Onion or Oak and What I Carry

        The saying in my high school yearbook said, “Life is like an onion. You peel away each layer and sometimes you cry.”  I thought it was a beautiful, meaty statement about life when I was 17.

         I look at life differently now. The onion metaphor does not seem to work for me any more.  As I get older, I do not think as often of peeling away something on a regular basis to get to the end: an end, which is an empty nothing, like the inside of an onion. It seems somewhat pessimistic. Though perhaps, I missed something in my understanding of this onion.

         I think of my life as more like an oak tree that each year gains a growth ring.  In good years there is a lot of growth added to the trunk and in other years the growth is smaller.  The growth we gain each year is the character we build and what we do with our lives to help us become stronger and align ourselves more to God’s plan for His people.

        The title of the book, The Things They Carried, is an interesting title to a book that is not as good as the title.  It makes me think of what we carry with us through life and what that says about our character.  It makes me think of what we would carry out of a burning house or what we would pick if we could only keep a few of our possessions.  It makes me think of ladies’ purses and what they value enough to take with them everywhere.

       Then, it causes me to think of invisible things that I carry with me from year to year and what those things say about me.  Is life a peeling away like an onion or building of layers like an oak?  Maybe it is both.

      What thoughts, ideas, habits and qualities do we carry with us from year to year?  Peel away the bad, the unnecessary, and the sin and build the layers of strength, character and sense of purpose.  Whichever the case, as it goes with peeling away, so it does with strengthening and character building: sometimes we cry. 

       I revised my two page resume last night.  I peeled away the unnecessary, the padding and I just went for the truly most important highlights of my career.  My resume is now, at over 30 years of teaching, smaller than it was at two years’ experience.  Does that mean that I have not done much lately or does it mean that I am finally able to see what is important? I hope it means the latter. Yet, I wonder: is my life more than a little piece of paper that speaks of my career?  What is worth carrying and what is not?

      What really mean something are the intangible qualities that I hope I have that no one can peel away, pare away or take away.  The intangible qualities that will show my Maker that I have grown in the ways that are important are what I am interested in keeping and transporting on life’s exciting journey.  I hope that the things that I carry are things like love, joy and peace.

Gardening Quotes for April

Gardening Quotes 

Don’t judge each day by the harvest you reap but by the seeds that you plant. ~Robert Louis Stevenson

I think this is what hooks one to gardening: it is the closest one can come to being present at creation. ~Phyllis Theroux

Hope never dies within a true gardener’s heart. ~author unknown

The man who has planted a garden feels he has done something for the good of the whole world. ~Charles Dudley Warner

Hoe while it is spring, and enjoy the best anticipations. It is not much matter if things do not turn out well. ~Charles Dudley Warner

However many years she lived, Mary always felt that 'she should never forget that first morning when her garden began to grow'.”
― Frances Hodgson Burnett, The Secret Garden

“The greatest fine art of the future will be the making of a comfortable living from a small piece of land.”
― Abraham Lincoln

“My garden is my most beautiful masterpiece”
― Claude Monet

Run for Joy

       In the 60’s before running or jogging was in vogue, my dad intentionally parked over a mile from his downtown office.  Did he do it to save money?  Did he do it because he could not find a parking spot up close?  Maybe not…   Wearing a crisp suit, a white shirt, tie and hat on his head, with briefcase in hand he ran to work.  Running was his expression of an exuberant joyful attitude that identified this man.  Running is not just an action, but it is also a form of self expression.

       Running expresses an attitude.  “Immediately, when they saw Him, all the people were greatly amazed, and running to Him, greeted Him.” Mark 9:15 “Now as He was going out on the road, one came running, knelt before Him, and asked Him, ‘Good Teacher, what shall I do that I may inherit eternal life?’" Mark 10:17   “So they went out quickly from the tomb with fear and great joy, and ran to bring His disciples word.”  Matthew 28:8 “Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may obtain it.” 1 Corinthians 9:24

       I love to watch children run.  It expresses enthusiasm that cannot be expressed in any other way.  Ask a child to come to do something special and the child will run.  Ask a child to do a chore and the child will walk or worse.  At school, we spend a lot of time teaching children to walk instead of running, leaping or bouncing.  I wish we could let them run.

       When I fell off a ladder six years ago, running became nearly impossible for me to do. I learned to walk quickly, but not run.  Lately, I have been practicing in the basement, because running is something I miss.  On a beautiful day, I imagine running and feeling the fresh air in my lungs and the sunshine on my face.  Running is better than walking to me.  Walking is good, but running is better.

      There is one thing better than running, however.

