Girls (and Boys) Gone Wild - Part II

“Mr. Lin, I know someone who didn’t have to follow any rules.  That person is Jesus Christ.”

I had been praying for opportunities to talk about my faith, but didn’t imagine it would be in this setting – in front of the entire 5^th grade in the middle of discussing the students’ behavior over the last few weeks of their elementary school careers.  So many times in my past I had let these chances pass me by because of worry about people’s perceptions of me and doubt in what I would say.  I was now worried about my job, since this was a public school setting.  At the same time, I was determined not to let the harbinger of my previous inaction win out this time.  Would I be able to successfully answer this question in a way that would not endanger my job security?

“I’m glad you brought that up.  From a Christian perspective – and I’m a Christian – Jesus Christ DID have to follow rules.  If you would like to hear my reason, you can stay here.  If not, you are free to go back to your homerooms.”

(some students go back to their rooms; the majority stay to hear my response)

“Christians believe that Jesus came to save all of us humans from our sins.  The consequence of our sins is…”

Hmm, how do I put this?  ‘Hell’ is something I was pretty sure I shouldn’t be saying in school.

 “…to go somewhere we really don’t want to go after we die.  Everyone understand?” 

(laughter from my students, who are hanging on my every word with rapt attention)

“Now, we all have different beliefs.  However, Christians – and me – believe that Jesus changed places with us and died in a very painful way so we wouldn’t have to experience that sort of pain.  Christians believe that this was His mission on Earth.”

“If you aren’t a Christian, you believe that Jesus was just any human, and all humans are required to follow rules so He’d be the same as the rest of us in that way.  However, if you’re a Christian, you can see that Jesus had to follow rules because before He died, He prayed to God, asking if there was any other way to complete his job here on Earth*.  In other words, he was following directions!”

As I dismissed the students to their respective classrooms, I was no longer worried about my job – God had not only given me the courage to speak, but also put words in my mouth that I am confident do not place my job at risk.  Instead, I found myself hoping that I was able to show that all people – even deity in earthly form – have rules to follow.  And, I hoped I responded in a way that was represented my faith well.  After all, as a Christian, “We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making an appeal through us.” (2 Corinthians 5:20a)

Thank you, God, for answering my prayer for opportunity - even if it wasn't in a way that I expected.  I hope those that know me see me as a good reflection of You, despite my many imperfections.

*Then Jesus went with them to a place called Gethsemane, and he said to his disciples, “Sit here, while I go over there and pray.” And taking with him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, he began to be sorrowful and troubled. Then he said to them, “My soul is very sorrowful, even to death; remain here, and watch^[d] with me.” And going a little farther he fell on his face and prayed, saying, “My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will.” And he came to the disciples and found them sleeping. And he said to Peter, “So, could you not watch with me one hour? Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.” Again, for the second time, he went away and prayed, “My Father, if this cannot pass unless I drink it, your will be done.”  ~ Matthew 26: 36-42

Girls (and Boys) Gone Wild!!!

Today’s Haiku:

 

Family Life Metaphysics

FLE Tangent

Far Beyond Reproduction

What would Jesus Do?

Summer is just around the corner, and in elementary schools across America right now, the same thing is happening: the kids have lost their minds.  This is especially true in the 5^th grade at my school, where the students are about the complete their elementary school careers.

Fellow 5^th grade teacher:  “Mr. Lin, are your kids acting crazy also?”

Mr. Lin:  “Whew, I thought it might have been just my kids.  Yeah, they’re insane right now. It’s like they’ve forgotten how to listen to directions.”

Yes, it was time to have a discussion with the kids.  No, not just my kids; all 96 5^th graders at my elementary school needed a talking to.  They needed to understand they had to pass the most important SOL they would ever take: the “Following Directions” SOL.  At lunch on Friday, we made a team decision to gather the students together so we could all make it through the last few days of school while accomplishing all we needed to get done… and, just as importantly, keeping all of our respective sanities intact.

Student A (calling out):  “Why are we here?”

Student B: “Yeah, are we in trouble?”

