than a week, they knew I was the one. It was more than just the fact that I'm able to teach in most of the capacities that needed to be filled - English, social studies, and Bible (side note: when I picked up a history minor, it was with intention to have it as something that I could pull out for extra qualifications... who knew how that would play into the exact position I'd interview for, as I picked up what Reid left). It was more than my education, my level of experience, my grade point average. I'm sure all those things helped - I mean, you have to hire a teacher who you're confident knows how to teach well. But mostly it was God.
The days - months - of applications that returned no results, the worried heart as graduation approached, seem like a haze now, but I was struck with the memory that it was until literally two days before graduation that I was concerned and clueless. That phone call the week after I interviewed shocked me - they were interested in me, I was near the top of the list. Then, a short time later, they confirmed that they wanted me. Me! God knew before I even got the email to set up an interview I'd be sitting in an apartment a block away from the school that has become a place I love. He knew I'd be in Sheboygan, which is an ideal city for me - small, but not cut off from malls and a downtown, and by the lake. When I told my family that I thought the interview went well but I thought the interview before mine sounded like it went better from snippets of laughter I heard, and I thought it could go either way for me, God probably laughed to himself, knowing the phone call I'd get the next week. Knowing that I'd start my career right out of college in a place that is better than I could have picked for myself.
I won't say these students are perfect - trust me, there are daily struggles with these squirrelly middle schoolers. Neither is the staff. But it's where I need to be. It's where I love to be. That's more than enough now.
Saturday, August 16, 2014
Teaching - pre-season
I don't know if any of you have gone to Macwoods Dune Rides recently, but if you have did you hear a small voice from across the lake? Yeah, that was me.
Okay, so I really haven't been yelling across the lake or anything. But the narrowest point of Lake Michigan is between Sheboygan and the Silver Lake sand dunes. What a coincidence, eh?
I've been in Sheboygan just over a week now. Typing that makes it seem so weird! In some aspects, this week has flown by. I was pulled into the community on Sunday, attending the church down the street and then also going to their "praise in the parking lot" where they served dinner (hey, free food! I'm appreciating that even more than I did in college now) and then had a worship time outdoors. I've been busy every day, working in the classroom to organize, decorate, and plan for school. Many days, I would glance at the clock and be like "huh, okay, it's 6:30. Maybe I should wrap this up soon and get some food." I spent hours in meetings with a couple other teachers, like my principal, mentor teacher, and middle school coordinator, but they were ones where I went to a bakery or sat outside and talked about what I needed to know, and hardly seemed to take up much time (until I later looked at a clock). I've started getting to know my landlords and their family, and I was able to spend hours down in their home one evening eating dinner, sipping lattes, and playing family games. It has certainly been a week of activity, which has made this week go by quickly.
But on the other hand, I feel like I've been here so much longer than a week - but in a good way. I feel at home and, for the most part, settled. I still have to get more connected to some of the community, but that will come. I already know just about everyone is eager to enfold me if I just go to them. I've already felt that with the teachers, in particular the upper grades, whom I've interacted with most. What usually took me weeks in a teaching placement in college has taken me less than a week in Sheboygan - to feel I belong. Most of my classroom was decorated using supplies from others. Most of the teachers I've sat down with are encouraging me to give any input I have because they are eager to hear my ideas since I am a fresh face out of college. I was warned in school sometimes veteran teachers can be wary of change and new ideas; I don't think I'll have that problem too much here.
Here are some pictures from the classroom:
I do feel a little bit like I'm not a teacher yet, that I'm just borrowing a classroom and on that first day of class a cooperating teacher will walk in the door and teach for a couple days or be in a support role in the back of the classroom. Maybe I'll feel like a teacher after I have a couple days, or weeks, under my belt; maybe it'll take a few years. I don't know, but I know that even though I'm technically on my own in the classroom, on this faculty I'm not really on my own at all. These teachers are working hard to equip me, support me, and encourage me. And the beautiful thing about being on my own in my subject - I decide what I teach (within some general boundaries) and how I do it. It's both scary and exhilarating; scary because I have many decisions to make, but exhilarating because I get to make them and no one will tell me that I have to teach any certain text. As long as I teach from exploration to World War I in American history, I get to decide what projects and lessons I create; as long as students learn to analyze characters and themes as well as compare and contrast, I can decide with which texts they do so; as long as I teach the kings and prophets between Solomon and the New Testament, I can decide how to connect them with other stories and with our world today; and as long as students learn how to write paragraphs and form papers, I can choose what they write.
