We shall not cease from exploration And the end of all our exploring Will be to arrive where we started And know the place for the first time. T.S. Eliot, “Little Gidding” I’m not the leader of this expedition. I’m usually a leader these days, whether in the classroom or on the track or, as…
Tag: students
The Long Run
There’s only one seat left when I get on the track bus. Well, two seats really, but the one in the front technically belongs to a baby, and she should probably stick with her mom, Distance Coach, for now. That leaves one seat, way in the back. It’s been ages since I was a “back…
Real Life
“Hope is a thing with feathers, that perches on the soul,” she begins, swaying a little and looking down. Her voice gains strength as she reads the familiar words. Another student snaps a few pictures, and in only twelve lines she is done. With a sigh of relief, amid two dozen clapping hands, she sits…
Jumping (with Coach Dahlstrom)
I earn my living by writing a daily newspaper column. Each week I am aware that one column is going to be the worst column of the week. I don’t set out to write it; I try my best every day. Still, every week, one column is inferior to the others, sometimes spectacularly so. I…
Hillside United
…So take nothing for granted. Stay wide-awake in prayer. Most of all, love each other as if your life depended on it. Love makes up for practically anything. Be quick to give a meal to the hungry, a bed to the homeless—cheerfully. Be generous with the different things God gave you, passing them around so…
Sharing and Chocolate Economics
I don’t teach sharing all that much. It’s not that I don’t believe in it, I promise. I just get the impression that it’s a huge lesson in elementary school–getting kids to share the scissors and markers without too much drama–but since I never went to elementary school (gasp!) I can’t be sure. By the…
On Doing Hard Things
And I’m convinced that if the Christian church loses this generation, it will be not because we didn’t entertain them, but because we didn’t dare them… with the truth of the world. And it won’t be because we’d made the Gospel too hard, but because we made it too easy, and we just played games…
Sie Versteht Alles
Kristi, sie versteht alles… I’m seated at a table at the Ochsen, a guesthouse at the end of town, where I’ve just finished my first rehearsal with the Kanderner Frauenchor, or women’s choir. I’ve been invited with the rest of the choir to the 70th birthday party of one of the other singers, so I…
So… what’s a Pep Band?
“So, Ms. R is forming a Pep Band, so if you’re interested come to the meeting after school…” I look across the circle of desks at my students, who listen to our Vice Principal’s voice over the PA system with frowns on their faces, as if this were news to them. It’s seventh period, and this…
A Monday Tuesday
“It’s like this giant Monday.” I’m walking to school with my roommate, Anna, on this clear Tuesday morning, the first day of second semester. “I mean, I’m always a little lost on Mondays, like I’ve forgotten how to teach. And this… this is way worse.” This is a different “first day back” than any I’ve…
The Way Home 