Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 says, “To everything
there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven: 2 A time to be born, and a
time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted; 3 A time to kill, and a
time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up; 4 A time to weep, and a
time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance; 5 A time to cast away
stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to
refrain from embracing; 6 A
time to get, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away; 7 A time to rend, and a
time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak; 8 A time to love, and a
time to hate; a time of war, and a time of peace.”
Last
Friday was the last day of school. The
last day that students will come in and out of my classroom, room 225, at
Locust Grove High School. I just
finished my eleventh year of teaching, and while they have all been great
learning experiences, none have been quite like the last five.
Ecclesiastes
3:1-8 truly applies to all my years of teaching but especially to my time at
LGHS. As I pack up my things from my
classroom, I can’t help but reflect back over all that has happened inside
these four walls. I feel that while
at LGHS, I grew more as a person, spiritually and emotionally. I grew as a teacher, friend, leader, mentor,
and even as a wife and mom. As I look
back over my experiences in room 225, I can see, and am thankful, for the
different seasons God has allowed me to experience. I think I’ve experienced them all in some
form or fashion!
I
was hired at LGHS to teach 11th and 12th grade
English. I love analyzing and dissecting
a poem or a novel. I love it when a
student finally makes the connections between a metaphor or symbol from the
story to real life. I also love it when
they finally realize where to put commas or the difference between “your” and
“you’re”. I have had the privilege of
teaching, shepherding, close to 1,000 students over the last five years. Many of them I taught more than once—some by
way of luck and others because of a failed attempt at the first round, so a
second round was necessary:) The truth is, while I’d like to think that
most, if not all, of my students learned something during their time in room
225 whether it be about English or life, room 225 definitely taught me a few
things.
Some of the lessons
I learned are:
v I’m not always going to have the answer or be able to
fix every situation.
v It’s not about test scores. It’s about the relationships that are formed
and how we treat each other as members of society.
v I don’t just exist to teach English. I exist for a much greater purpose.
v It’s ok to make mistakes.
v It’s important to ask the tough questions and more
importantly to listen when they are being answered.
v Showing up to work every day is not to earn a pay check,
it is because someone needs me and is depending on me.
v Some of the most basic human needs are to be loved,
included, needed, and pursued.
v My students (my kids as I usually call them) are extensions
of Jesus, so I better think twice before I react or treat them as anything less
than that.
v To truly have authority, I must remain humble as if I
had no authority at all.
v To be a real leader, I must serve every day.
When
I arrived on my first day at LGHS, room 225 was a typical classroom. It was a simple four white walls, thirty-five
desks, a pencil sharpener, a white board, and a cold tile floor. It is safe to say that this is no longer a
typical classroom. You see, besides the
typical school activities such as group work, essays, vocabulary sessions, note
cards and papers being left on the floor, books being left under desks, student
work on the walls, and pencil sharpener shavings gathered on the floor, so much
more went on in this room. Learning took
place, but not always the pencil and paper kind of learning. On many days, in the midst of the sound of bells
and shuffling in the hallways, prayers were said, tears were cried, hearts were
broken and healed. Wounds were shared,
defenses were let down, and Truth was let in.
I had the privilege of sharing Truth and the saving Grace of Jesus with
several students. I had the privilege of
praying for them as they wept because they were terrified of what was going to
happened next. I was able to rejoice
with them when they were accepted into college or were asked to prom. I had the honor of showing and teaching them
God’s Word and how it, more than anything else they learned in high school, if
applied to life correctly would change their lives.
Over
the years, room 225 was the stage for many seasons of laughter, second chances,
team work, silliness, pranks, counseling sessions, safety, tears, new
experiences, and many “ah ha” moments, and many seasons of life for not only me
but my kids too!
To
highlight a few:
I
became a mom, twice, while occupying room 225, which means that my students
have been on the adoption journey with me.
They laughed with me, some even cried with me, and rejoiced with me as
we welcomed both our babies into our family.
My kids have close to 1,000 big brothers and sisters.
Room
225 has even been a place of mourning the loss of three students who once
occupied desks in that very room. It also
quickly became a place of consoling and healing.
I
followed God’s leading Spirit and planted a new club at LGHS called The
Sophisticated Ladies club. God gave me a
heart for teens, but for teen girls especially.
Around my second year at LGHS, I felt God calling me to do more. The club was designed to remind them and help
them find not only who they are but whose they are. So many opportunities were birthed out of
this calling. Several girls even came to
know the Lord as their own personal Savior.
If no kid ever passed another one of my tests, it didn’t matter. This was all that mattered. Several girls’ lives changed in room 225
because of decisions they made, maturing they went through, and bonds that were
formed. Mentoring, leading, helping
shape young women into what God called them to be was my true passion, and room
225 was the place I discovered this passion and the place where on any given
Thursday at a club meeting 20-70 girls gathered to learn whose they are.