Oh yeah, in case you didn't catch it - I'm teaching more than just English. I'm teaching 7th and 8th grade literature, 6th, 7th, and 8th grade Language Arts, 7th and 8th grade Reading Workshop, 7th grade Bible, 7th grade Social Studies, and 8th grade homeroom. Needless to say, it's busy. But it's actually been quite fun thinking across disciplines, and thinking of how I'm going to connect them through books, writing, and speaking about lessons we're learning in history during literature and language arts class, or Bible in history class, or visa versa each situation. I'm pumped. It's taking a lot more thinking and planning to be teaching 4 subjects (and really 8 different classes) in any given week, but it'll be quite the ride.
Speaking of planning, I should get back to it. I'm thinking about taking the 7 block walk to the lakeshore this afternoon for planning. I know, life is rough.
Okay, so I really haven't been yelling across the lake or anything. But the narrowest point of Lake Michigan is between Sheboygan and the Silver Lake sand dunes. What a coincidence, eh?
I've been in Sheboygan just over a week now. Typing that makes it seem so weird! In some aspects, this week has flown by. I was pulled into the community on Sunday, attending the church down the street and then also going to their "praise in the parking lot" where they served dinner (hey, free food! I'm appreciating that even more than I did in college now) and then had a worship time outdoors. I've been busy every day, working in the classroom to organize, decorate, and plan for school. Many days, I would glance at the clock and be like "huh, okay, it's 6:30. Maybe I should wrap this up soon and get some food." I spent hours in meetings with a couple other teachers, like my principal, mentor teacher, and middle school coordinator, but they were ones where I went to a bakery or sat outside and talked about what I needed to know, and hardly seemed to take up much time (until I later looked at a clock). I've started getting to know my landlords and their family, and I was able to spend hours down in their home one evening eating dinner, sipping lattes, and playing family games. It has certainly been a week of activity, which has made this week go by quickly.
But on the other hand, I feel like I've been here so much longer than a week - but in a good way. I feel at home and, for the most part, settled. I still have to get more connected to some of the community, but that will come. I already know just about everyone is eager to enfold me if I just go to them. I've already felt that with the teachers, in particular the upper grades, whom I've interacted with most. What usually took me weeks in a teaching placement in college has taken me less than a week in Sheboygan - to feel I belong. Most of my classroom was decorated using supplies from others. Most of the teachers I've sat down with are encouraging me to give any input I have because they are eager to hear my ideas since I am a fresh face out of college. I was warned in school sometimes veteran teachers can be wary of change and new ideas; I don't think I'll have that problem too much here.
Here are some pictures from the classroom:
I do feel a little bit like I'm not a teacher yet, that I'm just borrowing a classroom and on that first day of class a cooperating teacher will walk in the door and teach for a couple days or be in a support role in the back of the classroom. Maybe I'll feel like a teacher after I have a couple days, or weeks, under my belt; maybe it'll take a few years. I don't know, but I know that even though I'm technically on my own in the classroom, on this faculty I'm not really on my own at all. These teachers are working hard to equip me, support me, and encourage me. And the beautiful thing about being on my own in my subject - I decide what I teach (within some general boundaries) and how I do it. It's both scary and exhilarating; scary because I have many decisions to make, but exhilarating because I get to make them and no one will tell me that I have to teach any certain text. As long as I teach from exploration to World War I in American history, I get to decide what projects and lessons I create; as long as students learn to analyze characters and themes as well as compare and contrast, I can decide with which texts they do so; as long as I teach the kings and prophets between Solomon and the New Testament, I can decide how to connect them with other stories and with our world today; and as long as students learn how to write paragraphs and form papers, I can choose what they write.
Oh yeah, in case you didn't catch it - I'm teaching more than just English. I'm teaching 7th and 8th grade literature, 6th, 7th, and 8th grade Language Arts, 7th and 8th grade Reading Workshop, 7th grade Bible, 7th grade Social Studies, and 8th grade homeroom. Needless to say, it's busy. But it's actually been quite fun thinking across disciplines, and thinking of how I'm going to connect them through books, writing, and speaking about lessons we're learning in history during literature and language arts class, or Bible in history class, or visa versa each situation. I'm pumped. It's taking a lot more thinking and planning to be teaching 4 subjects (and really 8 different classes) in any given week, but it'll be quite the ride.
Speaking of planning, I should get back to it. I'm thinking about taking the 7 block walk to the lakeshore this afternoon for planning. I know, life is rough.
