Inside the Mind of a Jesus Follower

   I teach my students about the power of perspective and getting out of their comfort zone all the time, but sometimes I need to listen to my own “preaching.”     Gavin and I have been preparing for a major move 4700 miles away from our cozy Alaskan home.   Gavin has earned a position as Director of Medical Simulation at the College of Medicine for the University of Central Florida, and I will be teaching at the most academically prestigious high school in Florida, Hagerty High School. We are actually enroute on our newest adventure from the Alaskan Tundra to Florida beaches.   It will be quite a change in scenery and climate, but after the -17 degree temperature we had last week, 75 sounds heavenly.   Outside of the weather, I have had mixed emotions about the move, but have cast my burdens upon the Lord. I have been keeping this move quiet for a while in an attempt to transition my students, families and to help prepare my replacement a...

Family Portrait Education is more than just reading, writing and arithmetic; it is learning how to solve problems that will inevitably arise in your life. Education is developing the tools to figure out how to survive in the world, and how to become a citizen of humanity. Therefore, education, is not something you obtain just from sitting in a desk while listening to an expert in the field. Education is learning how to deal with the road that lies ahead, and overcoming the obstacles, which block your path. In the past few days I have learned so much about reaching the impossible and fighting for love because of the Lettington family. I am a believer in Christ, and have faith in the love of His people. However, I never expected the outpouring of love and support for this young family. I received an education in the last two days about the power of prayer, and the love of people.  Celebrating Life's Moments There have been 1755 viewers scattered across the U.S., Germany, So...

Blow the dust off your yearbook, and take a walk down memory lane with me. Take a look at all those shining faces filled with promise, potential and hope. I scan these images of my past and let the memories wash over me. I wonder how many of us imagined we would be where we are today. I cannot help but notice that there are many faces I have not seen since high school, and I do not know where they are or what they are doing with their lives. It is amazing how time flies and how easy it is to lose touch with those we spent everyday with for so many years. There are friends I never thought would become memories, but sadly I have lost touch with them. This is life of course, and we all grow up and move on eventually. Yet, as a teenager you dream big, and see life with a sort of hunger and fire we tend to lose as adults. We think we will never grow old, we are invincible and we will always have one another's back. I was privileged enough to attend a high school in a small tow...

I love lunch at school, but not for the same reasons I enjoyed it as a child. As a kid, who loved to eat, I could not wait until lunch because it meant a break from the monotony, something warm to fill my belly, and time to read my book.  However, now that I am a teacher I enjoy lunch because it gives me an opportunity to reach out to my kids, and to have conversations outside of the normal classroom environment. Some teachers do not want their lunch time interrupted, and this is completely understandable.  Honestly, there are days when I could really use some down time to "stew" in my office, void of any noise. Days when I would enjoy being able to block out the world for 30 minutes and read a book to relax. However, there never seems to be enough time to connect to my kids or their families, and lunch is a perfect opportunity to squeeze in those few extra relational minutes. Having time to meet with my students during lunch is not something I just decided to do one ...

The smell of clean hallways, new notebooks, and freshly sharpened pencils have always been  delightful aromas in my opinion. So, for me, the first day of school is one filled with lots of pleasing scents infused with promise and hope. I see a clean piece of paper as a blank piece of opportunity to share powerful thoughts. A freshly sharpened pencil is the tool that can inscribe a message into the future.  A clean locker is an area soon to be filled with personality not just empty Red Bull cans.  My classroom, freshly decorated, organized and scrubbed is a room waiting on it's new family. Yes, I love the first day of school! My first day 2012 Today as I was standing in the hallway, I was enjoying the buzz and excitement milling around me.  I watched students come pouring into the building from all directions. They were all dressed in their best, and some tried not to look too pressed and clean, but they all looked nice. Even though, they were wearing diffe...

The teenage population is highly unpredictable, and full of flair and colorful language to say the least. I believe my face turns beat red on a daily basis. I am embarrassed easily, but sometimes it is a small slip of the tongue that causes the most interesting moments. I learned the hard way that when a student uses a word that I do not understand, I pretend to know what it means, then go check www.urbandictionary.com . Never, and I mean never, ask the student what that term means. You may be getting much more information than you bargained for. Hence, I now understand the differences in the colors of showers. Please do not ask because I will not explain that reference, as it was mortifying the first time. There are a few things that have not changed in the minds of kids though. The terminology that still brings laughter  no matter the age of the students are any words that have to do with bodily functions, body parts, or noises that can be made with any body part. I cannot t...

I know the moment when my life changed forever. The details of the last few minutes of “normal” are etched in my memory, and after 23 years the images have not faded.  I was skipping with my classmates to “Skip to My Lou My Darling,” when the secretary came into my first grade classroom and asked me to follow her to the office. I still remember the somber look on her face, and how long the hallway seemed as she stoically escorted me to the front doors. I was scared, and I was trying to rack my brain for any inclination of what I could have done wrong to get sent to the office. I was a good kid, and never did anything “bad.” In-fact, I hardly ever talked, and had never had problems with anyone in school.  When I saw my aunt standing by the front doors, I sighed with relief and smiled.  However, whatever relief I felt at seeing her standing there was short lived because I could tell something was wrong. It was a long agonizing few minutes as she quietly def...