Archive for the ‘WONDER’ Category

When the Time Came

Posted in WONDER, tagged Easter, Galatians 4:4, Habakkuk 2:3, John 3:3-4, last supper, Luke 2, Luke 22, Luke 4:13, Maundy Thursday, perfect timing, timing, when the time came on March 28, 2013| Leave a Comment »

“When the hour came,
Jesus and his apostles reclined at the table.And he said to them,
“I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer.For I tell you,
I will not eat it again until it finds fulfillment in the kingdom of God.”
Luke 22:14-16

The Easter weekend is upon us.

betrayal-last-supper

Today is known as Maundy Thursday … the day to remember the final, or last, supper shared by the twelve disciples, and their leader, Jesus. A meal held after sunset, in a rented room. I wonder if Jesus was able to eat … surely knowing what the hours to come would hold … betrayal, denial, arrest, torture, humiliation, death … separation from His Father …

Jesus knew what timing was all about … not the timing of others, not even his own timing, but God’s timing …

“While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son.”
Luke 2:6-7

“But when the set time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those under the law, that we might receive adoption to sonship.”
Galatians 4:4

“When the time of their purification according to the Law of Moses had been completed, Joseph and Mary took him to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord.” Luke 2:22

“When the wine was gone, Jesus’ mother said to him, “They have no more wine.” “Woman, why do you involve me?” Jesus replied. “My hour has not yet come.” John 2:3-4

“When the devil had finished all this tempting, he left him until an opportune time.” Luke 4:13

“Every day I was with you in the temple courts, and you did not lay a hand on me. But this is your hour—when darkness reigns.” Luke 22:53

The timing of the events in the life of Jesus were perfect and known only to God the Father. Just as the events of our life are perfect and known only by Him. What we often do not realize is that the timing is God’s perfect timing, not ours.

I imagine that Mary did not think that being in labor, while riding a donkey, with no place to give birth, was not perfect timing … but we can see how the timing of the provision of the stable-cave showed God’s provision, and enhanced the humble king that Jesus was to be.

There are times in our lives when the timing has been poor, and it seems God was late in answering our prayers … but we see things with human eyes, limited by our lifespans … God sees with eternal eyes, limitless!

Until He returns, in God’s perfect timing, we are waiting.

“For still the vision awaits its appointed time;
it hastens to the end
—it will not lie.
If it seems slow,
wait for it;
it will surely come;
it will not delay.”
Habakkuk 2:3

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His Love Endures Forever!

Posted in WONDER, tagged Chris Tomlin, faithfulness, Forever, GOD, Hope, justice, love endures forever, Provision, Psalm 107 on March 27, 2013| Leave a Comment »

Recently I was reading Psalm 107, and as I heard those words of hope, of provision, of redemption, of God’s faithfulness, of the history of His people, and I felt something bubble up inside of me … joyful hope!

Maybe it is because as I read the first line, “give thanks to the Lord, for he is good” I started hearing the worship song, “Forever” written by Chris Tomlin, and it’s upbeat music simply set the mood for my scripture reading.

I love this Psalm! There is a constant thread through it that God is faithful to his people, that there is a desire on the part of God to care for those who love Him. There is also a thread of justice that weaves throughout this Psalm … something that sometimes seems so absent in our world today. It is a Psalm that reminds us that we have not because we have not yet cried out to him.

I believe that to read this Psalm is to read it, not a something written for another person, at another time …

… we need to read it as written for us as individuals, for us, and for now!

Give thanks to the Lord,

for he is good!

His love

endures

forever!

PSALM 107

Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good;
his love endures forever.

²Let the redeemed of the Lord tell their story—
those he redeemed from the hand of the foe,
³those he gathered from the lands,
from east and west, from north and south.

⁴Some wandered in desert wastelands,
finding no way to a city where they could settle.
⁵They were hungry and thirsty,
and their lives ebbed away.
⁶Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble,
and he delivered them from their distress.
⁷He led them by a straight way
to a city where they could settle.
⁸Let them give thanks to the Lord for his unfailing love
and his wonderful deeds for mankind,
⁹for he satisfies the thirsty
and fills the hungry with good things.

¹⁰Some sat in darkness, in utter darkness,
prisoners suffering in iron chains,
¹¹because they rebelled against God’s commands
and despised the plans of the Most High.
¹²So he subjected them to bitter labor;
they stumbled, and there was no one to help.
¹³Then they cried to the Lord in their trouble,
and he saved them from their distress
¹⁴He brought them out of darkness, the utter darkness,
and broke away their chains.
¹⁵Let them give thanks to the Lord for his unfailing love
and his wonderful deeds for mankind,
¹⁶for he breaks down gates of bronze
and cuts through bars of iron.