Student C: “Are we having Family Life?”

Since we had been separating the boys and girls for FLE, a buzz went through the crowd.

Mr. Lin:  “Yup, we’re having Family Life right now.”

Student D: “WHAT?!”

Student E, F, and G (together): “AHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!”

Mr. Lin (holding up hand to silent the raucous crowd): “We’ve discussed this before; here at our school, we’re a family.  And, we’re doing life together.  So yes, we’re having a Family Life discussion right now.”

We began on to discuss our various roles – teacher, student, adult, and child.  In the end, the teachers broke down the expectations:  as students, they are expected to be able to follow directions that are there to protect them and help them achieve their goals. 

Mr. Lin:  “Following directions is the easiest – and most important – SOL that you will take in your lives.  It’s a skill that you will utilize every day of your lives, no matter who you are.  Take a moment and think; who doesn’t have to follow rules?”

Dozens of hands went up, and with each person they named, the students received a greater understanding that no person is exempt from following directions.  One by one they began to realize that all of us – even the President – had rules to follow.  Then, a clever student brought up a person who caused me to consider how I would answer for a moment.  Not because I didn’t have an answer; rather, it was because I wanted to be careful about how I would answer him without jeopardizing my career in public education:

“Mr. Lin, I know someone who didn’t have to follow any rules.  That person is Jesus Christ.”

In a moment that seemed like eternity in my head, I considered how to answer this question, or even if I should.  Should meet this head on, or should I run from this divine appointment?  

“The wicked man flees though no one pursues, but the righteous are as bold as a lion.” – Proverbs 28:1

To be continued…

Sex is a Pair of Ducks

Paradox: any person, thing, or situation exhibiting an apparently contradictory nature

The Question

“If two babies have sex, will they make a mini-baby?”

Fact: This was an actual question I received when teaching Family Life yesterday. 
Fact: Teachers across America probably have thought this same thought at one time or another:

“Whoa, these kids know WAYYY too much about sex.”

But is this really true?

The Future

According to the older generations in any generation, our country’s moral fiber has been going down the tubes since the beginning of time.  It’s as if pre-marital sex, drugs, and STDs didn’t exist in each previous generation.  Clearly this isn’t true… and it’s not as if these things are far more rampant in this day and age.  What IS true is the greater acceptance of sex.  Also, it’s far easier for us – children and adults alike – to access media containing sexual content and images.  I mean, turn on a TV and most likely you’ll see an advertisement or situation in a show that contains sexual innuendo or clothing that reveals more than what you would be acceptable in a professional work environment.

The Paradox

Since kids are exposed to sex so early, most know far too much about sex.  However, any teacher that has taught Sex Ed will tell you that these same children really know very little.  As much as adults constantly think that our future generation is in trouble because of what the media deems to be morally acceptable, we are letting our children get the vast majority of their information about sex through this very source.  Parents don’t teach their kids about sex, and for the small minority that do, it probably isn’t talked about in the detail that it should.  As a result, kids see sex through the media, and for a few hours per week they only learn about the joys and glamour of sex, not about the responsibilities and the dangers.  In other words, they know too much, yet far too little.  As a teacher, I see this with ease through their questions.  Questions like,

 

 "Why do people make noise during sex?  Does it hurt?"

“How long do you have to have sex for to get a girl pregnant?”

and,

“How do condoms work?”

                         

The Haikus

Today’s entries all reflect the knowledge that kids actually have on the subject of sex.  Thanks to those that submitted – even the ones that I didn’t publish.  Keep ‘em coming!

Paradox

Paradoxical

Kids today know far too much

Yet know too little

Perfectly Imperfect

How do condoms work?

Like Mutumbo blocking shots:

Great, not perfect D

Version 2.0

What about the stork?

I liked that version better.

It’s way less messy

If and when I become a parent, I hope I will have the courage to talk to my kids openly about sex. Hopefully these conversations will happen regularly, because 15 minutes of discussion cannot possibly protect them from hours upon hours of the world’s influence.

