I've read on others' blogs that some blog "Thankful Thursday," a nod to Thanksgiving and a way of expressing profound and ongoing thanksgiving to the Father, Son, and Spirit for countless blessings. So I thought it appropriate to start the same on THE thankful Thursday. I'll start with Abraham Lincoln's words (borrowed from Malia) proclaiming the first national Thanksgiving observance:
The year that is drawing towards its close, has been filled with the blessings of fruitful fields and healthful skies. To these bounties, which are so constantly enjoyed that we are prone to forget the source from which they come, others have been added, which are of so extraordinary a nature, that they cannot fail to penetrate and soften even the heart which is habitually insensible to the ever watchful providence of Almighty God. In the midst of a civil war of unequalled magnitude and severity, which has sometimes seemed to foreign States to invite and to provoke their aggression, peace has been preserved with all nations, order has been maintained, the laws have been respected and obeyed, and harmony has prevailed everywhere except in the theatre of military conflict; while that theatre has been greatly contracted by the advancing armies and navies of the Union. Needful diversions of wealth and of strength from the fields of peaceful industry to the national defence, have not arrested the plough, the shuttle, or the ship; the axe had enlarged the borders of our settlements, and the mines, as well of iron and coal as of the precious metals, have yielded even more abundantly than heretofore. Population has steadily increased, notwithstanding the waste that has been made in the camp, the siege and the battle-field; and the country, rejoicing in the consciousness of augmented strength and vigor, is permitted to expect continuance of years, with large increase of freedom.No human counsel hath devised nor hath any mortal hand worked out these great things. They are the gracious gifts of the Most High God, who, while dealing with us in anger for our sins, hath nevertheless remembered mercy.It has seemed to me fit and proper that they should be solemnly, reverently and gratefully acknowledged as with one heart and voice by the whole American people. I do therefore invite my fellow citizens in every part of the United States, and also those who are at sea and those who are sojourning in foreign lands, to set apart and observe the last Thursday of November next, as a day of Thanksgiving and Praise to our beneficent Father who dwelleth in the Heavens. And I recommend to them that while offering up the ascriptions justly due to Him for such singular deliverances and blessings, they do also, with humble penitence for our national perverseness and disobedience, commend to his tender care all those who have become widows, orphans, mourners or sufferers in the lamentable civil strife in which we are unavoidably engaged, and fervently implore the interposition of the Almighty Hand to heal the wounds of the nation and to restore it as soon as may be consistent with the Divine purposes to the full enjoyment of peace, harmony, tranquillity and Union.
(Lincoln had such a gift verbal expression!)
I'm thankful for:
my family (loving husband, Bob; daughter, Loni and son, Trey, who are home with us today; Dad and Mom, who drove the long hours from North Carolina to be here today, too; daughter, Lisa, son via Lisa's marriage Dan, grandsons Nathaniel, Jeremy, and Derek)
extended family in California, New Jersey and Texas
our new church family in Mount Dora who has been so gracious, loving, accepting and has become so dear
our church family throughout the world, especially in Tabernacle (miss you!) and Randolph, New Jersey
holidays, especially the winter ones
God the Father's sacrifice of His precious Son; Christ my Savior's willingness to die so that I can live in fellowship with Them forever; the Holy Spirit Who indwells me, comforts me, guides me
for my relationship with the Godhead Who brought me/us through the most painful year of my life so far with grace, peace, patience, and assurance (and support, too, from His Body)
Thursday, November 23, 2006
Sunday, November 19, 2006
Trey's here!
Trey arrived safely from Harding. We met Katelin briefly. We've enjoyed a good visit so far, showing him the local sights and going to the movies last night (Bond - Casino Royale - best Bond so far, although I would have preferred it without the torture scene). The church enjoyed meeting the "phantom" son, and we've enjoyed stories of his Europe experience. Today after worship we had a leisurely (i.e. slow) meal at Outback. The weather is very cool for Florida - 60s daytime, low 50s or maybe 40s at night. Sorry, Trey, hopefully there will be warmer weather at the end of the week when we go to Universal.
Gotta defrost the turkey tomorrow and mail a birthday card for Bob's mom's birthday. Loni is looking forward to a 2-day week! Oh, and it's time to get serious about Christmas shopping!!