Tuesday, July 22, 2014
Speaking Up
My first post in months and it's a bit of a rant. I know not all of you will agree with my stance in this post, but I wanted to say this anyway.
What sparked the idea for the post was a few different encounters I've had about Kyle and I and our living situation. People are genuinely surprised that we wouldn't be living together. The very first came months before we were engaged, and it was less about Kyle and I and more about my profession. Teachers were living with their boyfriends or fiancés and it was okay. It was a little like "whoa" for me because I know teachers are setting examples. But then I remembered... oh yeah, in today's culture this is okay. The next time it came up was with the lady who was our consultant when we were registering. She didn't even ask - she just stated "Oh, so you two are living together then." We corrected her - no, we won't be living together until after the wedding. Though I can't say I was completely taken aback by her comment, I did start mulling it over. Since when did it become the assumption that couples, especially engaged couples, would live together? It came up a couple more times, including from a high school camper who I know to be an upright young woman; she was less assuming about it, more just questioning "Oh, so you're going to do the not-living-together thing?" So I again reflected - when did this become a "thing" that few people do? When did it become a surprise that a couple chooses not to live together until they're married? I have friends and colleagues who do live with their significant others prior to marriage, and it doesn't cause me to love them any less or to shower judgment on them. But it does raise an even bigger issue to my mind - that more and more things are becoming okay in the Christian faith.
Postmodernism is a term tossed around in many circles. I heard the term in high school but I'll be honest - it didn't become real for me until I learned about it again while working at camp and it was applied to real life examples. Essentially, it says that everything is okay, it all depends on your own perspective; what is okay for you is perfectly okay for you, and my okay is okay for me. We can all live in completely harmony being completely tolerant (sound familiar? It's a key term in today's lingo!) of every single person's belief.
This is apathy and being too "lukewarm" as Revelation puts it. Because everyone's beliefs are not the truth. There's only one truth, not a thousand. We're supposed to take a stand for what is that truth. Yet, more and more Christians are becoming tolerant of practices of the world and those practices are flowing into the church and its members. We are called to be in the world and reaching out to those who aren't living according to God's law; Jesus still loved the cheats, the adulterers, the "sinners"; but we aren't supposed to be of the world and participating in those practices. I don't stop loving people who are doing something that doesn't agree with me or, more importantly, God's Word. But I do have a stand and I do see certain things as wrong and can express that.
This is the first time I'm really voicing this next admission out loud (or, in writing I suppose) but teenage me wasn't always sure of this. I knew what the Bible said but I didn't want to be seen as narrow-minded, a bigot, or intolerant. I wanted to show Christianly love. But you know what? Showing God's love doesn't mean I should be okay with what's going on. It doesn't mean I just go with the flow and accept what others are doing as fine when I'm aware God's Word says it isn't.
Though I could discuss many hot issues of today, let's return to the issue that sparked this post - cohabitation prior to marriage. The problem I see with this is it's taking away from God's plan for marriage. A man leaves his father to cleave or unite to his wife, not girlfriend or fiancée, and the two become one. Doing so any earlier than marriage wrecks that plan and can cause a whole lot of hurt if it isn't right; I've seen that happen too. Furthermore, now, in my own interactions and experiences (without any statistics to back this up because I don't feel like researching it), fewer people are participating in that gift of marriage or are putting it off for longer because nothing changes all that much when you're already living together. I mean, I agree - at that point it's more just a formality and it can wait for a few years. But it shouldn't be this way!
Allowing ourselves to become fence-sitters about certain worldly practices is dangerous. God wants us to be hot or cold, to take a stand even if we end up stepping on a few toes. He doesn't want us completely attacking people, and some Christians go to that extreme. But he does want us to speak up for truth.
That's a big part of what is on my heart to teach to teens and young adults, because Christian teens nowadays are so tossed around by the different ideas of truth that they are a little bit like me in high school - they're scared to take a stand on one side - or perhaps they don't even know what is truth anymore. I'm thrilled to be marrying a man who is passionate about the same idea, raising the next generation to be leaders and taking a stand in their beliefs. And yes, I'm beyond excited to live with him... starting January 2nd and not a day before.
