At the end of every year, I like to set goals for the next and LOOOOOVE to pick out a theme scripture, song, and a sorta cheesy picture that all go along with what I hope the year will bring.
I just wanted to come back and say that I've picked a theme song for 2010, practically 4 months into the year. It hasn't been too terribly long ago that I've shared this song with you, but when I sing it...I SING MY HEART OUT!! Because it reminds me of how much grace has been extended to us by the One who loves more than we could ever comprehend. And it's Easter...and there was a great sacrifice that has allowed my soul to feel its worth!
My ultimate goal in life is to share beauty, even in the midst of ashes, that only God Himself brings to such a messy time on earth.
So here again is the song:
Monday, March 29, 2010
Thursday, March 25, 2010
The Rewards
When I was in college, I idealized my class. How all my students would listen when I said listen, sit when I said sit, walk in a perfect little line, and get perfect grades because they already know everything. I'm there to help them review to not forget.
But, the truth is that school doesn't work like that. And I like that isn't like that!
Today, I got the best note I have ever, EVER received from the students I've had/met. Remember my little buddy that gave me the warmest welcome on my first day? The one who got suspended before the day even started? And since then, I've been reasoning with him. On one of those occasions, I asked, "Do you understand why I'm saying this to you?" He replies, "Yes, sir!" To which I responded, "It's, 'Yes, ma'am." And his witty self said, "Well, you look like a man!" Hahaha! Okay, truth is I didn't laugh. I said to him that if he continues to be rude, he will end up a lonely man.
Well, the week before last, I was as sick as a dog. I woke up completely sick on Monday morning. I called in and slept the entire day. Hating to miss school, I woke up the next morning and braved it. I went to school...which only made it worse. I lost my voice completely. I didn't go to school the rest of the week. The week after that was Spring Break (which was AWESOME!) and so it was 2 weeks since I had seen my students. I missed them, but was scared of the unknown. What the heck will they be like when I get back?
They were ECSTATIC to see me. I didn't realize the extent of the excitement until I received this note from my little buddy.
You are the best and I like you and when you was sick I missed you and I thought you will never come back
but when you came in this morning I was so happy.
But, the truth is that school doesn't work like that. And I like that isn't like that!
Today, I got the best note I have ever, EVER received from the students I've had/met. Remember my little buddy that gave me the warmest welcome on my first day? The one who got suspended before the day even started? And since then, I've been reasoning with him. On one of those occasions, I asked, "Do you understand why I'm saying this to you?" He replies, "Yes, sir!" To which I responded, "It's, 'Yes, ma'am." And his witty self said, "Well, you look like a man!" Hahaha! Okay, truth is I didn't laugh. I said to him that if he continues to be rude, he will end up a lonely man.
Well, the week before last, I was as sick as a dog. I woke up completely sick on Monday morning. I called in and slept the entire day. Hating to miss school, I woke up the next morning and braved it. I went to school...which only made it worse. I lost my voice completely. I didn't go to school the rest of the week. The week after that was Spring Break (which was AWESOME!) and so it was 2 weeks since I had seen my students. I missed them, but was scared of the unknown. What the heck will they be like when I get back?
They were ECSTATIC to see me. I didn't realize the extent of the excitement until I received this note from my little buddy.
You are the best and I like you and when you was sick I missed you and I thought you will never come back
but when you came in this morning I was so happy.
I showed some teachers and they asked how in the world I got it out of this kid? And I just smiled. They have no idea how much I pray for him specifically and how much I actually care!
This is a happy day! Very happy day!
This is a happy day! Very happy day!
Wednesday, March 24, 2010
Sacrifice
Since I started my job in February, I haven't read a book in its entirety and I'm craving a GOOD page turner and I can't seem to either a) find the right book or b) stay awake long enough to peak any sort of interest. I hope to make up for the lack of reading for fun in the summer.
And I hope that one year in, I'm in a groove to be able to read for fun all the time...even during the school year. Have I mentioned how much I LOVE reading? I do. A LOT! And I MISS it!
If you have any book suggestions leave a comment.
And I hope that one year in, I'm in a groove to be able to read for fun all the time...even during the school year. Have I mentioned how much I LOVE reading? I do. A LOT! And I MISS it!
If you have any book suggestions leave a comment.
Saturday, February 27, 2010
What goes around comes around...
Dear Ms. Hartwig,
Remember when I was in third grade and I had a favorite teacher whose name was Ms. Reed? Remember? She was soooooo cool!! She had the "IT" factor without even knowing she had it...She made learning fun and she wore such cool clothes. She was so chill. On casual Fridays, she'd wear overalls. And on one of those Fridays, there was in grasshopper in the room and she didn't freak out about it. She didn't kill it either. Instead, she caught it with her BARE hands and then released it to the outdoors where it belonged. I thought - WOW, I really want to be like her!!
And then...well, I'm not sure what the circumstances were (except that you were new to town from Iowa), but you took over. And you were completely different from her. You wore skirt suits. You wore hose. You always wore heels! And...You never DARED to wear a pair of overalls. I hated that! I thought you were too uptight and I thought you wore too much make-up! And I made fun of your hair that didn't seem too move...