When Sex and Poetry Mix

The time of the year after SOL testing is a fantastic time of year.  Kids are free to be kids, and teachers and students alike can turn their attention to more interesting matters, such as poetry and everyone’s favorite subject… Family Life Education!  In the spirit of cross-curricular learning, perhaps some poetry ABOUT F.L.E. is in order.  Today’s style is the Haiku:

Sex Ed. 101

Penis, Vagina

Together makes a baby

Sex Ed lesson, done.

 Questions

F.L.E. Question:

Can a vagina clog up?

Just the iceberg's tip

Hear and Repeat

What does a child hear?

“Testes produce semen,” yet

Mom, I learned 'bout balls

Submit your own entries at johnnyteacherblog.gmail.com!  I’ll post as many as I can as long as they are (mostly) appropriate. 

News Flash: Students S.O.L. in Virginia

Isn't it Ironic (non-Alanis Morrissette version)

Irony – the use of words to convey a meaning that is the opposite of its literal meaning.

I was sitting in my small group (a group of guys from church) last week and I asked my buddies to pray for my students because they would be taking the S.O.L. tests in the upcoming days. While I was going over specifics of what to pray for, my buddy stopped me in the middle of a sentence.

“SOLs? That’s a pretty interesting name for the test. What exactly does that stand for?”

For those of you that don’t know, the SOLs are Virginia’s Standards of Learning. They are the state’s version of standardized testing for students from 3^rd grade until 12^thgrade. It is meant to give us a tangible and effective way of evaluating students, teachers and schools so that Virginia – and, as an extension, our nation – makes adequate progress. I'd say it's pretty ironic we named these tests "S.O.L."

I believe in standardized testing like I believe in Satan –it’s the cause of everything evil. As humans, we are S.O.L. with the existence of evil, and as teachers we are S.O.L.with the existence of standardized tests. OK, maybe I’m exaggerating just a bit. I don’t argue that standardized tests have a place in our educational system. They give us a quantitative means to look at students and monitor them. They can help us understand deficiencies and strengths as well as individual areas to work on with individual students. However, where I am not in agreement is the extent to which we rely on testing to determine the success of a school, the abilities of a teacher, or the comprehension of a child. In today’s educational world, pass rates are the be all and end all. Students look at year-end testing as the most important day of the year. Parents look at testing data to determine if a school is good or not. Teachers pray for high scores to ensure job security. Administrators look at scores to determine the effectiveness of a teacher. Superintendents look at pass rates to see if a school is making enough progress each year.

Uniquely and Wonderfully Made

Children – like all of us – are each intricately woven beings who are uniquely and wonderfully made. Shouldn’t they be assessed as a sum product of the parts, not just a snapshot of what they know? Any teacher worth their weight will tell you that standardized tests only give you only a small glimpse of what a student knows. In other words, standardized tests don’t accurately measure the progress of a child, nor does it show us their reasoning skills and thought process – the very aspect of humanity that sets us apart from the rest of the living world. Only individual teachers – those who work day in and day out with these precious children – can measure these things with any level of accuracy. Besides, test data never accounts for test anxiety, good days and bad days, or for good and bad testing environments. Personally, I’ve had students who have barely passed – or even failed – the math SOL who I know have a far superior understanding of math concepts and can apply these skills in new ways than students who have passed with flying colors. This begs the question,

“If working with a child regularly is the best way to understand and gauge their development, why is our judgment of students, teachers, and schools based almost exclusively on standardized test data?”

The optimistic answer is,

“Testing data is the one constant that all schools have.”

The pessimistic answer is,

“Those that can, do. Those that can’t, teach.”

This infers that teachers are barely capable people; therefore they can’t be trusted to assess children. Whichever camp you are in, all of our opinions are based on data which gives us a picture that is blurry at best. Shouldn’t we be relying on multiple sources of data when it comes to our children?

