13 Hours of Rain

I'm done. No more teaching for a while. Friday was my last day. Yet, it felt strange. Almost anticlimactic . I sat through a professional development session out of obligation; listened to Administration speak about registration procedures for a second semester that I will not be part of; received a "mention" in regards to my maternity leave; made a solo trip out for some Japanese fast-food; and spent the remainder of the afternoon clearing out personal items from my classroom. A few colleagues stopped to say goodbye and good luck. I handed in my keys and walked out the doors neither happy or sad. Just neutral. Whatever. Maybe I'll see you all later. Maybe not. Only God knows. Interestingly enough, out of all the schools that I have taught at, this was the one I was the least attached to. Why? A combination of factors are to blame. The school was quite large and it was hard to make personal connections with staff. My classroom was located in an isolated section of the...

A new year has arrived. An entire decade has past. The last ten years have been filled with many adventures and numerous changes. Teaching overseas. Completing graduate studies. Beginning a new chapter in my career. Falling in love and getting married. Partnering in bringing a new life into this world. I am grateful for God's gracious blessings in my life. As I stand at the beginning of a New Year, I am poised for new changes. Transitioning from full-time teacher to full-time homemaker. Welcoming another life into our little family. Granting myself grace and time to return to my pre -pregnancy form. Anticipating new employment for my husband. Possibly moving locations to support my husband's career. All these thoughts fill me with hope, excitement, and anxiety. Yet, I am desiring more than the natural life changes that I will encounter. I pray for a deeper relationship with my Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. In a way, I have plateaued in my spiritual growth. I understand that su...

When the builders laid the foundation of the temple of the LORD, the priests in their vestments and with trumpets, and the Levites (the sons of Asaph ) with cymbals, took their places to praise the LORD, as prescribed by David king of Israel. With praise and thanksgiving they sang to the LORD : "He is good; his love to Israel endures forever."And all the people gave a great shout of praise to the LORD, because the foundation of the house of the LORD was laid. But many of the older priests and Levites and family heads, who had seen the former temple, wept aloud when they saw the foundation of this temple being laid, while many others shouted for joy. No one could distinguish the sound of the shouts of joy from the sound of weeping, because the people made so much noise. And the sound was heard far away. ~Ezra 3:10-13~ A temple destroyed. Many family and friends lost in war. Jews scattered and carried off in chains. Then, a miracle. A pagan king decrees a return to the homela...

Yesterday I went to school for the last time in 2009. Students were a bit crazy. I had all these fantastic plans on how to make the day memorable for my students. For my homeroom of only 15 kids, I bought donuts and put together little "gifts" that consisted of some stationary, chocolates, and candy. They were semi-grateful, in the beginning anyway. Then I dared to do a math game entitled "Equation Persuasion". What a disaster! I guess I was supposed to plan some big party and provided them with some mindless entertainment in the form of a movie. In the end, it wouldn't have matter. Some kids would have claimed that the party was lame and the movie was stupid . At one point, one student asked, "Where's my card?" I retorted back with, "Where's mine?" No response. When the bell finally rang, a few kids thanked me for the donuts. At least someone appreciated the trouble I went through. Sadly, this seems to be the norm. The students I hav...

Portfolios to mark. Projects to grade. Exam to create. New unit to plan. Parent/Teacher phone calls to make. TI Inspire software to learn. Laundry to wash. Budget to balance. Papers to file. Family to visit. Christmas shopping to do. Tree to decorate. Parent a daughter. Be a good wife. Foster a growing fetus. Get enough sleep. Eat healthy. Exercise - what exercise? Somehow meet with God. Post the 100th time. I'm overwhelmed...

I should be marking right now. I have piles of exams on my desk and a shelf full of math portfolios to grade. But I'm not motivated. Plus I will not get them done in the next twenty minutes. Why bother? I'll blog instead. After school, our staff was asked to convene in our cafeteria for a short meeting. At the end of it, we celebrated the retirement of a colleague. Several individuals came up and spoke glowingly about this person. Thirty years of teaching. A leader in creative instructional methods. Challenged students to go beyond the status quo. Loved by staff and students alike. These were some of the many inspiring qualities of this educator. Got me wondering. My teaching career at my current school hasn't been filled with many glowing accolades. I love to teach. It is one of my passions. And I believe I do a pretty good job at it. But I am missing that personal connection with students and teachers. I do not coach. My extra-curricular involvement has been minimal due t...

She walks around the room In her adorable way With Piggy tucked under her arm And thumb in mouth. She discards her bedtime friend And grasps a block. "More?" she asks. "Yes," I respond. We create a tower together. Thoughout the morning Activities ebb and flow, I make a note of her discoveries. Star is her favorite shape. Everything is intially green. Her stuffed toys have names. The alphabet is fascinating, Especially B, M, L, W, & Y. Strawberries and grapes are yummy. Crackers are on the top shelf. Milk has a Hindi name too. Daddy and Mom are in her life. Naps are welcomed. We bake muffins together, Both in aprons. Her, mixing and dumping. Me, measuring and reading. Her, placing paper liners. Me, pouring the batter. We eat the fruit of our labor. She is "Daddy's Little Girl" for the week. But mine for this morning.