Gotta defrost the turkey tomorrow and mail a birthday card for Bob's mom's birthday. Loni is looking forward to a 2-day week! Oh, and it's time to get serious about Christmas shopping!!
Friday, November 17, 2006
Church connections
Tonight Bob and I were blessed with several instances of church interconnectedness; you know, where you meet someone in the church who knows someone you know . . . .
First instance: we attended the fund-raising chicken dinner at the Mount Dora Bible School. Susan Jenkins does public relations for the School and Home (and she's perfect for the job, an outgoing sweetheart!). Bob teased her about her accent, and she commented that she was a Texas girl. Me, too, I said (although my Texas connection is long ago, birth to about 12). She was from Ft. Worth. Dallas, I said. As we chatted, she said that she went to Fort Worth Christian School. Did she know Garland Johnson, I asked. Yes, and she knows the Jordan family, too. I explained that the Johnsons and Jordans were part of the Exodus Burlington Massachusetts church planting my family was part of in 1967. Garland Johnson was her PE teacher (after the Johnsons moved back to Fort Worth). Pam and Janelle Jordan were my age; we were in youth group together. Pam and Janelle, after their family's return to Fort Worth, went to school with Susan and are her age, too. She and I were friends with the same people at almost the same time. Small world in the Lord's church!
After the chicken dinner, there was a Southeast Gospel Hymn Sing (southeast of what? Well, I'm not sure. I think maybe Miami just might be further southeast in the US than we are. I need to inquire further on this topic). Anywho . . .
Second instance: a lady sat down in front of us, introduced herself, said she'd been looking for Bob and Pat Bliss. Her daughter knew us from working at camp or something. Well, she is Malia Carden's (http://maliakcarden.blogspot.com/) mother, Diane Ramsey. We know Malia from working together at Camp Manatawny in Pennsylvania. (She is married to David and they live in Tennessee. David grew up in New Jersey -- another connection, my dad was one of the ministers of his home church, Garretson Road/Bridgewater. Because of David's Manatawny history, he brings his wife and children to work at Manatawny each summer.) Malia's parents live in Tampa, and they came to Mount Dora for the singing. When Diane told Malia where they were going to be tonight, Malia said, "Look for my friends" or something like that.
BTW, Malia's father sang with a quartet during the evening - fabulous! (Our acappella singing group in Tabernacle, One Voice, called itself One Voice because that was our goal, to sing as "one voice." We didn't quite. This group does! And their harmony - Ramona, you'd be envious!)
Third instance (a little long and convoluted - try to follow along): one of the group, Rick Bonk, led singing for a good bit of the time we were present. He's got a great voice and led a bunch of my favorites, including "Days of Elijah." While introducing Rick to the group, James Moore from the Bible school mentioned that Rick's children were enroute from Harding. My antenna went up. Okay, a lot of Harding kids are enroute to various areas, including parts of Florida, and including this very region, tonight for Thanksgiving break. Trey, our son who is enroute tonight from Harding, is traveling to Florida (for the first time) with his girlfriend Kate (we don't know her last name yet) and with her friends, a married couple. What are the chances? Could they possibly be traveling together? Rick tells us that his two children traveling home are his daughter and son-in-law. Could it be? Further inquiry from us to Rick - anyone traveling home with your daughter and sil? Hmmm, a girl - yeah, her name is Kate, and - yup! her boyfriend, our son Trey!
Three instances of the Lord's small, small world in one night! Too fun! (Oh, and I almost forgot, Malia's cousin and wife worship with our daughter, Lisa, and her family in Blacksburg, VA. Make that four!) What a family is the Lord's church!
Speaking of the Lord's church, allow me to digress. I've been thinking about "the church of Christ" and how to regard it as something other than a denomination. "We" in the church of Christ claim that we're not a denomination, but we use the name "church of Christ" (big C, little c, which one is correct?) as a title even while arguing that it's not a title and suggest that it's the only correct name even while admitting that there are other names used in the New Testament. Here's a thought. How about, in our conversation with each other, just calling it the church (italics for emphasis)? You know, the Roman Catholics refer to their organization as "the church," and I believe they're incorrect in that claim. THE church is the one Christ established, the one which "we" try to be, and the one whose pattern we attempt to follow. What would it do to our attitude and mindset if we called ourselves, thought of ourselves as, simply, the church? And maybe it would generate conversation with others, church and unchurched. Just a thought. Ponder it. Comments welcome, requested.