¹⁷Some became fools through their rebellious ways
and suffered affliction because of their iniquities.
¹⁸They loathed all food
and drew near the gates of death.
¹⁹Then they cried to the Lord in their trouble,
and he saved them from their distress.
²⁰He sent out his word and healed them;
he rescued them from the grave.
²¹Let them give thanks to the Lord for his unfailing love
and his wonderful deeds for mankind.
²²Let them sacrifice thank offerings
and tell of his works with songs of joy.

²³Some went out on the sea in ships;
they were merchants on the mighty waters.
²⁴They saw the works of the Lord,
his wonderful deeds in the deep.
²⁵For he spoke and stirred up a tempest
that lifted high the waves.
²⁶They mounted up to the heavens and went down to the depths;
in their peril their courage melted away.
²⁷They reeled and staggered like drunkards;
they were at their wits’ end.
²⁸Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble,
and he brought them out of their distress.
²⁹He stilled the storm to a whisper;
the waves of the sea were hushed.
³⁰They were glad when it grew calm,
and he guided them to their desired haven.
³¹Let them give thanks to the Lord for his unfailing love
and his wonderful deeds for mankind.
³²Let them exalt him in the assembly of the people
and praise him in the council of the elders.

³³He turned rivers into a desert,
flowing springs into thirsty ground,
³⁴and fruitful land into a salt waste,
because of the wickedness of those who lived there.
³⁵He turned the desert into pools of water
and the parched ground into flowing springs;
³⁶there he brought the hungry to live,
and they founded a city where they could settle.
³⁷They sowed fields and planted vineyards
that yielded a fruitful harvest;
³⁸he blessed them, and their numbers greatly increased,
and he did not let their herds diminish.

³⁹Then their numbers decreased, and they were humbled
by oppression, calamity and sorrow;
⁴⁰he who pours contempt on nobles
made them wander in a trackless waste.
⁴¹But he lifted the needy out of their affliction
and increased their families like flocks.
⁴²The upright see and rejoice,
but all the wicked shut their mouths.

⁴³Let the one who is wise heed these things
and ponder the loving deeds of the Lord.

The larger our platform becomes,
the more intentionally we have to focus on the heart of our calling:
to introduce people to God and to show them His glory.”
—Chris Tomlin

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Sing, Sing a Song

Posted in WONDER, tagged Anna Spafford, carpenters, Grace, Horatio Spafford, it is well with my soul, mercy, saved alone, sesame street, sing, sing a song, Sorrow, what is your song?, when peace like a river on March 26, 2013| Leave a Comment »

“Sing.
Sing a song.
Sing out loud, sing out strong.
Sing of good things, not bad.
Sing of happy, not sad.
Sing.
Sing a song.
Make it simple to last your whole life long.
Don´t worry that it´s not good enough for anyone else to hear.
Just sing.”

So sang the Carpenters in the 1970’s … although my memory of it is from Sesame Street …

It is amazing how the singing of a song can make memorization so much easier. As one who is in the midst of memorizing one of the Psalms, I am thankful that it was put to music … I think I can, I think I can.

One of the beauties of memorizing scripture, poetry or lyrics through music is that it stays in your memory, and resurfaces at the most wonderful times.

Such has been the case for a particular hymn that I learned in my teens.

The hymn is more than a song, it is also evidence of the strength a person can attain with God as the rudder and anchor of their life.

Written by Horatio Spafford in 1873.

He, his wife Anna, and their four daughters had survived the great Chicago Fire. Horatio planned a trip to Europe for his family, and just days before they were to leave, he had to change his plans, send his wife and daughters on the ship without him.

While sailing to Europe the Spafford ship was hit by another, and sunk.

Days later, Horatio received the following in a telegram, from Anna, “Saved alone what shall I do?”

He boarded a ship, to meet up with his grieving wife.

As the ship was nearing the place where his four daughters died, he wrote the words to this hauntingly beautiful hymn.

It Is Well With My Soul

When peace like a river, attendeth my way,
When sorrows like sea billows roll;
Whatever my lot, Thou hast taught me to say,
It is well, it is well, with my soul.

Refrain:
It is well, (it is well),
With my soul, (with my soul)
It is well, it is well, with my soul.