       “Now as the ark of the Now as the ark of the Lord came into the City of David …King David leaping and whirling before the Lord…”  2 Samuel 6: 16

            

       “Now Peter and John went up together into the temple at the hour of prayer, being the ninth hour. And a certain man lame from his mother's womb was carried, whom they laid daily at the gate of the temple which is called Beautiful, to ask alms of them that entered into the temple; who seeing Peter and John about to go into the temple asked an alms. And Peter, fastening his eyes upon him with John, said, Look on us. And he gave heed unto them, expecting to receive something of them.  Then Peter said, Silver and gold have I none; but such as I have give I thee: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth rise up and walk. And he took him by the right hand, and lifted him up: and immediately his feet and ankle bones received strength.  And he leaping up stood, and walked, and entered with them into the temple, walking, and leaping, and praising God.”  Acts 3:1-8

Prayer in Public Schools

            No prayer in public schools!  I think of it when I am in the urban public school where I teach and someone asks me to pray.  I think of it when I send up a silent prayer in a moment of need!  I pray that God would help the people I work with, the parents, students and me.  I want to have love for others at all times and the wisdom to know what to do in the many difficult situations I encounter daily: I ask for this in prayer.  I think of it when I see a fellow teacher bow her head before eating her lunch.   No prayer in public schools?

            I remember when I was a child and prayer was allowed in public schools.   I remember when no one would think of eating a bite of lunch without our lunchtime prayer.  Even a snack was not to be consumed without prayer.   (Of course, many families had the same practices at home.)

            In December 2012 (so you know I am not reminiscing back too far), I went into a fourth grade class where the students were having a small party before the commencement of the Christmas holiday.  I helped the teacher arrange the food for the children. 

            It was nothing like the parties you would see in a suburban school with all kinds of colorful goodies arrayed on a bulging smorgasbord table. Instead, all of the desks were arranged in a close circle and the teacher had a small place mat on each desk.  There was a small cup with about a fourth of a cup of a fruit smoothie, a plate with about a half cup of popcorn, one Hershey Kiss,and a small wrapped candy cane on the place mat.

            There was such an air of excitement as the teacher invited the 20 students to take a seat and then begin eating.  One fourth grade girl said, “ No!”  She told the students that they could not eat before thanking the Lord Jesus for their food. Spontaneously, they all locked hands and raised their hands above their shoulders and began to pray in unison: “Lord Jesus, we thank you for this food! God is great, God is good and so we thank him for this food…”  They continued a very long version of this old prayer. At the end, they shouted: “Amen!!!” They all seemed to know this prayer and if any did not, they said it anyway as though they did!  Needless to say the other teacher and I were speechless.  I muttered something like that was very nice as I wiped the tears.

            Society has done a lot to squelch prayer and its practice in the past 50 years.  On many levels, it has succeeded.  However, as long as there is need, gratitude and a human longing for God there will be prayer, not just in foxholes and trenches, but in homes, churches, stores, factories, parks, wilderness areas and, yes, even public schools!

                       

Another Snow Day

        Another snow day…(a holiday from teaching and learning at school due to difficult weather)  Since we just had one recently, I was not quite as excited this time.  I was determined to get some things done and enjoy some time outdoors in the snow.

        Most of my plans to be outdoors went awry.  I planned to spend the day sledding with some children from church (Plan A), but my husband was worried about the watery mess.  Even though we had a lot of snow, it was the watery kind that felt like an ice-water-filled sponge when you squeezed it.  I succumbed to his wishes and went for Plan B, which was to help him shovel the driveway.  He got out there and did the job while I was busy with another chore. He did not tell me and did not wait for me. (I guess he did not realize that I really wanted to help.) Thus, “snow day” was having little meaning for me.  I was stuck inside. 

        Visiting a sick friend in the hospital was what I planned for the afternoon.  She was so sick that I could only stay a few minutes and kept falling asleep when I tried to talk to her.  I decided to leave. I had hoped to spend the afternoon with her. Even though it was not an outdoor plan, it did not go as I hoped either.

        However, the walk to and from the car to the hospital and a short walk in an old neighborhood provided just the experience that I craved.  My boots were keeping my feet dry as I sloshed through the snow.  The cold snow, now water, that had melted, chilled my feet as I walked but my socks and feet were dry.  The wet, moist air made me wake up and pay attention to my surroundings.  It was a beautiful mid-afternoon in March and I was walking, not inside a school building or around the house; but outside and breathing fresh, clean air!  That chilly, tingly feeling that makes you realize that you are happy to be alive came over me!  Kicking wet snow can be a hoot!