First instance: we attended the fund-raising chicken dinner at the Mount Dora Bible School. Susan Jenkins does public relations for the School and Home (and she's perfect for the job, an outgoing sweetheart!). Bob teased her about her accent, and she commented that she was a Texas girl. Me, too, I said (although my Texas connection is long ago, birth to about 12). She was from Ft. Worth. Dallas, I said. As we chatted, she said that she went to Fort Worth Christian School. Did she know Garland Johnson, I asked. Yes, and she knows the Jordan family, too. I explained that the Johnsons and Jordans were part of the Exodus Burlington Massachusetts church planting my family was part of in 1967. Garland Johnson was her PE teacher (after the Johnsons moved back to Fort Worth). Pam and Janelle Jordan were my age; we were in youth group together. Pam and Janelle, after their family's return to Fort Worth, went to school with Susan and are her age, too. She and I were friends with the same people at almost the same time. Small world in the Lord's church!
After the chicken dinner, there was a Southeast Gospel Hymn Sing (southeast of what? Well, I'm not sure. I think maybe Miami just might be further southeast in the US than we are. I need to inquire further on this topic). Anywho . . .
Second instance: a lady sat down in front of us, introduced herself, said she'd been looking for Bob and Pat Bliss. Her daughter knew us from working at camp or something. Well, she is Malia Carden's (http://maliakcarden.blogspot.com/) mother, Diane Ramsey. We know Malia from working together at Camp Manatawny in Pennsylvania. (She is married to David and they live in Tennessee. David grew up in New Jersey -- another connection, my dad was one of the ministers of his home church, Garretson Road/Bridgewater. Because of David's Manatawny history, he brings his wife and children to work at Manatawny each summer.) Malia's parents live in Tampa, and they came to Mount Dora for the singing. When Diane told Malia where they were going to be tonight, Malia said, "Look for my friends" or something like that.
BTW, Malia's father sang with a quartet during the evening - fabulous! (Our acappella singing group in Tabernacle, One Voice, called itself One Voice because that was our goal, to sing as "one voice." We didn't quite. This group does! And their harmony - Ramona, you'd be envious!)
Third instance (a little long and convoluted - try to follow along): one of the group, Rick Bonk, led singing for a good bit of the time we were present. He's got a great voice and led a bunch of my favorites, including "Days of Elijah." While introducing Rick to the group, James Moore from the Bible school mentioned that Rick's children were enroute from Harding. My antenna went up. Okay, a lot of Harding kids are enroute to various areas, including parts of Florida, and including this very region, tonight for Thanksgiving break. Trey, our son who is enroute tonight from Harding, is traveling to Florida (for the first time) with his girlfriend Kate (we don't know her last name yet) and with her friends, a married couple. What are the chances? Could they possibly be traveling together? Rick tells us that his two children traveling home are his daughter and son-in-law. Could it be? Further inquiry from us to Rick - anyone traveling home with your daughter and sil? Hmmm, a girl - yeah, her name is Kate, and - yup! her boyfriend, our son Trey!
Three instances of the Lord's small, small world in one night! Too fun! (Oh, and I almost forgot, Malia's cousin and wife worship with our daughter, Lisa, and her family in Blacksburg, VA. Make that four!) What a family is the Lord's church!
Speaking of the Lord's church, allow me to digress. I've been thinking about "the church of Christ" and how to regard it as something other than a denomination. "We" in the church of Christ claim that we're not a denomination, but we use the name "church of Christ" (big C, little c, which one is correct?) as a title even while arguing that it's not a title and suggest that it's the only correct name even while admitting that there are other names used in the New Testament. Here's a thought. How about, in our conversation with each other, just calling it the church (italics for emphasis)? You know, the Roman Catholics refer to their organization as "the church," and I believe they're incorrect in that claim. THE church is the one Christ established, the one which "we" try to be, and the one whose pattern we attempt to follow. What would it do to our attitude and mindset if we called ourselves, thought of ourselves as, simply, the church? And maybe it would generate conversation with others, church and unchurched. Just a thought. Ponder it. Comments welcome, requested.