What sparked the idea for the post was a few different encounters I've had about Kyle and I and our living situation. People are genuinely surprised that we wouldn't be living together. The very first came months before we were engaged, and it was less about Kyle and I and more about my profession. Teachers were living with their boyfriends or fiancés and it was okay. It was a little like "whoa" for me because I know teachers are setting examples. But then I remembered... oh yeah, in today's culture this is okay. The next time it came up was with the lady who was our consultant when we were registering. She didn't even ask - she just stated "Oh, so you two are living together then." We corrected her - no, we won't be living together until after the wedding. Though I can't say I was completely taken aback by her comment, I did start mulling it over. Since when did it become the assumption that couples, especially engaged couples, would live together? It came up a couple more times, including from a high school camper who I know to be an upright young woman; she was less assuming about it, more just questioning "Oh, so you're going to do the not-living-together thing?" So I again reflected - when did this become a "thing" that few people do? When did it become a surprise that a couple chooses not to live together until they're married? I have friends and colleagues who do live with their significant others prior to marriage, and it doesn't cause me to love them any less or to shower judgment on them. But it does raise an even bigger issue to my mind - that more and more things are becoming okay in the Christian faith.
Postmodernism is a term tossed around in many circles. I heard the term in high school but I'll be honest - it didn't become real for me until I learned about it again while working at camp and it was applied to real life examples. Essentially, it says that everything is okay, it all depends on your own perspective; what is okay for you is perfectly okay for you, and my okay is okay for me. We can all live in completely harmony being completely tolerant (sound familiar? It's a key term in today's lingo!) of every single person's belief.
This is apathy and being too "lukewarm" as Revelation puts it. Because everyone's beliefs are not the truth. There's only one truth, not a thousand. We're supposed to take a stand for what is that truth. Yet, more and more Christians are becoming tolerant of practices of the world and those practices are flowing into the church and its members. We are called to be in the world and reaching out to those who aren't living according to God's law; Jesus still loved the cheats, the adulterers, the "sinners"; but we aren't supposed to be of the world and participating in those practices. I don't stop loving people who are doing something that doesn't agree with me or, more importantly, God's Word. But I do have a stand and I do see certain things as wrong and can express that.
This is the first time I'm really voicing this next admission out loud (or, in writing I suppose) but teenage me wasn't always sure of this. I knew what the Bible said but I didn't want to be seen as narrow-minded, a bigot, or intolerant. I wanted to show Christianly love. But you know what? Showing God's love doesn't mean I should be okay with what's going on. It doesn't mean I just go with the flow and accept what others are doing as fine when I'm aware God's Word says it isn't.
Though I could discuss many hot issues of today, let's return to the issue that sparked this post - cohabitation prior to marriage. The problem I see with this is it's taking away from God's plan for marriage. A man leaves his father to cleave or unite to his wife, not girlfriend or fiancée, and the two become one. Doing so any earlier than marriage wrecks that plan and can cause a whole lot of hurt if it isn't right; I've seen that happen too. Furthermore, now, in my own interactions and experiences (without any statistics to back this up because I don't feel like researching it), fewer people are participating in that gift of marriage or are putting it off for longer because nothing changes all that much when you're already living together. I mean, I agree - at that point it's more just a formality and it can wait for a few years. But it shouldn't be this way!
Allowing ourselves to become fence-sitters about certain worldly practices is dangerous. God wants us to be hot or cold, to take a stand even if we end up stepping on a few toes. He doesn't want us completely attacking people, and some Christians go to that extreme. But he does want us to speak up for truth.
That's a big part of what is on my heart to teach to teens and young adults, because Christian teens nowadays are so tossed around by the different ideas of truth that they are a little bit like me in high school - they're scared to take a stand on one side - or perhaps they don't even know what is truth anymore. I'm thrilled to be marrying a man who is passionate about the same idea, raising the next generation to be leaders and taking a stand in their beliefs. And yes, I'm beyond excited to live with him... starting January 2nd and not a day before.
Wednesday, May 21, 2014
Where I Stand - May 2014
Rebecca Reed
May 21, 2014
Just 3 days less than 4 years ago from today, I wrote about the roller coaster I was about to get strapped into. I mentioned having mixed feelings about stepping out of the comfort of the West Michigan bubble to go 133 miles away. I wrote about loving my friends and family and hurting to be separated from them. I wrote about a man I was at the time missing and alluded to the fact that I was certain I'd be with him forever. I wrote about how much I loved band with Mr. Looman, my favorite foods, my favorite smells, and my favorite places to be. Now, here I am on the other side of what was an unforeseen roller coaster ride of four years, graduated from college and having numerous big changes coming to my life in the coming year. This is the end of that roller coaster ride, and this is where I, Rebecca Anne Reed-to-be-Koning, stand now.
