~waiting in faith~

I've been thinking about the kids from school these past few days and wondering how things are going for them.  I miss them and the predictable routine that my days with them would provide.  Mike and I had to make yet another trip to Lowe's a few days back and we happened to run into one of the 4th grade girls in the garden section.  She was there with her parents, shopping for things just like we were.  How wonderful it was to see her face light up when she saw us coming in.  I heard her yell my name, so we stopped to exchange a good hug and five minutes of conversation with one another.  It made my day.

It is with those kids in mind that I am working on something this summer.  I always told them that I would try to make it to the 1,000th blogpost of this site before school ended in May. Unfortunately, that didn't happen.  Too many other things seemed to get in the way and before I knew it, I was out of time.  This particular blogpost is the 958th one and if I do the math correctly, I am 42 stories shy of the mark.  So my new goal is to reach the 1,000th post by summer's end.  Perhaps I shall make it, perhaps I shall not.  I'm still going to give it a try.

I have used this blog as a teaching tool since its inception back in May of 2011.  Five years have passed since then and many stories have been told and some retold once again.  In the classroom I have used it to teach story idea, revising and editing, sentence structure, word choice, conventions, and oh yes....one other thing.

I have used it to teach children that I am human, just like anyone else.

My stories have told of my life from the past 5 years.  I have written them honestly and with purpose. I never kept the story of "old lefty" a secret from them.  They know what a stupid, split-second decision can do to a person's body, especially a left arm.  Those children are aware of the fact, just by reading what I write, that sometimes I get sad and depressed about life. They also realize that when those times come that the best medicine to get over the sadness is to sit down at the computer and write until the bad feeling goes away.  Any student that I have taught ends up knowing a whole lot about me, just by reading this blog.  By the way, as if you already didn't know it, children are very smart and savvy about the ways of this world.  They figure everything out rather quickly.

Although I won't be with them with the school year starts up in August, I will still be thinking about them and wishing them very well.  I don't know yet what I will be doing but I sure hope to find a school very soon.  Until that happens for me, I wait in faith that God has already put a very mighty plan into place and a school teacher from Kansas/Colorado/and now Texas will have a classroom of kids in nearby Oklahoma to teach as well as learn from come this August.  If you would, please pray for me that I will find a place to make a difference once again.  Wherever I can help is where I want to be.  I'm thankful to have had 38 years and keep hoping in my heart that I can make it all the way to year #40 before I say that I am truly finished.

Only God knows what lies ahead.
Waiting in faith is where you will find me.

                                         Year #32 back home in Hutchinson, Kansas 

                           God blessed me with 6 years more.  Who would have thought?