Tomorrow I begin my 10th year of teaching! It really is crazy to think it’s been that long. ย ย I’ve always known I was a teacher. ย God put it in my heart when I was a little girl and I was teaching every afternoon in my bedroom.
I realize now more than ever that it is so much more than actually just teaching “skills”. ย I was reading Heather’s post over at Petals of Joy the other day. ย She wrote about what she wanted the parents of her students to know. ย I think she’s a middle or high school teacher, but a teacher nonetheless. ย I was in tears by the end of her post! ย She wrote it so beautifully! ย This part really spoke to me:
“I feel responsibleย for the next generation in mind-blowing ways.ย This is a heavy burden. I sense its weight each time I step into my classroom. I understandโreally understandโhow great the task is that lies before me. The questionย Am I making a difference?ย is a constant.
But I know my job is worth it. I know this in the way I know my students are worth every ounce of effort in my body.ย And when I see the light behind a teenagerโs eyes? Every fiber, every muscle, every tendon tightens and then soars. The light of knowledge is mine to bestow. The role is serious. Success is always just a breath away. Sometimes Iโm holding mine. When my studentsย get it? I can smile. I can breathe.
Because really, Iโm teaching them about life.ย Each day. A new lesson teaching rhetoric, similes, or Thoreau is really a lesson about life. How weโre connected. How weโre living. How weโre breathing.
And you must know, you absolutely must knowโI pray for my students.ย Their hurts break my heart. Magic wands and pixie dust donโt work in this real world. I know there is only One who has the power to heal souls. So my knees are raw from the bending and stooping over the desk of your precious one.
I love your sons and daughters.ย And while a need for education may be the reason they walk through my door, my deepest desire is that my students know they are loved. This is my goal. My objective. My mission.
Because they will know my sweet Jesus by my love.ย And even though His name canโt even be a whisper on my lips within school walls, I will love your children. I will love them because He first loved me. I will be His light in their darkness.And because I love your sons and daughters, they will learn. They will learn all that matters in this life. They will learn because they are loved.
By this all people will know that you are My disciples,if you have love for one anotherย John 13:35 (HCSB).”
The whole post she wrote is amazing and if you have time you should read the whole thing.ย
Tomorrow brings excitement! ย New faces to love! New possibilities! ย I can’t wait!
Great post! Thanks for sharing!
Jamie
teachingtidbit.blogspot.com
Wow…that was an amazing post. So, so true! I love that you and Heather both witness to your love for God and Jesus day in and day out through your work…and that you don't hesitate to blog about it! Very inspiring – thank you! ~Deb
crafting-connections.blogspot.com
What a beautiful post. Thank you so much for sharing. I hope your first day went GREAT!
Carolyn
Kindergarten: Holding Hands and Sticking Together
Rachel, hope your first day back was FANTASTIC! Thanks for sharing such a great post!
Karen
An Apple a Day in First Grade