I stand in some ways the same as who I was four years ago. I still love popcorn with tons of butter, and have found in these four years that the best is actually air-popped where I can add my own butter and salt. I still favor Italian food above all other main-course dishes. I continue to love the smell of campfires and love going camping, which is probably part of the reason I was in love with my summer job as a camp counselor in 2012 and 2013 where campfires, the outdoors, a lake, and lots of sunshine were regular. Sunsets on the beach still hold precious memories for me and where I am most able to see God, although some sunrises have also joined that league. And I'm still a big fan of musicals, and have even been able to see some big-name musicals live in the past four years including The Lion King, Wicked, Les Miserables, and Newsies.
Similarly, I still love my family and friends. Though I inevitably lost touch with some peers from high school, I still remain friends with some of the closest friends from those years, those that could never leave my heart. Three of them are even in my bridal party. My immediate family hasn't changed in number, but just gotten older. Nick is a sophomore in college now, and as we grow older and more mature, we grow closer; I'm still a daddy's girl and age has only grown that relationship; my mom is still one of the first people I turn to to ask questions or talk about my life.
Yet, from where I stand now, so much has changed. Trinity is no longer the great unknown, but my home, and it broke my heart to leave it after graduation. I added on to those friends that are a part of my heart and as close as family; it saddens me most to think of leaving them now, though I'm determined to not let graduation, or my wedding, be the end. I also took a big step outside of the country during the past four years, going to Kenya for three and a half months. Now that's outside my bubble! I learned and grew so much there, and came back even more passionate about teaching. I finished my dream of studying English Education, and am even more in love with the profession than four years ago, much in part due to my professors and hands-on experiences. I am so excited to go out and be a goofy, dorky, English teacher, touching the lives of students.
Which brings me to the next big step into the unknown that I now make four years later – to Sheboygan, Wisconsin. God is calling me out of my bubble – both Michigan and Trinity – to a new opportunity. I have been so blessed to have been offered a teaching job already, a couple days before I walked across the stage, as a middle school language arts teacher at Sheboygan Christian School. Christian education is where my heart is, and from all I hear the community in Sheboygan is incredible, so I'm growing more and more excited to take this step. But I won't pretend it isn't sad to move even further away from West Michigan, saying goodbye to not only my friends from college but also those whom I love most at my first, and true, home.
The move to Sheboygan also brings more big steps. I have to find an apartment and pay bills. I went through exit loan counseling and, to put it lightly, it'll be quite the undertaking for the next decade. I'll really be on my own – what I thought was “on my own” four years ago was not completely on my own. I have to be a real person now.
If that wasn't enough change, I'll be changing my name and status too. Yup, I'm getting married in January and it's to a man that four years ago I wouldn't have dreamed I'd marry. But God knew what he was doing, and prepared me in these past four years to be a wife and life-partner to the man whom He was also preparing for me. Kyle Koning is an incredible man of God and romantic through and through, and I eagerly anticipate beginning my life with him at the start of 2015.
Four years ago I pictured myself getting strapped into a roller coaster ride where I wasn't sure what twists and turns would come. That ride certainly had plenty of twists, turns, loops, and perhaps a little bit of screaming. I know I could not have painted the picture of my life as it is now when I was 18. But now I step off this ride, and instead of getting on another, I want to think of this next portion in a metaphor that fits where I've invested much of my time this past four years – the theatre. I stand once again not sure what twists will come in this next portion of my life. God is writing the play of my life, though, with all its plot twists, tragedy, and humor. I've been looking forward to this play for years and I'm already on the edge of my seat to see what will happen. Five, four, three, two, one... Lights up!
May 21, 2014
Just 3 days less than 4 years ago from today, I wrote about the roller coaster I was about to get strapped into. I mentioned having mixed feelings about stepping out of the comfort of the West Michigan bubble to go 133 miles away. I wrote about loving my friends and family and hurting to be separated from them. I wrote about a man I was at the time missing and alluded to the fact that I was certain I'd be with him forever. I wrote about how much I loved band with Mr. Looman, my favorite foods, my favorite smells, and my favorite places to be. Now, here I am on the other side of what was an unforeseen roller coaster ride of four years, graduated from college and having numerous big changes coming to my life in the coming year. This is the end of that roller coaster ride, and this is where I, Rebecca Anne Reed-to-be-Koning, stand now.