An Unlikely Source

Entertainment, competition, excitement… there is a lot to like about professional sports. Perhaps one additional thing we can admire about sports teams is the way they evaluate players when they are looking to graduate from the ranks of amateur athletics to being paid professionals. Perhaps it’s because there is so much money at stake when it comes to the industry, but pro sports take every measure possible not to make mistakes when deciding what players they should pick to be on their teams. Multiple people go and watch them perform live to get as many different opinions as possible. Then, separate people watch these same performances on film. They pause, rewind, and fast forward so they can see – frame by frame –every aspect of the subject’s performance. Throw in a battery of intellectual, physical, and psychological tests and you’re still missing a crucial element: what family, friends, and coaches say about the player.

The organizations that spend the most time and effort evaluating human beings include the NFL, MLB, NBA, NHL, and FIFA. They have the evaluation of human beings down to a science because they are multi-billion dollar industries and there is a lot riding on their ability to judge people. When there is a lot at stake, many forms of evaluation are utilized, and the subjective opinions of experts are taken into account in order to form an opinion on a person that is as accurate as possible. I applaud these organizations for the effort they make to truly gauge an individual.

There is much more at stake when it comes to education than entertainment, excitement, and wealth. Not only is the future of our children at stake, but in their hands is also the future of our country, our world. But, because we can’t quantify the importance and value of education with dollars, instead we have turned to standardized testing as the be all and end all and minimize the importance of all other aspects of assessing children, teachers and schools. In the end, not only are the students S.O.L., but all of us are also – children, adults, teachers, parents, and Americans alike.

There’s Something in the Water…

'Tis the Season...

In my life, it is a season of rebirth.  Well, actually it’s a season of birth.  Literally.  First it was Martha, followed by Teresa.  Then Amy had her baby.  Then Janeene, followed by the other Amy, Maya, Chris, and even Mark (well, his wife) – all with newborns.  As of this moment, Stacy, Anna, and Naomi are pregnant – and who knows who else?  What’s going on at my school?!?

 

Peer Pressure

With everyone bringing new bundles of joy into their lives, I decided to bend to peer pressure.  On a Thursday night two weeks ago, I went down to a great local joint.  I chit-chatted with a few of the attractive girls that were there, and was lucky enough to take one of the cutest young things I had ever met home with me that night.  That’s right… I adopted a dog from the local animal shelter!  This is a G-rated blog… what did you think happened??

The View from the Soapbox

I’m not a parent.  Therefore, although there are 48 students that I teach, I really can’t speak to the joys and tribulations of parenthood.  I can only stand on my soap box as a teacher and judge them based on how their children’s behavior and work habits in school.  If a kid acts up constantly, falls asleep in class, rarely does homework, or doesn’t give their best effort, that’s because of bad parenting, right?  I mean, how hard is it to go home and spend time with your kids taking interest in their lives, disciplining them, and reinforcing the importance of school?

Full Circle

I want to be a responsible parent to my dog.  As I was rushing home the other day to walk my dog, it hit me.  That day, I sheepishly went into my team leader and mentor’s room and asked if it would be ok if I went home early to take my dog out.  I was worried she would think I wasn’t working hard enough.

Me (sheepishly): “Hey I need to run and take Butterball for a walk.  I promise I’m not slacking… I’ll be working from home afterwards.”

Ms. S.: “What?  You don’t need to explain anything!  You get in early every day, and I KNOW you’re not a slacker.  In fact, don’t bring anything home with you!”

I often judge parents of the students at my school.  In fact, I have often judged all sorts of people – former co-workers, friends, and strangers alike.  I make snap judgments based on snapshot of their lives without knowing the full story.  It might have been (back when I worked in corporate America ) someone on my sales team leaving early that I judged as lazy.  Or, it might have been that parent who never spends time with their kids.  But… how would a parent be a responsible parent to their children without leaving at a reasonable hour from work?  And, how hard is it for a single parent working to support AND raise his/her children to spend enough quality time with each of them?  These are opposing forces which create a conflict of interest in which a very difficult decision must be made on almost a daily basis.  Being a parent sure isn’t easy!