Room
225 was also a place for seasons of tough love. It
was a place of compassion and acceptance, no doubt, but there were plenty of
“not so lovely” conversations I had with my kids. When teaching, there must be a balance of breaking
down their will but building them back up.
In many situations, I know I could have handled things differently, and
I no doubt learned from every one.
Through those times, I learned how to have a backbone and go with my
“momma” instinct when it says, “I know you don’t like it but, it is in your
best interest, trust me.” No kid,
especially ones that aren’t yours, likes to hear that! A simple, “I believe in you” and a hug can go
a long way too!
Every
Monday, we did something called “highs” and “lows”. It was a chance for the kids to share the
good and/or the bad from the weekend. Some
Mondays were light-hearted with a funny story here and there, and some were
days where we rallied around someone and ether cheered them on or simply said, "I’m sorry and we’ll be praying."
We
even danced in room 225. Some dancing
was due to a dare here and there, but sometimes it was just because we were
happy. It was nothing for a group to
break out into song during class either.
You
know that sound when it’s quiet all around and then out of nowhere a loud sound
of laughing, I mean really laughing, by a big group of people is heard???? The kind that made you want to know what was
so funny? That is how we laughed in room 225. What all we laughed about was a
wide range, but we laughed nonetheless.
Proud
moments came out of room 225. Probably
my proudest moments were when I sat listening to my students read the memoir
they had written in my class. They had
spent time discovering and rehashing their past, who they are, what they
believe, etc. Many of them couldn’t even
read aloud because of the tears streaming down their faces or from laughing too
hard, depending on what part of their story they were in. For many of them, it was the first time they
had shared their story. It was the first
time they had really embraced the
moments of their life. I remember
thinking “This is it. This is why I do
what I do!” I was proud because they
were starting to get it too. They were
starting to see how all the seasons and experiences in their short lives were starting to
add up and equal something of a bigger purpose.
The
reason last Friday was my last day at LGHS is because I am moving on to a new
school, on to a new season. I will still be teaching and
getting to do what I love, but it will be different. Not only have I grown to love my kids, I have
grown to love the community of Locust Grove, and more importantly, I love the
staff at LGHS. I can honestly say the
staff at LGHS is a fabulous group of people.
I say goodbye to kids all the time, but I’ve never had to say goodbye to
these co-workers because I knew in eight short weeks, we’d all be back in our
places ready to shape the next group of young minds together. I will miss the random drop-ins from
co-workers who just want to talk or say hey.
I’ll miss the planning period strolls outside just to warm up because
the building is freezing. I’ll miss the
oh so eclectic conversations and laughing until we cried moments during lunch.
I’ll miss all being in one room together as a team during faculty
meetings. I’ll miss the comfort of
knowing who I’ll see when I walk up and down the hallways and the smiles as we
pass while checking our mailboxes. I’ll
miss the love and support each of them had for me, my husband, and my sweet
babies. Just like my students, the
faculty of LGHS, has been a part of my journey.
We were able to talk about life, not just school stuff, and I appreciate
that. I appreciate knowing that I don’t
just work with people who are there to punch a time clock, but they actually
care about me as a person. That dynamic
is hard to find, and I’m eternally grateful for the Lord placing me at LGHS.
All
this change got me to thinking. You see,
LGHS is comfortable. The future, change
itself, is uncomfortable. Most people
don’t like change. Whether it’s a change
in personnel, a procedure, a rule, or just they style of something, there is
always hesitation.
As
I thought about change, and no doubt we all experience it, I thought about the
verse above. We go through different
seasons in life. We can’t be sad all the
time; there is a season for sadness. We
won’t be laughing all the time. There
will be seasons of laughter but also seasons of mourning or growth. You may be going through a change of seasons right
now, but instead of dreading it, embrace it.
I heard someone speak on this verse and put it in the context of change. Isaiah 43:18-19
says, “Remember ye not the former things, neither consider the things of
old. Behold, I will do a
new thing; now it shall spring forth; shall ye not know it? I will even make a
way in the wilderness, and rivers in the desert.”
What is this verse saying when it comes to change?
1. Don’t
dwell on the past—even if it was a good past, there are still great things
ahead. If it was a bad past, there are
definitely better things ahead!
2. “Behold…”—Don’t
miss it! God is trying to get our
attention. If we are too busy dwelling
on the past or being afraid of the future, we
might miss the big change!
3. “I will even make a
way…”—Change is a process, not a destination.
Let go and grab hold of a new opportunity! God
won’t lead you to it, if He doesn’t plan to lead you through it!
I’m sad that things have to change and I have to leave the fabulous-ness of Locust Grove High School. I know that God has many great things planned for LGHS and many great ways He wants to use the people of LGHS. I am so excited about the new season and future at Hampton High school. I know that God has me going there "for such a time as this"! I welcome the challenges, changes, and opportunities awaiting me. More than anything, I can’t wait to find out my room number! I can’t wait to walk into those “four walls” and see what all will take place. Thank you Lord for room 225 at LGHS, and thank you Lord for
room ? at HHS!