I stand in some ways the same as who I was four years ago. I still love popcorn with tons of butter, and have found in these four years that the best is actually air-popped where I can add my own butter and salt. I still favor Italian food above all other main-course dishes. I continue to love the smell of campfires and love going camping, which is probably part of the reason I was in love with my summer job as a camp counselor in 2012 and 2013 where campfires, the outdoors, a lake, and lots of sunshine were regular. Sunsets on the beach still hold precious memories for me and where I am most able to see God, although some sunrises have also joined that league. And I'm still a big fan of musicals, and have even been able to see some big-name musicals live in the past four years including The Lion King, Wicked, Les Miserables, and Newsies.
Similarly, I still love my family and friends. Though I inevitably lost touch with some peers from high school, I still remain friends with some of the closest friends from those years, those that could never leave my heart. Three of them are even in my bridal party. My immediate family hasn't changed in number, but just gotten older. Nick is a sophomore in college now, and as we grow older and more mature, we grow closer; I'm still a daddy's girl and age has only grown that relationship; my mom is still one of the first people I turn to to ask questions or talk about my life.
Yet, from where I stand now, so much has changed. Trinity is no longer the great unknown, but my home, and it broke my heart to leave it after graduation. I added on to those friends that are a part of my heart and as close as family; it saddens me most to think of leaving them now, though I'm determined to not let graduation, or my wedding, be the end. I also took a big step outside of the country during the past four years, going to Kenya for three and a half months. Now that's outside my bubble! I learned and grew so much there, and came back even more passionate about teaching. I finished my dream of studying English Education, and am even more in love with the profession than four years ago, much in part due to my professors and hands-on experiences. I am so excited to go out and be a goofy, dorky, English teacher, touching the lives of students.
Which brings me to the next big step into the unknown that I now make four years later – to Sheboygan, Wisconsin. God is calling me out of my bubble – both Michigan and Trinity – to a new opportunity. I have been so blessed to have been offered a teaching job already, a couple days before I walked across the stage, as a middle school language arts teacher at Sheboygan Christian School. Christian education is where my heart is, and from all I hear the community in Sheboygan is incredible, so I'm growing more and more excited to take this step. But I won't pretend it isn't sad to move even further away from West Michigan, saying goodbye to not only my friends from college but also those whom I love most at my first, and true, home.
The move to Sheboygan also brings more big steps. I have to find an apartment and pay bills. I went through exit loan counseling and, to put it lightly, it'll be quite the undertaking for the next decade. I'll really be on my own – what I thought was “on my own” four years ago was not completely on my own. I have to be a real person now.
If that wasn't enough change, I'll be changing my name and status too. Yup, I'm getting married in January and it's to a man that four years ago I wouldn't have dreamed I'd marry. But God knew what he was doing, and prepared me in these past four years to be a wife and life-partner to the man whom He was also preparing for me. Kyle Koning is an incredible man of God and romantic through and through, and I eagerly anticipate beginning my life with him at the start of 2015.
Four years ago I pictured myself getting strapped into a roller coaster ride where I wasn't sure what twists and turns would come. That ride certainly had plenty of twists, turns, loops, and perhaps a little bit of screaming. I know I could not have painted the picture of my life as it is now when I was 18. But now I step off this ride, and instead of getting on another, I want to think of this next portion in a metaphor that fits where I've invested much of my time this past four years – the theatre. I stand once again not sure what twists will come in this next portion of my life. God is writing the play of my life, though, with all its plot twists, tragedy, and humor. I've been looking forward to this play for years and I'm already on the edge of my seat to see what will happen. Five, four, three, two, one... Lights up!
Sunday, May 11, 2014
My Story is Just Beginning
**final student teaching**
“Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 3:13-15
This week was about endings at student teaching. My students each day saw more things come off the walls as my teacher begins packing the classroom. I taught them for the last time on Monday, then spent the rest of the week assisting as necessary, finishing grading, or just observing. I attended the declamation end-of-the-year party with some of the funniest and most energetic students. I turned my technology tools back in to the tech office. Then I walked out of the door for the last time on Friday afternoon. For this reason, I thought about starting out this post with 2 Timothy 4:7: “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.” I must say, this semester – and this college experience – may have seemed a bit like a marathon at times, or a battle, and I do feel a bit victorious.
Yet, it isn't the end in many aspects. Instead, I'm striving forward towards where God is calling me next. This placement has prepared me for that. The principals gave me great advice in a mock interview Thursday which I carried into my first interview on Friday. In that interview, I was asked to talk about what this student teaching has taught me – and it has certainly taught me a lot about management, about planning, about connecting to students, and about how to implement all the knowledge and passion inside of me into the classroom daily.