Tuesday, November 14, 2006
Why do they call them whirlwind trips?
Because of the brevity of our time away, I refer to it as a whirlwind trip, but it was anything but. Mostly it was just slogging along the interstates. Loni and I spent more time on the road, I think, than visiting with family. I don't think we'll try such a long (1400 miles) trip for such a brief stay again any time soon, unless it's for a VERY good reason (like I needed a GRANDCHILD FIX!!).
We left Florida Thursday night (destination Christiansburg, VA) and added quite a bit of time to our first evening by stopping too many times to "see if this exit has an Olive Garden." Finally found one, but it was very busy. Although we enjoyed the meal, we got to the motel at nearly 11 instead of 8 or 9. Consequently, we did not get up on Friday until 7 am and, since we needed a couple of books on tape to make the miles pass, Cracker Barrel seemed the only logical alternative for breakfast. (We listened to a great book, BTW -- The Halfmoon Detective Agency -- adolescent lit, fun read!)
When we arrived in Virginia, we hung out in the great yard at Dan and Lisa's nice, new (to them, this past summer) house, welcomed Nathan off the bus (big boy kindergartner!), celebrated Derek's 2nd birthday (read about this sweet boy in Lisa's blog), ate a yummy dinner (thanks, Lisa), and watched Cars until after first Derek, then Jeremy and Nathan fell asleep. On Saturday we hung out, went to Sonic (family favorite!) for lunch, then to Walmart and Target, of course. Back to their house for hanging out and another yummy dinner and then left to drive to Charlotte to spend the night at the folks'.
We drove through the Blue Ridge mountains in the dark in a blinding, pouring thunderstorm (I thought any minute lightning would strike the car or we'd get washed off the mountain!). The rain was heavy enough for high speed windshield wipers nearly the whole way, and I got cramped fingers and a backache from gripping the steering wheel so hard and instinctively leaning forward trying to see through the deluge. We probably should have stopped to spend the night, but thankfully, God kept us and those around us safe.
Sunday morning we woke up in the folks' nice new house to sparkling sunshine and beautiful foliage, drove to worship with Dad and Mom, ate at a local buffet, and drove the many hours and miles home. (Lisa Scottoline, this time - interesting story and a good distraction, but wish she would clean up the language and, ahem, other things which are somehow worse to listen to than the skim in the text. Glad for fast forward on the CD deck. Don't recommend this one for these reasons.)
Loni and I were wishing that Mapquest would somehow calculate in some time for obligatory fueling and potty breaks. The trip took much longer than calculated and expected! We were glad to drive up Tremont Drive and park in our own driveway (and we know to add a couple of hours to the trip for slow traffic and those necessary breaks).
It has taken me two days to recover (Loni had to go right back to work Monday morning but there were no sub jobs Monday or Tuesday - thank you, Father). We both agree that a longer stay is a must to balance the rigors of this trip next time. And I think Bob won't let us go without him next time, either! (Thanks, sweetie, for letting the gals make this trip without you.)
We left Florida Thursday night (destination Christiansburg, VA) and added quite a bit of time to our first evening by stopping too many times to "see if this exit has an Olive Garden." Finally found one, but it was very busy. Although we enjoyed the meal, we got to the motel at nearly 11 instead of 8 or 9. Consequently, we did not get up on Friday until 7 am and, since we needed a couple of books on tape to make the miles pass, Cracker Barrel seemed the only logical alternative for breakfast. (We listened to a great book, BTW -- The Halfmoon Detective Agency -- adolescent lit, fun read!)
When we arrived in Virginia, we hung out in the great yard at Dan and Lisa's nice, new (to them, this past summer) house, welcomed Nathan off the bus (big boy kindergartner!), celebrated Derek's 2nd birthday (read about this sweet boy in Lisa's blog), ate a yummy dinner (thanks, Lisa), and watched Cars until after first Derek, then Jeremy and Nathan fell asleep. On Saturday we hung out, went to Sonic (family favorite!) for lunch, then to Walmart and Target, of course. Back to their house for hanging out and another yummy dinner and then left to drive to Charlotte to spend the night at the folks'.