Yeah...that was my perspective as a third grader. But now that I'm in your shoes, I just want to say I'm so sorry for giving you hell. I remember the torture I caused you! I remember you asking me to go back to my seat so nicely and my stubborn self decided: I think I'll just stay here...on the floor and I will not move! Remember? I do! You literally had to drag me by the arm to my seat. And I remember the entire class gave you such a difficult time that you had us eat a silent lunch in the classroom with the Assistant Principal standing beside you! There was no escaping! I don't remember when I started to take you seriously, but I do remember I did end up liking you.
I've been thinking a lot about you! I've been wondering if we wore you out so bad that you took naps as soon as you got home? Did you wonder if you were going to make it? Did you talk so horribly about me to your whoever your go-to person was? Did you see any progress in our (okay...MY) behavior? Did your third grade team give you suggestions on how to handle us? I hope I didn't lead you to cynicism.
Thanks for being a brave soul to take a class mid-year. Thanks for having the patience (even if it was just surface level) for me. And thanks for putting me in my place. I really appreciate it...now more than ever.
Your fellow colleague,
Ms. Márquez
P.S. YES...I still wonder about your hair, but I'll cut you some slack because it was the EIGHTIES!
Remember when I was in third grade and I had a favorite teacher whose name was Ms. Reed? Remember? She was soooooo cool!! She had the "IT" factor without even knowing she had it...She made learning fun and she wore such cool clothes. She was so chill. On casual Fridays, she'd wear overalls. And on one of those Fridays, there was in grasshopper in the room and she didn't freak out about it. She didn't kill it either. Instead, she caught it with her BARE hands and then released it to the outdoors where it belonged. I thought - WOW, I really want to be like her!!
And then...well, I'm not sure what the circumstances were (except that you were new to town from Iowa), but you took over. And you were completely different from her. You wore skirt suits. You wore hose. You always wore heels! And...You never DARED to wear a pair of overalls. I hated that! I thought you were too uptight and I thought you wore too much make-up! And I made fun of your hair that didn't seem too move...
Yeah...that was my perspective as a third grader. But now that I'm in your shoes, I just want to say I'm so sorry for giving you hell. I remember the torture I caused you! I remember you asking me to go back to my seat so nicely and my stubborn self decided: I think I'll just stay here...on the floor and I will not move! Remember? I do! You literally had to drag me by the arm to my seat. And I remember the entire class gave you such a difficult time that you had us eat a silent lunch in the classroom with the Assistant Principal standing beside you! There was no escaping! I don't remember when I started to take you seriously, but I do remember I did end up liking you.
I've been thinking a lot about you! I've been wondering if we wore you out so bad that you took naps as soon as you got home? Did you wonder if you were going to make it? Did you talk so horribly about me to your whoever your go-to person was? Did you see any progress in our (okay...MY) behavior? Did your third grade team give you suggestions on how to handle us? I hope I didn't lead you to cynicism.
Thanks for being a brave soul to take a class mid-year. Thanks for having the patience (even if it was just surface level) for me. And thanks for putting me in my place. I really appreciate it...now more than ever.
Your fellow colleague,
Ms. Márquez
P.S. YES...I still wonder about your hair, but I'll cut you some slack because it was the EIGHTIES!
The First Day...2.5 weeks later
So, I started working as a teacher February 10. And, the day before that I was a nervous wreck. Sort of...Okay, I'll be honest and say I had trouble sitting still that day and trouble sleeping that night. Nonetheless, I woke up at the crack of dawn...I got ready for the day and started driving to my first job as a TEACHER!!
I got there an hour early, so I got back into my car in search for breakfast. Once I got back to the school, I went straight to the front office to wait for direction. I waited there for what seemed like an eternity. I was waiting for someone to tell me where to go...
While I waited, a hall monitor came in to talk to the AP about a kid in the hall and while I'm not entirely sure what this hall monitor said, I'm certain the response from the AP was "OH REALLY?!" The AP walked out into the hallway and marched this kid into the office to call this kid's parents to pick him up. He asked this kid to sit down and his response was repetitive: "I AIN'T GONNA SIT DOWN, CAUSE I DON'T WANNA SIT DOWN!" This kid got suspended from school.
I thought to myself, "Wow!! Whoever has this student really has their hands full!"
OH THE IRONY! Welcome, Miss Marquez to your first day of teaching! Meet YOUR first grade student!! You WILL have your hands full!! But we wish you the best! GOOD LUCK!!
I'm still laughing!
I got there an hour early, so I got back into my car in search for breakfast. Once I got back to the school, I went straight to the front office to wait for direction. I waited there for what seemed like an eternity. I was waiting for someone to tell me where to go...