Thankfully, I've also had two other calls for interviews and more applications continue to be filled out. Even so, I'm struggling to rely on what God has planned. I'm fearful about the future, afraid that I won't get a job or that I won't have money. I've taken a hard hit not having any income for this semester and I don't know when I'll start making money again without confirmation of a position. God is breaking me, bringing me to a point where my next step is fully reliant on what He decides will happen. I just keep pressing on, though, filling out applications, preparing for interviews, and knowing that God will open the correct doors at the correct time and not a moment sooner.
“Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 3:13-15
This week was about endings at student teaching. My students each day saw more things come off the walls as my teacher begins packing the classroom. I taught them for the last time on Monday, then spent the rest of the week assisting as necessary, finishing grading, or just observing. I attended the declamation end-of-the-year party with some of the funniest and most energetic students. I turned my technology tools back in to the tech office. Then I walked out of the door for the last time on Friday afternoon. For this reason, I thought about starting out this post with 2 Timothy 4:7: “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.” I must say, this semester – and this college experience – may have seemed a bit like a marathon at times, or a battle, and I do feel a bit victorious.
Yet, it isn't the end in many aspects. Instead, I'm striving forward towards where God is calling me next. This placement has prepared me for that. The principals gave me great advice in a mock interview Thursday which I carried into my first interview on Friday. In that interview, I was asked to talk about what this student teaching has taught me – and it has certainly taught me a lot about management, about planning, about connecting to students, and about how to implement all the knowledge and passion inside of me into the classroom daily.
Thankfully, I've also had two other calls for interviews and more applications continue to be filled out. Even so, I'm struggling to rely on what God has planned. I'm fearful about the future, afraid that I won't get a job or that I won't have money. I've taken a hard hit not having any income for this semester and I don't know when I'll start making money again without confirmation of a position. God is breaking me, bringing me to a point where my next step is fully reliant on what He decides will happen. I just keep pressing on, though, filling out applications, preparing for interviews, and knowing that God will open the correct doors at the correct time and not a moment sooner.
Sunday, May 4, 2014
The final laps
**student teaching week 16**
Can it possibly be? Can this be my last week? Can it be that I find myself floating above the current of stress and anxiety, done with nearly everything for this semester?
Can I be going into my weeks of lasts here at Trinity?
Okay, the final line here is probably the saddest and I'm really trying not to dwell on it. The rest of it has me singing “hallelujah!”
Tomorrow marks my last day actually teaching in the classroom. Ms. Lynch has a day off, so I'm pretty much just teaching what she would be if she were there, and then Tuesday-Friday it's all her while I assist. One of my friends commented how I can say I came out of this experience alive, but I suppose I shouldn't speak too soon.
This past week was overall pretty average. I've found that in the structured instructional time I have a groove and usually feel in control of the situation. There are certain periods on certain days this isn't true, but overall it wasn't a bad week. The Dojo system works well for some kids, and others just continue what they were doing regardless. Fourth and fifth periods cause me the most issue, which is ironic since originally Ms. Lynch told me those were two classes that were her easiest to handle. I have students sending each other pictures the whole class period during fourth and students threatening to pee themselves or feuds breaking out during fifth. I'm not always perfect with how I handle these situations, but in my opinion I'm glad I experience this for the first time now while I can ask advice and support so when it comes up in my classroom later I'm ready.
Some are even acting up just to spite me. One kid told my cooperating teacher during his detention that he just wants me gone, so will break all of the rules until I leave. Since they were Ms. Lynch's rules (something she reminded him of), we'll see how that works out for him the rest of the semester. Others have expressed this same desire – to see me go – so some of the behavior stems from this. As the assistant principal told me, this attitude of wishing me gone might not last once I actually leave and I'll have kids trying to find me on Facebook.
One of the most impressive and exciting parts of teaching was the way that seventh hour is learning and responding. This was the class that my teacher warned me about, that she said was just awful all of first semester. Most of the kids in that class are either low academically or high behaviorally or both, so accommodations and differentiation is important in that class. However, this week I got some really thoughtful and insightful responses, more so than any of my other classes – including the class that is supposed to be accelerated. These students were really getting what we were reading, really thinking about it and analyzing it. It was great and I'm pretty thrilled about it.
Another impressive thing this week was the middle school's performance of The Little Mermaid (Jr.). Being a theatre geek, I was interested to see what they put on. It was fantastic, and some of my students blew me away with their talent. Seeing them in class I never would've guessed that some of them had that kind of singing voice or stage presence. I thoroughly enjoyed it and applaud all those involved with the scenery, the acting, the music, and more.