We drove through the Blue Ridge mountains in the dark in a blinding, pouring thunderstorm (I thought any minute lightning would strike the car or we'd get washed off the mountain!). The rain was heavy enough for high speed windshield wipers nearly the whole way, and I got cramped fingers and a backache from gripping the steering wheel so hard and instinctively leaning forward trying to see through the deluge. We probably should have stopped to spend the night, but thankfully, God kept us and those around us safe.
Sunday morning we woke up in the folks' nice new house to sparkling sunshine and beautiful foliage, drove to worship with Dad and Mom, ate at a local buffet, and drove the many hours and miles home. (Lisa Scottoline, this time - interesting story and a good distraction, but wish she would clean up the language and, ahem, other things which are somehow worse to listen to than the skim in the text. Glad for fast forward on the CD deck. Don't recommend this one for these reasons.)
Loni and I were wishing that Mapquest would somehow calculate in some time for obligatory fueling and potty breaks. The trip took much longer than calculated and expected! We were glad to drive up Tremont Drive and park in our own driveway (and we know to add a couple of hours to the trip for slow traffic and those necessary breaks).
It has taken me two days to recover (Loni had to go right back to work Monday morning but there were no sub jobs Monday or Tuesday - thank you, Father). We both agree that a longer stay is a must to balance the rigors of this trip next time. And I think Bob won't let us go without him next time, either! (Thanks, sweetie, for letting the gals make this trip without you.)
Tuesday, November 07, 2006
November Weather Trade Off
Okay, I discovered the trade-off to yesterday's wonderful weather: a cold front passed through today and brought the threat of tornados! While we weren't immediately threatened, it was a little disconcerting to face this kind of severe weather in November. So, just to set the record straight - even November weather in Florida isn't perfect. (We needed the rain, though -- our gauge measured 1 1/4 inches.)
Sidenote - I left the windows wide open when I left for work this morning. Good thing the kitchen has tile floors and the windowsill is marble instead of wood. This house doesn't have the wide eaves and gutters that our NJ "parsonage" did, so I'll have to be more cautious. Other rooms weren't so dramatically affected, even the computer room, thankfully.
Loni and I are headed for Virginia and North Carolina Thursday for a 3-day weekend. We'll have to dig out the winter clothes, I guess! (Clean, but wrinkled.) I will actually have to wear socks and shoes other than sandals or Crocs!
Sidenote - I left the windows wide open when I left for work this morning. Good thing the kitchen has tile floors and the windowsill is marble instead of wood. This house doesn't have the wide eaves and gutters that our NJ "parsonage" did, so I'll have to be more cautious. Other rooms weren't so dramatically affected, even the computer room, thankfully.
Loni and I are headed for Virginia and North Carolina Thursday for a 3-day weekend. We'll have to dig out the winter clothes, I guess! (Clean, but wrinkled.) I will actually have to wear socks and shoes other than sandals or Crocs!
Sunday, November 05, 2006
Florida Trade-Offs 2
I'm not sure there's any down side to tonight's trade-off. Wiener and marshmallow roast, sunset bonfire, and softball and kickball games in t-shirts in November!
Today was Friends and Family Day at the Mount Dora church - after morning services we traveled (a whole 15 minute drive!) to Central Florida Bible Camp for a potluck (I estimate that there were about 130 there for lunch), afternoon games indoors and out, a devotional service (indoors), a bonfire/wiener roast and smores, and a hayride. The last part of the event was at the fire circle by the lake just after sunset. Sandhill cranes and a heron (I think) were on the lake. Horses grazed in the field by the home on the hill overlooking the lake. The camp is nestled under long leaf pines and pin oaks. It was a lovely day.
On an interesting side-note concerning our new location and our first Halloween here: our previous homes have been "parsonages" beside or near the church building, not in neighborhoods. This is the first time we've lived in a neighborhood (and it's a very nice one, too). We had been warned about Halloween - no, not pranks, but the crowds. We currently live in a neighborhood desirable to trick-or-treaters. People bring carloads of children from other areas to visit. I think, based on how much candy I bought vs. left over that we had about 150-200 kids. Whew! It was hard to even take bites of dinner between doorbell rings. A couple of the kids recognized me as a substitute teacher they had had. That was fun. (No, they weren't from the neighborhood here . . . .)
