Spending a Saturday in the classroom, I have a feeling, is going to become a typical occurrence. Today, while in the classroom on the weekend, I opened my curriculum closet only to find a true blessing: an electric pencil sharpener. Now to some, an electric pencil sharpener is nothing special. However, to me and the other two elementary school teachers, this sharpener is a blessing. You see, the children here are not allowed to have hand-held pencil sharpeners, as they are known to remove the razors and use them to penetrate the skin of their forearms or legs. Therefore, as teachers, we have to sharpen all the pencils from the day ourselves. Jessica, the second grade teacher, had an electric one that was more than serving the purpose. To our great sadness though, it passed on the other day. Yes, it died. Deceased. Gone. Back to hand-held sharpeners and blistering fingers. I was debating buying one myself when I go to Wal-mart tomorrow. God thought differently. That electric pencil sharpener sat second shelf from the top of my closet, never before seen, even as I’ve opened that closet dozens of times. I truly believe He placed it there, just as a little blessing. As a little reminder, “I will provide. No need to worry.”
School has been in session now for two and a half weeks. I still cannot believe at times that I am a real teacher! I came to the realization just a mere three days ago that I will not be going back to NAU next week when it starts! I will no longer face the joys of “move-in weekend.” I will never have to see another syllabus… well, at least until the day when God pulls me back in to get my masters. I came to the realization that, for the first time in seventeen years, school is over for me! Now I’m the one in charge. I choose what happens at school. I’m the authority. It’s kind of a neat position to be in. I feel like an adult.
My class has grown to eight students. I now have six girls and two boys. Four are in the third grade and the other four are in the fourth grade. I am the only teacher leading up two grades at once. The days stay busy, switching back and forth between the two groups, and pass quickly. I’ve finally gotten into the groove of things. We still meet for prayer every morning at 7:30, which is a nice way to focus our minds on the reason we are here. I’ve been blessed with the friendships I have developed and the relationships that are being built with my students.
No doubt about it though, this week was the turning point. My class has finally become comfortable, which is good and bad. They began to test me. They began to push my buttons and see how far I will go. I’ve gotten curse words out of two of the girls, resulting in the running of laps. I’ve received whining, which results in staying after class. I am doing my best, as a young first-year teacher, to stand my ground. No, I’m not quite as intimidating as some of the men on this campus, but I’m trying to hold up the fort, while leading the troops forward as well.
My relationships with the staff members have been in bloom. The other night I sat down to an hour long dinner and conversation with Diane. It began in the dinner line, where at some point I mentioned my desire to settle down in Colorado some day. Diane then informed me that she and her husband were from Colorado! I mentioned that I would be going to Denver for Thanksgiving and was greatly encouraged to ride along with her and her husband, as their destination will be the same. We then talked about our common interests. She shared with me the story of how God led her and her husband together. She was going to purchase a new vehicle and the car dealership would not drop to her desired price. She then went to another dealership down the road. There she not only found a new car, but a husband as well. God is so good! One of my favorite parts of being here with every staff member being older than myself, is hearing the stories. It’s cool to see that God worked just as powerfully fifty years ago as He is today! I also feel as if I am being “adopted” by so many people out here, inviting me to go places, checking up on me, and the such.
Last weekend I got the opportunity to go home and relax. I went to stay with Jenn in Flagstaff. We spent the weekend hanging out with Kurtis and John, picking berries in Sedona, eating yummy food, and swimming in John’s pool! We even went on a “girl’s night” Saturday night and saw a movie at Harkins, “Eat, Pray, Love”. It was so nice to have a date with one of my best friends. It really takes all the worries of the world off of your shoulders to get away. I came back refreshed and prepared for another week.
This past week Dave, the eighth grade teacher, showed me the four-mile bike trail around Sun Valley and Ray joined us, as we went around it twice. Our conversations revolved around how incredibly awesome our God is, about how He is not just a religion, but a working Father in our lives. We shared our stories, our hopes, and our dreams. The three of us peddled those eight miles at sunset with the peace of God amongst us. It was powerful and humbling as I learned more about my creator from those two.
Overall, God is alive and active. It is so great to just pause and watch His workings in the world around us. Sometimes we just need to take a breath and spend an hour at dinner in conversation with an older woman of God, to go on an eight-mile bike ride at sunset, and to praise God for each new day He blesses us with, each breath He supplies us with.
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