I have a new goal for how to be a better teacher - to be more like my saint of a mentor, who, like me, desires to be like the best teacher of all:

 

“Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven.” – Luke 6:37

An Afternoon in the Life of a Woman

Man Card: (noun) - The invisible, yet real card that men carry which proves we are truly men.  A guy’s man card can be taken by another man when he says or does something decidedly un-manly.  Reasons for getting your man card revoked include ordering a cosmo (or any other ‘girly’ drink) at a bar, watching “The Vow” without direct coercion from your girlfriend, asking for directions, and crying for any other reason than when Goose dies in ‘Top Gun.’ 

The list of reasons for getting your man card taken are not limited to the above list, and very rarely does a guy hand in his man card on his own.  However, in a moment of weakness on Monday afternoon, I voluntarily (and temporarily) surrendered my man card and in the process, got a glimpse into the life of woman.  This is a (mostly) true account of the events of that frightful day.

The Female Greeting Dance

A few minutes after arriving on Monday, I was speaking with a colleague when another teacher came in.

“Wow, Stephanie, your hair looks great!”

“Thanks, I went to a new hair salon on Saturday.  I’m glad you like it!”

“Where did you go? It looks fantastic.”

I work in an environment dominated by the female species.  In the wild, I call encounters such as these the “Female Greeting Dance.”  It usually consists of women seeing each other and gushing about:

a)         A new hair style

b)         The outfit they are wearing

c)         Shoes

d)         Jewelry

e)         Any combination of the above and how it matches so well

“Well,” I thought to myself, “When in Rome…”

I turned to my friend Mark, the P.E. teacher, who had just come in and was filling up his coffee cup.

“Mark, oh my gosh!  Did you just get new shorts?  They look fantastic!”

Mark caught on immediately.

“Why yes, Johnny, I did.  I’m glad you noticed!”

“Did you do something different with your beard too?  It looks so nice.  You must have gotten a new kind of razor,” I continued.

Mark tilted his head slightly to the side, scratched his beard lovingly and said,  

 “Yes, it’s springtime now so I thought a lighter beard would be more seasonal. I’m SOOO glad you noticed!”

The two female teachers waited patiently for our mockery to end.

“You’re boys.  You have no idea what it’s like to be a girl.  You just wouldn’t understand…”

Mark and I laughed and left the office, ready to start our days.  Little did I know that in a few short hours I would get a glimpse into the life of a woman, as I would voluntarily agree to turn in my man card for a few hours after school was over.

Where No Man Has Gone Before

April 30^th carries much historical significance for our country. 199 years ago, the United States purchased the Louisiana Territory from France, effectively doubling the size of our nation.  Also on April 30, Hawaii officially became a U.S. territory – this was in 1900.  April 30 also happens to be the date which marks the time man went where no man had gone before.  No, we aren’t talking about Neil Armstrong going to the moon.  After school on the afternoon of April 30, 2012 – perhaps for the first time ever – a man (me) helped to plan a bridal shower.  The following is the transcript of the discussion by the Bridal Shower Task Force:

Mission Commander:  “We have to decide when to commence this operation.  The optimal choices seem to be on either 16 May 2012 or 23 May 2012.  I’m going to make a command decision to make it on 23 May.”

Task Force Member 1:  “Roger that.  I’ll bring drinks. Who’s gonna take care of food?”

(Silence)

Task Force Member 2:  “I’ll get Chris to pick up all the expensive crap.  Sucks for him that he’s not here.”

(Laughter)

Task Force Member 3:  “I’ll be in charge of decorations.  The theme will be ‘The Baltimore Ravens’ because she likes purple.”

Mission Commander:  “We don’t need decorations because…. This is a fictional account of what would happen if men planned a bridal shower.”

That’s right; this is not what actually happened; it’s what MIGHT happen if men were in charge of bridal showers.  Instead, the meeting was filled with polite discussion on convenient dates, flowers, tablecloths, color scheme, food, and gifts – all of which took into account the tastes and thoughts of the bride-to-be.  Unfortunately, my main contribution – that it should be a Baltimore Ravens theme – got shot down.  I have no idea why – the bride’s favorite color IS purple, she’s from Maryland, and really, is there a girlier team than the Ravens?  Just kidding, Ray Lewis.  Please don’t kill me. 