Dinner interrupted by doorbell reminds me of another Halloween treat we received: long-time friends, Bill and Margaret Stockman, whom we haven't seen in over ten years, stopped by for a visit on their way from their Kentucky home to their winter digs in Ft. Lauderdale. I managed not to poison Margaret (she has life-threatening allergies to additives like MSG which are hidden in many foods) so it looks like they'll return when they pass through again in the spring. We look forward to that.
That's another unexpected plus to living here: in the 3 1/2 months we've been here, we've had three families/couples visit us from our previous congregations. Fun! Our door is open. Come on by.
Call or email us to book your stay in our guestroom, and have a great week.
Today was Friends and Family Day at the Mount Dora church - after morning services we traveled (a whole 15 minute drive!) to Central Florida Bible Camp for a potluck (I estimate that there were about 130 there for lunch), afternoon games indoors and out, a devotional service (indoors), a bonfire/wiener roast and smores, and a hayride. The last part of the event was at the fire circle by the lake just after sunset. Sandhill cranes and a heron (I think) were on the lake. Horses grazed in the field by the home on the hill overlooking the lake. The camp is nestled under long leaf pines and pin oaks. It was a lovely day.
On an interesting side-note concerning our new location and our first Halloween here: our previous homes have been "parsonages" beside or near the church building, not in neighborhoods. This is the first time we've lived in a neighborhood (and it's a very nice one, too). We had been warned about Halloween - no, not pranks, but the crowds. We currently live in a neighborhood desirable to trick-or-treaters. People bring carloads of children from other areas to visit. I think, based on how much candy I bought vs. left over that we had about 150-200 kids. Whew! It was hard to even take bites of dinner between doorbell rings. A couple of the kids recognized me as a substitute teacher they had had. That was fun. (No, they weren't from the neighborhood here . . . .)
Dinner interrupted by doorbell reminds me of another Halloween treat we received: long-time friends, Bill and Margaret Stockman, whom we haven't seen in over ten years, stopped by for a visit on their way from their Kentucky home to their winter digs in Ft. Lauderdale. I managed not to poison Margaret (she has life-threatening allergies to additives like MSG which are hidden in many foods) so it looks like they'll return when they pass through again in the spring. We look forward to that.
That's another unexpected plus to living here: in the 3 1/2 months we've been here, we've had three families/couples visit us from our previous congregations. Fun! Our door is open. Come on by.
Call or email us to book your stay in our guestroom, and have a great week.
Thursday, November 02, 2006
Trials and Tribulations of a Sub
. . . sub as in guest teacher, that is, not sub-human, although I feel like it sometimes.
Today was one of those days. One good thing (think positively, Pat, not negatively!) was that I don't have to return to their classroom tomorrow. Oops, that's not really a "whatever is lovely, etc." perspective, is it?
It started out so well. I was returning to a classroom with children I'd subbed with on a previous occasion, for two days, and had pretty good days. The first child into the room, a boy, said, "Mrs. Bliss!" and threw his arms around me for a hug, and then repeated the hug. Gonna be a great day, I thought.
Same child (related to Jekyl/Hyde?) got cross-ways with another student mid-morning and threw a temper tantrum, kicking his backpack and pushing his books off his desk across the aisle. Whoa! Without going into details, his actions and comments of other students (Mrs. X lets him do that) made me tread lightly, trying not to further exacerbate his anger. I try to do everything possible myself to avoid having to send a student to the office. In 13+ years, I've only sent 2 or 3. So I tried to ignore his attitude and continue instruction. (If looks could kill, I might not be blogging this.)
At lunchtime I passed through the teacher's lounge; Mrs. X told me that the other grade level teachers had been complimenting me from my previous visit to her class. (We'd gone on a field trip and they'd observed me with the students.) She told the others, "She wants to be a teacher," and another kindly commented that I was SO ready. Huh! I returned to the classroom for my lunchbox and then went back to the lounge to get the Mrs. X's advice concerning Jekyl/Hyde. "Oh, is he misbehaving for you? He hasn't done that for a while. I'm so sorry. Use such-and-such form from my desk and send him to the office if you need to." Ok, I felt better prepared. If I needed to, I would send him this afternoon and not feel like a failure.
