God's Lesson Plan

After a move to Virginia, I decided to work as a substitute teacher. For a year or so I taught science, history, band, English, French art and even Industrial Technology. The array of courses varied so much that it was rather interesting to see what course I would be teaching next. But there was always the challenge of authority that went along with a substitute teacher. A day of fun! That’s what the students always thought. Not a day for working and keeping up with lesson plans. No, the day that the substitute walked through the door, everyone felt it was a justifiable reason for NOT doing the lessons. Students talked, moved around their own chairs and made their own seating arrangement.
It became hard to discipline in some classes and at the middle school grade level this can be challenging. I liked what I did but I felt I needed a change of pace.

I made the decision to be more careful of how I planned my days as a substitute teacher. I preferred having a position that kept me in the same classroom longer than one or two days. I was willing to take a long term assignment when a teacher had to take a leave of absence but long term assignments didn’t always come up. I had no idea where I would find a place to teach that was slower paced, but God opened a door for me to work in the special education department. There was always a problem getting someone to work with the handicapped and although I had no experience I agreed to accept a few substitute assignments.

Having four gifted and talented boys of my own and working with advanced students in school was something that I always found enjoyable. It motivated me to study to keep ahead of the class and they were usually able to grasp new concepts rather quickly. That was my niche. My comfort zone. Start the day off running to keep up with everyone and manage a brisk pace throughout the day as the classes changed and moved from room to room.

The relaxed pace in the lower wing of the school with the handicapped and special students seemed to be a fresh change from the fast pace of the other “regular” students.
And for the first few days I did enjoy the change of pace. But then my overactive personality tried to take over and move the pace just a little faster. It seemed like it took forever to get any one task finished. Wait, this is special education and the students can’t grasp concepts any faster. Many times the skills have to be taught over and over until they are learned. Even then, some days the learning has to go back to “square one” and re-teaching the idea must be done.

In the class where I did my work, the overall goal is to be sure that everyone has the basic skills to work at routine jobs where tables were cleaned, change was counted, and extending a greeting to each customer was expected. Over and over and over again the tasks were repeated. Just to listen to someone count to fifty without making a mistake was “torture”. Focusing on a task such as folding a napkin and putting a fork, spoon and knife by the table setting was a difficult task for these students. Keeping everyone quiet and organized throughout the school day meant you could never take your eyes off any of the students. Demanding and often stressful in a different way, special education had a new admirer. All of those things that I had taken for granted as my own children grew up certainly was appreciated more now.

God has given some of His children a special place in this world and adjusting to the world takes much longer. Parents often are overworked as they try to work with learning disabilities, handicaps, medical problems, and children who need extra time, care, and attention. But those special students are the source of many blessings. The joy on their face when they complete a task is precious. Completing a goal and being able to have an outing brought cheers of excitement throughout the classroom. Trips to a horse academy, having a pizza party, or just taking a lunch outside and sitting on a picnic table all took on a new meaning and appreciation. Simple pleasures made the students see the world around them outside the four walls of a classroom . As they worked they discovered that they could fit into society just as well as other people. They just had to work a little harder but they had a valuable place in our world and were significant, not only in society’s eyes but in the eyes of God himself.

God taught me a valuable lesson during those years that I worked as a substitute teacher. I needed His help each day that I went to school and entered the classroom. I worked hard to teach others but God was busy teaching me good judgment and knowledge (Psalm 119:66a) through an experience that I never expected. He taught me while I taught the students but the students were the best teachers of all. They opened me eyes to the joy of the simplest part of life and helped me to slow down and listen, really listen. And while I listened to them, I heard God’s voice in a new and special way.

Changing My Focus

The past few months have been busy and at times it has seemed like a whirlwind has gone through the house leaving a trail of debris in the way. Writing was the furthest thing from my mind. I guess I took a break because I felt I needed one. I kept up with singing at church with various choirs so that music could uplift my inner spirit. Working to "cut" two CD's with Terry was fun and I learned a lot about a recording studio. Jason & Holly's wedding was the highlight of the month of May. Busy but not exactly relaxed.

Back in the inner recesses of my mind was the desire to write but I just had to re-organize everything. After the wedding seemed like a perfect turning point for me and as I began to put my thoughts into words, I found that the ideas were still there. They were just hidden beneath all the activity. Now it's time to focus on letting my mind wander and search for the stories that are just below the surface. Stories that need to be told or that are emerging from my mind. Stories that will find their way to this page again.