Today was a hard day. As I parked my car in the parking lot at school, I thought about all the challenging kids that are coming up to me for the bulk of my school day next year. I steeled myself against the thought by telling myself I'd pray for them all summer and with my teaching partner, we could take on anything. Later that day, my teaching partner, and best friend in the area, announced to our team she will be leaving next year. It was a crushing weight to think about the task that lies ahead. Her absence leaves me next in line for the math director spot which means taking on more responsibilities most likely, besides training a new partner in our math program. I came home with my mind still numb trying to understand what losing my coworker will make next year will look like. I couldn't start working on anything that required thinking so I went out into the yard and started pulling weeds. There are always plenty of those. The work is never ending and requires very little thinking. Once I got outside, I pleaded with God to speak to me. I asked Him to give me something for to encourage me. I continued along my path of weeding and finally stood up to look back at my work thus far. I was amazed at what I saw. If you read my post, 5 Life Lessons Learned from Weeding, you've seen what my front walkway looked like last year. If you haven't read it, here was the patch last year: Nothing too spectacular, but I was proud of it being weed free after some hard work. It was nice as long as I kept up with weeding which I couldn't do as regularly as I liked. I also wasn't a very seasoned gardener; I knew I lacked knowledge and skill to make anything better, but diligently did the work I knew how to do to keep it alive. Then tonight as I stood up after asking God to give me a life lesson this is the sight that I laid eyes on. Same walkway but from the steps instead of the driveway (please excuse the weeds I have yet to dispose of on the walkway): God spoke clearly. I saw a garden that had grown and matured under my work and in my care. Despite the fact that I didn't know everything there is to know about gardening, the plants got bigger. I didn't neglect the garden and God was faithful enough to do the rest. As I admired His handiwork on how much it had grown, He reminded me of my classroom. I do not have all of the answers. I am in no way an expert or the best teacher just as I am not the best gardener. Even though it's harder to measure, God promised me that my kids are growing just as these plants did. That even though sometimes I can't give my career and the kids I'm teaching as much time as I'd like, just like the weeding, if I am diligent in my work and do the best I know how to He will be faithful to continue to help my students grow. Thank You Lord, for the peace of mind that despite what difficulties I face, I don't have to face them alone. I have One powerful enough to turn my meager efforts into something beautiful!
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AuthorI am someone who loves to write. I like to think and be creative. I was encouraged by my husband to write more and so this is me writing. Hope you find something of value in these words. Archives
December 2019
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