The Power of First Impressions

The Power of First Impressions

I was thinking about a restaurant I visited about 25 years ago and was remembering that the first impression I had I was not good.  I went back to see it tonight, because I am planning a private party. Its reputation is excellent and people rave about the food. I had to check it out, because the location was great for our event. When I got to the door, it was so strange to feel that same negative way again.  The atmosphere, under the guise of eclectic, presented a confusing, strange, cold message; I just did not like the ambiance at all for the second time. I had made the assumption that the first impression I had was not valid any more, but indeed my impression was not altered by a second visit. 

What about us?  Do we take care to provide a positive first impression?  Truly, we may not have a second chance. Is this talk just about impressing others?  Does it matter if we impress others anyway?  These are questions that beg to be answered.

My twenty-one year old son brought a young lady to our home recently.  I know that I did not make a good impression on her, because I treated him like a child, at one point in the evening. She probably thought I was a very controlling mother.  I apologized to my son and asked him to apologize to her, but I will never have another opportunity to make a positive first impression with her again.

I think first impressions are very important.  They hold the key to a relationship in many ways.  If my first impression of you is that you are loud, arrogant or lacking in character, I may not give you an opportunity to get to know me.  If the first impression I make is likewise poor, you may not give me a chance to become acquainted with you. Thus, the relationship is halted or permanently destroyed.

Impressing others is not what a “positive first impression” is about. It is not about vanity or show.  It is about putting our best selves forward so that a relationship can be built with a person that is like me or has something in common with me.  It is like an initial screening for friendship or fellowship. 

The quality of a first impression is nurtured through the much maligned form of conversation called “small talk”.  Small talk is really some of the most important talk we will ever speak, because it is talk designed to seek a common ground for friendship.  It is an amazing, delightful experience to find commonality among a fellow sojourner.

I do value lifelong friends, but I always hope that I will present myself in such a way that new people would be interested in getting to know me and even more so that I would show others a genuine interest in them.  The real key to making a positive first impression is, of course, an outgoing concern for others instead of a preoccupation with self.  This is a fundamental way to overcoming shyness and self-absorption., too.  Outgoing concern is a secret to a lot of great things in life. 

Is this talk about impressing others? No, it is about making a genuine loving human connection.  Does it matter if we impress someone?  No, it is not about showing how great we are.  It is about being our best self at all times.  First impressions are about getting rid of some of our unimpressive ways so that we can let our “light” shine through.  As Christians, it is simply, “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in Heaven.”

A Snow Day!!!

           It is hard to say Calamity Day, when Columbus City Schools’ students and teachers alike look forward to having an unexpected holiday in the winter.  Calamity Days usually occur when the roads are bad due to snow, but we have had them over the years for power outages and frigid, below zero temperatures. For the safety of the children, the area schools are cancelled on these Calamity Days.

           This winter most of the bad days began or occurred on weekends or in the evenings when the salt crews had plenty of time to do their clearing.  The weather has been frigid and we have had quite a few inches of snow, but no Calamity Days, or Snow Days, as I prefer to call them.

           The teachers at my school have a little ritual, which helps us to not get too disappointed when the snow falls at the wrong time. On the day before the forecasted snowstorm, we do a lot of winking when we talk about tomorrow and tell ourselves and each other that we will probably have school. We assure the students that most likely we will have school on the morrow.  We take home what we might need if we will not be at school the next day, but we plan for the next day as though it will be “business as usual”.

           Yesterday, since the messy weather was forecasted for a Friday, we had to take home our weekend work, just in case.  Saying good-bye to the other teachers, as we leave the school, on such a day, is always, “See you tomorrow!”(wink, wink), but hoping we won’t.

           Then, there is my ritual of waking up in the middle of the night and checking the weather outside and getting up earlier than usual from sheer excitement and, finally, hearing the radio announcer say, “Columbus City Schools are cancelled today!”

           Today’s weather was slippery and icy with no real snow involved.  By 10 AM all of the problems with the roads had disappeared.  I cleaned; did laundry; went to the store; did taxes; paid bills; talked to a former teacher, who knew what a joy a day off from school can be; exercised for an hour; wrote some cards, read and cooked.  I also burned the bean soup I was making for dinner and the washing machine broke.  In spite of the totally mundane things I did, I felt thankful and joyful all day.  I really felt like playing in the snow all day long, even though that was impossible, because there was no snow.  After all, I have been a teacher or a student nearly all of my life and this was a “Snow Day”, a special treat in the lives of students and teachers, with no calamity at all.

                   This is what I would love to do on a Snow Day!