Prayer Needed

I went to the hospital yesterday to visit our school librarian and friend, she just found out that her 3 year old daughter has cancer. While a few of us were there visiting the doctor came in to talk to them about how the surgery had gone. When we went back into the room she told us that the doctor gave her daughter a 45- 50% chance of survival after 7 months of chemo and radiation. The cancer started in her kidney and has made its way up to her neck. She had 5 miscarriages and then went through tons of fertility stuff in order to have her. Corinna only had 1/2 a uterus so it was a miracle that they had this little girl. Corinna is the most optimistic person I have ever met, she kept saying how her daughter was the miracle baby and how she beat the odds to get here and she would beat them again. She knows the power of prayer, she kept saying that prayer is proven and she wants us all to pray. I know God gave her Johnny Cherie because He knew she would be a testiment to His grace and I know that she was given to Corinna because God made Corinna so optimistic. If anyone reads this, please pray for them!!

"Freedom Writers"

Laid up on the couch I have watched A LOT of TV and movies- yesterday out of bordom I went through Pay Per View and got "Freedom Writers". It is a teacher movie and it was fantastic! My thoughts were of hopelessness- how do we make a difference for kids who grow up with all strikes against them? A very naive young teacher steps in and decides that she is going to win these kids for hope. It was so much like my life- not that I am that inspiring to all my students or that I have made that great of an impact but that going to work you hear, "these kids can't read that", "these kids won't do homework", "I am just babysitting these kids". I got the chance to do staff development this year and I flat out said that I didn't want to hear "these kids" anywhere on campus- they are "our kids" and until we believe in our kids they will succeed only to our expectations! Is it naive to believe that all kids can learn? NO!!! I think it takes some naive optimism to walk into a gang ridden neighborhood where cars are stolen, people are shot, and kids cuss you out for fun. Once you get past the exterior you see, they are just kids. They are insecure, moldable, seeking acceptance, and they do want to succeed! The movie showed something wonderful about teaching- it showed that you have to be willing to make a fool out of yourself, you try to relate but the fact is that you are the enemy in some ways because you are older and authority. That is a natural state of being. If you try for complete authority you lose them, if you try for friendship, you lose them. Teachers aren't meant to be "cool", they are meant to be trusted, they should be the ridiculous cheerleader in kids lives, they should call kids out when they aren't doing what they should, and they should expect more from the kids than any voices that tell them they can't. I think I am great at making a fool out of myself, I have fun with my kids, I teach in ways that most kids can learn but I need to work on setting higher expectations. I want my kids to pass, sometimes that means that I am too easy on them. A new summer project- pray for God to change my mindset so that I can create students who know they can do the hard things!