Though Satan should buffet, though trials should come,
Let this blest assurance control,
That Christ has regarded my helpless estate,
And hath shed His own blood for my soul.

My sin, oh, the bliss of this glorious thought!
My sin, not in part but the whole,
Is nailed to the cross, and I bear it no more,
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, O my soul!

For me, be it Christ, be it Christ hence to live:
If Jordan above me shall roll,
No pang shall be mine, for in death as in life,
Thou wilt whisper Thy peace to my soul.

But Lord, ’tis for Thee, for Thy coming we wait,
The sky, not the grave, is our goal;
Oh, trump of the angel! Oh, voice of the Lord!
Blessed hope, blessed rest of my soul.

And Lord, haste the day when my faith shall be sight,
The clouds be rolled back as a scroll;
The trump shall resound, and the Lord shall descend,
Even so, it is well with my soul.

Although I have not suffered the kind of loss and suffering of Horatio and Anna Spafford, this song surfaces in my conscious whenever my heart plummets with the weight of the sorrows of life and living.

I am amazed when it does come to my mind,
as though placed there
like a tissue to wipe my falling tears,
or a shoulder to cry on,
or a string around my finger

to remind me …

that I am not alone
that peace is more about the condition of my soul than anything to do with world conflict
that no sin is unforgivable
that no earthly sorrow can separate me from my God
that the sky, not the grave, is my goal.

What is your song?

tranquility

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Past Over

Posted in WONDER, tagged Blessing, blood on the doorposts, chosen people, egypt, jews, moses and aaron, Passover, past over, Pharaoh, slavery on March 25, 2013| Leave a Comment »

haggadah72 Today marks the beginning of the Passover holiday.

As with the many celebrations of many other Bible-centered religions, the celebrations revolve around food, family, and a story of faith.

This story is one which is shared in the synagogues, the cathedrals, churches and other places of worship of those who call themselves Jewish, Catholic and Christian. It is a story of mystery, of miracles, of redemption (The Theme of the Best Stories is Always …).

Although the story in Exodus begins with a conversation between God and Moses and Aaron, really it began at almost the beginning of time:

“I will make you into a great nation,
and I will bless you;
I will make your name great,
and you will be a blessing .”
Genesis 12:2

God has had a plan for His people, a plan of blessing.

But God’s people had been enslaved by the Egyptians, for generations. And, through the God’s use of the Egyptians, Moses was saved when Pharaoh demanded the killing of the firstborn males of his slaves, the Jews. God has a funny way of accomplishing His plans.

God, through Moses and Aaron, tried to convince Pharaoh to let His people go free, with locusts, with plagues, with blood, with gnats, with frogs, with boils, with darkness. Pharaoh knew he had a good thing, and he refused to let them go.

It was not until God sent death … death of the firstborn sons (sound familiar?) of Egypt, that Pharaoh had ears to hear.

God had given the very specific directions to Moses and Aaron:

a specific date and time
a yearling male lamb … with no imperfections
slaughtered at twilight
blood wiped on the door frames of all of the Israelite people
roasted
all the meat eaten, with bitter herbs and yeast-free bread
dress code applicable
all left-overs burned up in the fire

Then, in the night, God past over the town, killing every firstborn, except for His chosen people, safe behind the doors with the blood of the innocent, perfect lamb dripping between their past of slavery and bondage and their future as a great nation.

All was accomplished, just as God said, and Pharaoh let the people go.

This celebration called Passover, is an everlasting reminder, of the devotion and promise that God has made with His chosen people. One worth celebrating, when Jew or Gentile.

“God kept watch all night,
watching over the Israelites as he brought them out of Egypt.
Because God kept watch,
all Israel for all generations will honor God by keeping watch this night
—a watchnight.”
Exodus 12:41-42

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How to Care for Couples Who Walk the Miscarriage Road

Posted in WONDER, tagged caring for couples, Daddy Deliberations, guest post, Miscarriage, Pregnancy Loss, Ryan Janzi on March 21, 2013| Leave a Comment »

As I was sending a note to my friend, Ryan Janzi, to let him know that I was planning to add a link to a post he had written recently, Ryan was sending me a similarly themed post.

I want to share Ryan’s post on caring for those couples in our lives who have experienced the loss that miscarriage presents.

It is a loss that only those who have experienced it can fully relate to and understand.

Being one who is part of this undesirable club, I can attest to many similar experiences that Ryan relates in his post.