As mentioned, I turn over the reins this week Tuesday. We've finished Poe and I can't help but shake my head at how worried I was. This unit has been the best one yet. I've learned a lot from it, since I didn't know much Poe prior to this, and the kids were pretty hooked as well. The next unit my teacher is transitioning into is fairy tales and considering stereotypes. Though this would be fun to stick around and be a part of, I am definitely ready to bow out and move on to what these final weeks at Trinity will bring.
Since I've been so focused on student teaching, I was honestly a little taken aback when talking to my friends and realizing I'm already taking part in so many lasts here at Trinity, lasts of things that were important to my time here. Now that I have a weight off my shoulders, I am not letting these final days slip by unnoticed or unappreciated. This school has been amazing to me and while I look forward to what God brings in my future – a new marriage, a new job (interviews this week!), a new living situation – I will cherish everything I've experienced here and will not let go easily.
But before we get into all of that sentimental stuff... I do have one week left at school, and two at Trinity. It's time to carpe diem!
Can it possibly be? Can this be my last week? Can it be that I find myself floating above the current of stress and anxiety, done with nearly everything for this semester?
Can I be going into my weeks of lasts here at Trinity?
Okay, the final line here is probably the saddest and I'm really trying not to dwell on it. The rest of it has me singing “hallelujah!”
Tomorrow marks my last day actually teaching in the classroom. Ms. Lynch has a day off, so I'm pretty much just teaching what she would be if she were there, and then Tuesday-Friday it's all her while I assist. One of my friends commented how I can say I came out of this experience alive, but I suppose I shouldn't speak too soon.
This past week was overall pretty average. I've found that in the structured instructional time I have a groove and usually feel in control of the situation. There are certain periods on certain days this isn't true, but overall it wasn't a bad week. The Dojo system works well for some kids, and others just continue what they were doing regardless. Fourth and fifth periods cause me the most issue, which is ironic since originally Ms. Lynch told me those were two classes that were her easiest to handle. I have students sending each other pictures the whole class period during fourth and students threatening to pee themselves or feuds breaking out during fifth. I'm not always perfect with how I handle these situations, but in my opinion I'm glad I experience this for the first time now while I can ask advice and support so when it comes up in my classroom later I'm ready.
Some are even acting up just to spite me. One kid told my cooperating teacher during his detention that he just wants me gone, so will break all of the rules until I leave. Since they were Ms. Lynch's rules (something she reminded him of), we'll see how that works out for him the rest of the semester. Others have expressed this same desire – to see me go – so some of the behavior stems from this. As the assistant principal told me, this attitude of wishing me gone might not last once I actually leave and I'll have kids trying to find me on Facebook.
One of the most impressive and exciting parts of teaching was the way that seventh hour is learning and responding. This was the class that my teacher warned me about, that she said was just awful all of first semester. Most of the kids in that class are either low academically or high behaviorally or both, so accommodations and differentiation is important in that class. However, this week I got some really thoughtful and insightful responses, more so than any of my other classes – including the class that is supposed to be accelerated. These students were really getting what we were reading, really thinking about it and analyzing it. It was great and I'm pretty thrilled about it.
Another impressive thing this week was the middle school's performance of The Little Mermaid (Jr.). Being a theatre geek, I was interested to see what they put on. It was fantastic, and some of my students blew me away with their talent. Seeing them in class I never would've guessed that some of them had that kind of singing voice or stage presence. I thoroughly enjoyed it and applaud all those involved with the scenery, the acting, the music, and more.
As mentioned, I turn over the reins this week Tuesday. We've finished Poe and I can't help but shake my head at how worried I was. This unit has been the best one yet. I've learned a lot from it, since I didn't know much Poe prior to this, and the kids were pretty hooked as well. The next unit my teacher is transitioning into is fairy tales and considering stereotypes. Though this would be fun to stick around and be a part of, I am definitely ready to bow out and move on to what these final weeks at Trinity will bring.
Since I've been so focused on student teaching, I was honestly a little taken aback when talking to my friends and realizing I'm already taking part in so many lasts here at Trinity, lasts of things that were important to my time here. Now that I have a weight off my shoulders, I am not letting these final days slip by unnoticed or unappreciated. This school has been amazing to me and while I look forward to what God brings in my future – a new marriage, a new job (interviews this week!), a new living situation – I will cherish everything I've experienced here and will not let go easily.
But before we get into all of that sentimental stuff... I do have one week left at school, and two at Trinity. It's time to carpe diem!
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