After lunch, the assistant principal stopped in and asked how things are going. Okay, I said, except for J/H. "Send him to the office if you need to." But J/H's behavior had improved (probably because he saw my quiet conversation with Mr. AP?). Then Mrs. X popped in and called him out of the room. Good, she'll have a chat with him. But he didn't return for most of the afternoon. Hmm. Then, when he returned, he tells other students, with a big smile on his face, that he was playing a writing game on the computer next door! What!? He got rewarded??!!
Now, I want you to know that the rest of the class was mostly cooperative and sweet, if too chatty during transitions. Even J/H had his sweet side. Perhaps Mrs. X does everything she can to keep Jekyl in the classroom and Hyde out, even if it means jollying him along and bribing (er, persuading) him with special treatment. And I know there's more to this situation than what I see on the surface and I'm not privy to it, so I'll try to reserve judgment and be better prepared next time I go into this classroom.
I am grateful for all the lessons I've learned about classroom management from the various experiences, difficult and delightful, that I have had. I honestly think I'll be better prepared as a classroom teacher should God and the school district give me the opportunity.
I just thought I'd share "a day in the life." (Mothers, remind your children to be kind to guest teachers, please? Maybe they'll listen.)
Today was one of those days. One good thing (think positively, Pat, not negatively!) was that I don't have to return to their classroom tomorrow. Oops, that's not really a "whatever is lovely, etc." perspective, is it?
It started out so well. I was returning to a classroom with children I'd subbed with on a previous occasion, for two days, and had pretty good days. The first child into the room, a boy, said, "Mrs. Bliss!" and threw his arms around me for a hug, and then repeated the hug. Gonna be a great day, I thought.
Same child (related to Jekyl/Hyde?) got cross-ways with another student mid-morning and threw a temper tantrum, kicking his backpack and pushing his books off his desk across the aisle. Whoa! Without going into details, his actions and comments of other students (Mrs. X lets him do that) made me tread lightly, trying not to further exacerbate his anger. I try to do everything possible myself to avoid having to send a student to the office. In 13+ years, I've only sent 2 or 3. So I tried to ignore his attitude and continue instruction. (If looks could kill, I might not be blogging this.)
At lunchtime I passed through the teacher's lounge; Mrs. X told me that the other grade level teachers had been complimenting me from my previous visit to her class. (We'd gone on a field trip and they'd observed me with the students.) She told the others, "She wants to be a teacher," and another kindly commented that I was SO ready. Huh! I returned to the classroom for my lunchbox and then went back to the lounge to get the Mrs. X's advice concerning Jekyl/Hyde. "Oh, is he misbehaving for you? He hasn't done that for a while. I'm so sorry. Use such-and-such form from my desk and send him to the office if you need to." Ok, I felt better prepared. If I needed to, I would send him this afternoon and not feel like a failure.
After lunch, the assistant principal stopped in and asked how things are going. Okay, I said, except for J/H. "Send him to the office if you need to." But J/H's behavior had improved (probably because he saw my quiet conversation with Mr. AP?). Then Mrs. X popped in and called him out of the room. Good, she'll have a chat with him. But he didn't return for most of the afternoon. Hmm. Then, when he returned, he tells other students, with a big smile on his face, that he was playing a writing game on the computer next door! What!? He got rewarded??!!
Now, I want you to know that the rest of the class was mostly cooperative and sweet, if too chatty during transitions. Even J/H had his sweet side. Perhaps Mrs. X does everything she can to keep Jekyl in the classroom and Hyde out, even if it means jollying him along and bribing (er, persuading) him with special treatment. And I know there's more to this situation than what I see on the surface and I'm not privy to it, so I'll try to reserve judgment and be better prepared next time I go into this classroom.
I am grateful for all the lessons I've learned about classroom management from the various experiences, difficult and delightful, that I have had. I honestly think I'll be better prepared as a classroom teacher should God and the school district give me the opportunity.
I just thought I'd share "a day in the life." (Mothers, remind your children to be kind to guest teachers, please? Maybe they'll listen.)
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