In the process of getting a nacho bar approved as part of the food spread, I also noted some very distinguishing differences between men and women.  For us men,

1)                  It’s funny – not inconsiderate – to assign unwanted jobs to people that aren’t present. 

2)                  A party does not need decorations.

3)                  The only party that needs a theme is the Super Bowl party. 

4)                  A party only needs food and drinks.  Actually, just drinks.  If we want food, we invite girls.

5)                  The only people that you buy presents for are girlfriends and relatives.

6)                  The only time you buy presents are Christmas and birthdays – and only if they live within a 10 minute drive.  None of this giving baby shower gifts, bridal shower gifts, bachelorette gifts, having a bad day gifts, or it’s my 3^rd month at my job gifts. 

I also saw how a group of women got together to carefully plan a party meant to celebrate an important event in one of their friends’ lives.  Every detail was discussed and every angle considered, and every decision made with sincere thought and consideration about what the bride – our dear friend – would like.  Above all, everyone was more than happy to help out to make sure no one was overburdened with cost or the work involved.  I saw firsthand how women are able to celebrate their friends in better ways than men (or maybe just I) can. 

Hugs, compliments, gift giving, and taking time to plan out a party to celebrate loved ones – these are things that men just don’t do.  And while we do demonstrate our friendship in really awesome and deeply moving ways, it took an afternoon in the life of a woman to also see the endearing nature of how the fairer sex considers and celebrates their friends. 

It Takes a Rocket Scientist to Know the Main Idea

 In December, I wrote in my posting that I was working on a special project. What was this project?  I was writing an article for a magazine.  Since pride can be a major weakness of mine, I didn't tell too many people about this.  Imagine if I sent the article in and it didn't get published? Well, in this April's issue of Inheritance Magazine... guess what?  It was published!

If you haven't checked it out yet, you can click on the link... it's a fantastic faith-based magazine that has a focus on developing the faith and identities of Asian American Christians and on mobilizing them for action in their communities.  It's an honor to have been published by them, and my article is linked here.  

Anyhow, check out the magazine and my article, which is titled, "It Takes a Rocket Scientist to Know the Main Idea".  The graphics are fantastic... if only I had Ms. Lee to illustrate all of my posts!

Opportunity Cost, Opportunity Lost

Opportunity Cost:  The cost of an alternative that must be forgone in order to pursue a certain action. Put another way, the benefits you could have received by taking an alternative action.

In elementary school, students build fundamental skills that they will use for the rest of their lives.  As a teacher, I want my students to understand that what they learn in my class is not applied only in my classroom.  Sometimes, the lessons have implications that go far beyond the scope of academia.  One such lesson is the lesson of opportunity cost, a 3^rd grade learning objective that found its way into a road trip I took over my Spring break.

Southern food is good for the soul so two weeks ago, my buddy Jeff and I hopped in my car and headed south to Athens and Atlanta.  Then, we drove east until the map turned blue – to Charleston, SC – where the beauty of the sun-kissed water is only eclipsed by the radiant southern belles that scatter the sand-swept landscape. There’s just something therapeutic about a road trip – and like the food we ate along the way, road trips are always good for the soul.  And, they’re always good for strange roadside sightings.  As we were heading back home, Jeff and I both did a double-take when we saw the bumper sticker on the back of a car which was driven by a young woman who looked to be in her early 20s. 

Me:  “Did you see that?”

Jeff:  “Did that bumper sticker say what I think it said?”

Me:  “I wonder if she lost a bet…”

Jeff:  “Slow down, I want to take a picture.  This is a must tweet.”

Me:  “I bet she gets out of a lot of speeding tickets!”

Unfortunately, the car with the bumper sticker that said “I (heart) Richard” (except, it wasn’t ‘Richard’ – but this is a PG blog so I’ll let you readers deduce what was actually written) was far in my rear view mirror by that time.  At that moment, we had a decision to make: was disrupting our travel time worth having a tweet that was sure to give our buddies a good laugh? 