Even if it is not an experience that you share, read it, as it will better prepare you to respond to someone in your life who will be walking this road.

Opening Up About Miscarriage: How to Care For Couples Who Walk this Road

“In my last post I mentioned what a shame it is that so little is said in our society regarding miscarriage. It tends to be a taboo subject experienced by so many, but publicly addressed by so few. Why should countless couples cry in silence, not knowing and being strengthened by the many similar stories of their family and friends? In my opinion we need to begin talking with others about these experiences. This silence ought to be broken.

Now, let me be clear. In the first weeks and months following a miscarriage, it makes sense that this grief should be kept relatively private. As my wife and I walked through our three miscarriages, the last thing we wanted was to be conversing with everyone we knew about this challenge we were facing. I’m sure this would have been emotionally exhausting. You simply don’t want to have to relate on such a deep of a level with anyone other than your closest family and friends. However, I also don’t think it should be kept too private. You do need those few people who will cry and pray with you and extend support in other meaningful ways. Keep it private, but not too private.”

To continue reading, click on Opening Up About Miscarriage-How to Care For Couples Who Walk this Road. It will be well worth the read.

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Down Time

Posted in WONDER, tagged clean up, Creation, day of rest, Down Time, re-fuel, recreation, Refreshment, regular routines, Rest, Spring Break, Summer on March 20, 2013| Leave a Comment »

Ah, Spring Break! GetAttachment

I had been counting the weeks (ten) and days (forty-nine … work days) to this, since the completion of the Christmas Break!

Winter on the ~~wet~~ West Coast is definitely not my favorite season. There is nothing like …

rain,
followed by drizzle,
followed by rainfall warnings,
followed by showers

… to send me into dreaming of sunnier days!

But this break from the regular (rainy) days is about more than just weather, it is also about down time … a break from the regular routines.

This year I have the blessing of enjoying the break in a sunnier, warmer climate. It is so refreshing to wear open-toed shoes (to show off my first pedicure of the summer), shorts, sleeveless shirts and to be just a ten minute drive from sitting on a white sand beach.

As I read the Spring Break-related posts on FaceBook this morning I am reminded that a tropical destination, although wonderful, is not mandatory to enjoy this break.

People are cleaning closets and cupboards, having play dates and painting their homes, going for coffee and going to the craft store, doing a day trip and going on dates with their hubbies (and wives), shopping and shipping unused goods out to the thrift shops.

The universal experience is not the same, and yet it is. People use this break to re-fuel, to catch up, to clean up and create … basically it is a time of down time.

Down time is a vital part of healthy living. It does not require a trip to a sunny location, or extravagant plans, it simply requires a break from the everyday routines of life. It provides opportunity for refreshment, refueling, and recreation.

There was a time … once upon a time … in the beginning, when this rest and refreshment happened every seven days, modeled by our Creator, when He rested on the seventh day, after Creation.

In our busy world today, filled with work that continues (thanks to technologies) 24-7, recreation that is more like competition, and rest that includes purchasing groceries, doing laundry and mowing the lawn, rest is so needed.

So, if you have the benefit of a Spring Break, make sure that you are being refueled and refreshed … there are still thirteen weeks until summer break 😉 .

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Spring Is Sprung

Posted in WONDER, tagged Archie Bunker, Grandmother, hyacinth, Memories, Nanny, planted bulbs, signs of spring, Spring, Spring in the Bronx, spring is sprung on March 19, 2013| 2 Comments »

Spring in the Bronx

Spring is sprung,
Duh grass is riz;
I wonder where dem boidies is?

Dey say duh boid is on duh wing:
But dat’s absoid!
Duh wing is on duh boid!
Anonymous

Tomorrow is the first day of spring, 2013!

When I read the words to the above poem, I read them hearing the voice (and accent) of Archie Bunker!

I used to hear this poem from various relatives when I was a child. Sometimes, though, instead of reciting “I wonder where dem boidies is” I would hear, “I wonder where dem flowers is?” This was perhaps because I grew up in the Northeast, where “dem flowers” were still buried by many feet of snow on the first day of spring.

hyacinth For my adult years spring is not marked by a date on the calendar, but by the presence of planted bulbs in pots at the grocery store.

As an adult, a planted hyacinth was often the gift of my maternal grandmother, Nanny. It was always purple (even though the color could barely be discerned when she purchased it), her favorite color. It was always a strong, heady scent that emerged, almost before it bloomed.