While I waited, a hall monitor came in to talk to the AP about a kid in the hall and while I'm not entirely sure what this hall monitor said, I'm certain the response from the AP was "OH REALLY?!" The AP walked out into the hallway and marched this kid into the office to call this kid's parents to pick him up. He asked this kid to sit down and his response was repetitive: "I AIN'T GONNA SIT DOWN, CAUSE I DON'T WANNA SIT DOWN!" This kid got suspended from school.
I thought to myself, "Wow!! Whoever has this student really has their hands full!"
OH THE IRONY! Welcome, Miss Marquez to your first day of teaching! Meet YOUR first grade student!! You WILL have your hands full!! But we wish you the best! GOOD LUCK!!
I'm still laughing!
Monday, February 8, 2010
HIP HIP HOORAY!!!
(me and the contract!)BUT RIGHT NOW LET'S CELEBRATE BECAUSE THE LORD HAS RESPONDED FAVORABLY TO THE DESIRES OF MY HEART!!!!
I'm feeling a bit like this:
HAHAHA! My cup overflows!
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
Just when I think...
...that there's no way I'm going to survive this year financially, I'm reminded of Him who is in control of it all. Just when I start to believe that I really screwed myself over, there is HOPE!
September 11, I left a decent job. Did I LOVE it? No. Actually not at all. (Well, if we're talking the last 1.5 years of 3). I learned how to do the work by doing it with some but little training, and did it well. I learned a lot about working under pressure and producing the impossible with an amazing team (OMG - Looking back, how we did it is beyond me!!). I learned how to ask questions (I ask more questions than I did even then). I learned that I do indeed have a back bone (at one point I thought back bone days were over).
But I left. I left for MANY reasons, but mostly to pursue my dreams of becoming a teacher. I would leave most nights with the sun setting on the horizon (I'm not making this gushy - I'm being honest). Looking into the sunset on a daily basis made me think of myself in my 60's, 70's, 80's. I imagined myself sitting on a porch in a rocking chair chatting with people I love with the sun setting looking back at what my life is like RIGHT NOW and wondered if I'd be happy knowing that although I felt like I had a decent job that my dreams were going down the toilet. Would I be okay looking back on the years of my prime? The answer was always: No. These thoughts are haunting! Seriously haunting.
A bit over four months later, I'm here. Sometimes I wonder if I made the right decision (Oh Doubt, how you get the better of me at times!). Some may say it was a dumb choice because of the economic crisis, etc. But I was made to teach. I know that I know that I know! I know it to my core! I know it in my BONES! I have lots to learn even as a teacher but I know that I was made for this and wasting precious time was not longer an option for me. When I start getting into a funk I remember that although it may not exactly be my timing, I will be just fine.
I am "employed." However, I'm not working every day and each day that I don't get to work I wonder if I'm going to make it. But one thing is for sure. I am happier. I am happy to know that I'm pursuing the dreams from the age of SEVEN!
So...I'm saying hold on tight. And let your time with Jesus be sweet! These are the times that grow our relationship with Him.
I am still waiting. I am still hopeful!
September 11, I left a decent job. Did I LOVE it? No. Actually not at all. (Well, if we're talking the last 1.5 years of 3). I learned how to do the work by doing it with some but little training, and did it well. I learned a lot about working under pressure and producing the impossible with an amazing team (OMG - Looking back, how we did it is beyond me!!). I learned how to ask questions (I ask more questions than I did even then). I learned that I do indeed have a back bone (at one point I thought back bone days were over).
But I left. I left for MANY reasons, but mostly to pursue my dreams of becoming a teacher. I would leave most nights with the sun setting on the horizon (I'm not making this gushy - I'm being honest). Looking into the sunset on a daily basis made me think of myself in my 60's, 70's, 80's. I imagined myself sitting on a porch in a rocking chair chatting with people I love with the sun setting looking back at what my life is like RIGHT NOW and wondered if I'd be happy knowing that although I felt like I had a decent job that my dreams were going down the toilet. Would I be okay looking back on the years of my prime? The answer was always: No. These thoughts are haunting! Seriously haunting.
A bit over four months later, I'm here. Sometimes I wonder if I made the right decision (Oh Doubt, how you get the better of me at times!). Some may say it was a dumb choice because of the economic crisis, etc. But I was made to teach. I know that I know that I know! I know it to my core! I know it in my BONES! I have lots to learn even as a teacher but I know that I was made for this and wasting precious time was not longer an option for me. When I start getting into a funk I remember that although it may not exactly be my timing, I will be just fine.
I am "employed." However, I'm not working every day and each day that I don't get to work I wonder if I'm going to make it. But one thing is for sure. I am happier. I am happy to know that I'm pursuing the dreams from the age of SEVEN!
So...I'm saying hold on tight. And let your time with Jesus be sweet! These are the times that grow our relationship with Him.
I am still waiting. I am still hopeful!
"You have listened to fears, Child," said Aslan. "Come, let me breathe on you. Forget them. Are you brave again?" --Aslan to Susan, Prince Caspian, C.S. Lewis"I was young and now I am old, yet I have never seen the righteous forsaken or their children begging bread. They are always generous and lend freely; their children will be blessed." --Psalms 37:25-26.
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