A difficult decision but… as much as we wanted to, the opportunity cost of getting home later than we wanted was too much to give up.

When I look around my classroom, I see 24 children that have an opportunity that many of their parents either didn’t have, or didn’t capitalize on.  These faces look at me each morning with bright eyes full of life, lives full of hope, and hope for a future that is full of joy and success.  This future is within their grasp… if only they had the foresight that we as teachers have.  Therefore, I ride my students hard.  I expect more from them than they think they can give.  I make different tests for different students to challenge them individually because, gosh darn it, if you’re going to get an ‘A’ in my class, you better believe you’ve earned it.  I think about what my friends would think if they saw me in the classroom, and I’d guess many of them would think I’m pretty mean. 

“They’re only kids!” they might say.  “They have the rest of their lives to work hard.”

This is exactly why I’m tough on my students and I push them to excel.  The opportunity cost of what they are giving up if they don’t learn the fundamental skills of perseverance and hard work is worth far more than the opportunity given up to get home a little sooner on a road trip.  I’m hard on my students because,

Their opportunity cost is their opportunity, lost.

Like most teachers, I’d rather be the “mean, strict teacher” than the “nice, cool teacher.”  This has been one of the most important lessons I’ve learned about teaching. Like many important lessons that I’ve learned in life, this lesson has roots in a book that contains far more wisdom than any earthly person:

“Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as his children. For what children are not disciplined by their father?  No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest....” (Hebrews 12:7, 11a – NIV)

In other words,

“God is educating you; that's why you must never drop out. He's treating you as dear children. This trouble you're in isn't punishment; it's training, the normal experience of children. At the time, discipline isn't much fun. It always feels like it's going against the grain. Later, of course, it pays off handsomely…” (Hebrews 12:7, 11a – The Message)

Realization:  God is tough on me because He loves me and it’s vital that I mature.  And I, like my students, am often blind to the importance of not persevering through the obstacles in my life.  If only I could be in God’s eyes what I want my students to be in my eyes.  Then, my OWN opportunity cost would not be my opportunity, lost.

Spring Break!!!

I’ve been on break for over a week and I’m loving life. Aside from going on a road trip over the weekend (more on that in a separate post), I’ve gotten a chance to immerse myself in my other hobbies – climbing, baseball, and… FOOD!!! 

I love to eat.  And, over the past few years I have come to love cooking just as much as eating.  Only, I’m not REALLY a chef.  For the most part, I really don’t know what I’m doing... and in that regard, it’s almost like teaching.  I might go in with an idea of what I want the end result to be, but how I get there is dependant on:

1)      A lot of adapting to what resources (or ingredients) I have;

2)      Improvisation; and

3)      What I can pull out of my imagination.  

Aside from the art of teaching, cooking is my only foray into the creative sciences.  This is something that’s abundantly clear if you’ve ever seen any of the posters I’ve attempted to design for my classroom or watched as I’ve drawn out pictures to help students visualize math problems.  It’s also obvious to anyone that has seen me cook.  I call what I do in the kitchen ‘gangster gourmet.’  I look in the pantry/fridge to see what’s there, and improvise to come up with something that is (hopefully) edible. 

Out of necessity – starvation is a really bad way to go out - I’ve gotten better at cooking over the last 10+ years of bachelorhood.  This is very fortuitous to those that I’ve made things for during the past week.  My culinary adventures this past week thus far include:

1)      Cheddarburger supermelt with rosemary smashed potatoes

2)      Spinach and romano orzo with sundried tomatoes

3)      Mushroom, caramelized onion, spinach, and bacon strata

4)      Yogurt served with grilled bread triangles (buttered and covered with powdered sugar) and strawberry-banana compote.  I still have no idea what to call this, but I needed to get rid of the things in my fridge that were gonna spoil when I was gone.

5)      Steak fajitas

6)      And, today’s lunch…

Seafood-mushroom risotto served with sauvignon blanc.

Now if only my lessons – and my students – can come out as successfully as this!!!