That scent, the perfume of the hyacinth flower says, ‘spring’ to my soul.

As a child it was the scent of mud that said spring to me. The winter’s snow would melt, allowing the warming sun to thaw the frozen earth. It would soften and cake our boots and shoes, causing the most ‘earthy’ scent to rise to our nostrils. Causing our thoughts to drift to warmer days, warmer activities.

This new sign of spring, that of the hyacinth scent, also takes me to warmer thoughts. Thoughts from my childhood days with my grandmother. Thoughts of taking a city bus from her home into town, to shop, and always to have lunch in a cafeteria. Thoughts of picking raspberries with her, then we would take them to her kitchen where she would make a pie from them … she made the best raspberry pie! Thoughts of her nodding off in her chair, crossword in hand, game show on the telly. Thoughts of her visiting when our oldest was still a preschooler, sitting snugly beside her, as my grandmother read her a story from a picture book … my grandmother with an uncompleted grammar school education. Thoughts of her faded Scottish brogue. Thoughts of her giggle.

The first signs of spring, the flowers in the pots, don’t take me forward to spring, they take me back, to the loving relationship I had with my Nanny.

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Life is Fragile

Posted in WONDER, tagged blessed, inhaling their scent, Life, life is a miracle, life is fragile, life is short, love in action, Mom, Pregnancy Loss, Teenagers on March 18, 2013| 3 Comments »

As I write this post my fatigue has tossed my adrenalin into the sea of forgetfulness.

I am sitting on an airplane, just one hour from my southeast destination, and almost seven from when I boarded a plane with two of my children, in the Pacific Northwest.

I have personally had only about an hours rest in the past twenty-four hours, and I am weary beyond words.

My daughter and son have finally found rest … One slumped over at the window, and the other weighing heavily on my shoulder.

As the adrenalin has faded away, as planning and packing and preparations have given way to fulfillment of our plans, my thoughts have turned to how very fragile life is. greeting-card-flower-life-is-fragile2

In recent days, as I have become aware of the death of a gentle man, of the tragedy of preschoolers left in life without a mommy and a daddy, of the heartbreak of a couple (and all their family) dealing with the news that the dreams of health and long life that they have had for their yet born baby will not be as dreamed …

the high levels of adrenalin have not allowed these events to pierce my heart …

until now.

Life is fragile.

Having had these two children of mine lay their heads on my shoulder in as many hours, turning towards the tops of their heads, inhaling the scents that are uniquely their own, reminiscing in my mind of the many times we have traveled together since their births, fatigued, frustrated and even infected by flu bugs …

I remember

how very blessed I am,
how very short life is.
how very fragile life is.

According to every source I checked (there were many), women under 35 years only have a 20-30% chance of conceiving each month, and about half of all conceptions end in miscarriage (most before the woman knows that she is pregnant).

I remember the agonies of losses of little, yet born babies, I remember vowing that those losses would not be in vain. I remember promising each of our children as I held them in my arms in different hospitals, in different cities, even different provinces, that I would not forget how very blessed I am to have the chance to be their mom …

that ‘mom’ would be more than a noun,
a title,
that mom would be a verb,
ACTION.
That I would not just ‘be called’ mom
I would be mom to them …
mom in action
LOVE in action.

As our newborns grow up to independent thinking teenagers, we forget to inhale, and drink in the scent that is uniquely theirs. We forget how just holding their newborn body in our arms brought us to tears, how the sight of their smile made us smile, how nothing mattered more to us than protecting our babies.

As parents of teenagers we need to get physically close enough to drink in that scent, we need to hold them close, we need to look at them, and smile … we need to protect our kids.

Or maybe, if we hold them close, if we can be still enough to be brought to tears just by holding them in our arms, if we smile at them … every day, maybe that will be a protective barrier around them, around their hearts.

Life is a miracle!

Life is fragile.

Love in action!

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Bullies Exist … To This Day

Posted in WONDER, tagged bullies exist, Canadian, Childhood, Dreams, name calling, shane koyczan, sticks and stones, TED, to this day on March 17, 2013| 3 Comments »

Every once in a while I check out the visual list of top watched videos on YouTube …

I work in a high school, I am a mom of a houseful of teens, and so I desire to be as current and aware of the culture that these teens live in as is humanly possible on my end.

Last weekend I was was drawn to a particular video on the list … not because of the number of views (although over six million is a significant number of views), but because I recognized the face … the face of the man whose shared gift impressed me most at the opening ceremonies of the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics.

“We Are More” is a spoken word poem that Shane Koyczan shared at that opening ceremony. With words and passion he defined all that is the nation of Canada, leaving our nation so stirred by national pride one could have mistaken us for our neighbors to the South. My favorite line from his poem was “so don’t let your luggage define your travels.”

And in the video I watched last weekend, he unpacked more baggage that we humans sometimes allow to defined define us … bullying.

In the first video is Shane speaking at the filming of his TED video of his entire poem. Although it is over twelve minutes, I recommend you watch that one!

This, second video is shorter (about seven and a half minutes), more visual, and I have included it because it is the one with over six million views (it is also the ‘cleaner’ video, the first has one line that ‘may’ be offensive to some) … I still recommend the first one … but, if you are short on time, go with number two … BUT spoken word is best heard when you can see the passion in the speaker speaking … just sayin’

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I Got To Shoot My Students!

Posted in WONDER, tagged Busy, child dedication, christ followers, Church, encourage, lazer tag, Memories, Momma Guilt, moms that I admire, Promises, Remember, School, social skills, Special Needs, Students, support, typical students on March 11, 2013| Leave a Comment »

It’s true!

I shot my students!

(even a few who are not my students)

And they LOVED it!

And they even shot me back!

Of course we were playing Lazer Tag, so the shooting was all on the up and up 😉 .

It was an event birthed in the repeated conversations between a pair of students (could there be a better place to birth an event for students?). Then one day, I heard one of the students mention it to their mom …

and I saw the ‘look’ …

the look that wordlessly said,

“I have put this off too long, but I have so much on my plate …”

When my children have friends over, my life becomes easier, for many with children with special needs, having a friend over can be more planning, more work, more exhaustive.

Months ago I had written a previous post of these “Moms That I Admire“, and in that mom’s facial expression of ‘momma guilt’ I was reminded again of how very heavy the burden of raising a child with special needs can be.

I was also reminded of a line from the child dedication ceremony that my hubby has led many a congregation in:

“Will you, upon hearing the commitments made by these parents, do your utmost as God gives you opportunity, to ensure the fulfillment of these promises and seek to encourage, support and be faithful to these parents and this family?”

The correct response is “we do” or “we will”

Back to these “Moms That I Admire” …

As the momma-guilt look showed all over this lovely but weighted down parent, the commitment from these child dedication ceremonies reminded me that part of our task … as Christ-followers … as friends … as schools, is to come alongside of these families. These families raising a child with special needs, need the support of His people, His churches and schools named for His Son to do the job well.

And I thought, “wouldn’t it be great to support these two families in a practical way.” So, the dreaming began. Then the dreaming was shared with a co-worker, and we began to run with it!

In the end, my co-worker and I, along with twelve students (half deemed ‘special ed.’ and half not or ), and a school alumni, left school at noon on a Friday , leaving their classmates to snooze through their afternoon classes. We donned the vests of the battle, issued mortal threats, complete with evil laughs, chose code names, then we marched off to battle.

An hour and a half later, sweaty and sticky (and stinky) … and laughing with great memories made, we headed for Slurpies, then a slow drive back to school … we didn’t want to get back too early … that would have meant having to return to classes!

You might be asking, “so, Carole, what academic benefit was there from this event?”

To which I would reply, “none.”

But the goal was NOT academic, it was purely social skills.

About half of the students are designated ‘special education’ students, and learning the skills to be socially acceptable in the larger society is a main factor in their learning (of course if anyone walks the halls of any high school, the majority of students might seem to need social skills learning … heck, if anyone were to walk into the staff room … but, I digress 😉 ). The best place to teach and reinforce these skills is in a true social setting, not in a classroom.

These students got to talk, interact, laugh and observe their more ‘typical’ peers in a social setting. There was no ‘us’ and ‘them’ that day, only ‘we’. The ‘typical’ students got to be noticed for the intrinsic way that they already care for their peers … a ‘thank-you’ that most probably did not feel necessary, as they are who they are because that is how they have responded to God’s call to “love their neighbor, classmate, as themselves” (Mark 12:31). These ‘typical’ students were chosen by their ‘not so typical’ peers … no higher praise could be earned!

I cannot wait to see and hear the interactions, and rehashing of memories next week in the halls and classrooms of school.

My favorite part was when my co-worker recounted the words of one of the boys, who said something to the effect of, “I think I will remember this for an exceptionally long time.”

I hope he does, I know I will too.

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