Skip to main content

Pep Rally?

Everyone keeps asking me how I like working with high school students. The best way to describe it is that last Friday during 8th period, I asked the kids to be quiet. And they did. On the first request. In middle school that request would have been followed by several more requests, each louder than the previous one, and then the threats of phone calls home.

It's night and day, people. And now I tell everyone with a middle schooler that it really does get better.

I had no intentions of being a teacher, and I really don't believe I'll be doing this for the rest of my life. My passions lie in other areas, but I do believe that God placed me in this field for a reason. I spent 4 years working with 7th graders, and even though they were some of the toughest years, they were also healing for me. It was a place I needed to be to connect some dots and gain some perspective to heal some long-standing wounds I incurred during my own 7th grade year.

I firmly believe my high school experience will be the same.

My high school years were so difficult for me that they actually exist in my memory as one dark blind spot. That's really weird for me because I have such a freakish memory. I still remember the layout of my 3rd grade classroom and what I got for Christmas in 1981. I can even tell you what dress I wore for my 1st grade picture (which I only saw one time in a yearbook).

But high school? I tend to rely more on the memories of my friends. They've pieced together some of the gaps for me, but it's still a black hole. I do remember how much I despised the high school culture of pep rallys and dances and parties and football games. I never saw the value in them. I've never missed them.

We're having a pep rally tomorrow for our first football game, and you should see me walking down the hallways. Just this morning I said to someone, "a pep rally and a 3-day weekend...this is the best week ever."

I mean that.

I am so freakin' excited about this pep rally tomorrow. I'll be sitting in the crowd of students with my school colors and pin. I can't wait to cheer and learn the chants. We're the Indians, and they do the same battle cry song every school with this mascot does. I even want to go work the concession stand at the game, but I don't think my dear one will go for that on such short notice. Some other time.

High school isn't so bad after all.

Comments

Christy said…
Very cool.
I wasn't a pep rally girl either. That's probably why I like you so much :)
I think more people should take the time to connect the dots of their youth. I'm glad to hear you embraced the gift that was handed to you.

Popular posts from this blog

Reflections on 2006

At some point near the end of December, I chronicle some of the major events of the passing year. I've been doing this since I was 13, and although it still seems a little hokey to me, I'll do this again for 2006. I started 2006 as a completely different person than the one sitting before my computer now typing these random thoughts. I speak my mind more (although still not enough). I've stood up for myself by saying no to people I love and refusing to eat potato chips just because they were "there". I actually purchased...and wore...and took a picture in a sleeveless shirt. I saw both the emergency room and Cancun during the middle of the night (and they both make fascinating stories). I started a whole new year of teaching and finally realized that it's not my calling. I learned that people are human just like me, and that it's okay to open up to them. In that vein, I've cultivated some amazing friendships with some truly wonderful women. I've se...

Running

Sunday night, after the sun set, I found myself in my front yard with Winnipeg. Something snapped under my feet, and I started running as fast as I could...wearing flip flops. And it felt so good to feel my legs push my body forward as my feet touched and lifted off the ground. My lungs filled with air. Good air that they have been craving. I felt like I was flying. Dogs are the perfect companion for such random moments, and she jumped right into the game. She's a faster runner than I am, and she can be a bit frightening to watch barreling forward because you think she won't stop. But she usually does. I'm still smiling at the thought of me and my dog running like maniacs in the front yard. As fast as we could. And laughing loudly. And not caring who might have seen it. Feet touch ground. Lift off. Pushes me forward. Flying. Lungs fill with air. Exhale. Pushes me forward. Satiated. Legs jump in the night. Dodges. Pushes me forward. Delight. Here there is no finish line. We ...

On Muchness

A dear friend confessed to me last night that he had lost his muchness and found it again. I confessed the same and even admitted the ridiculous series of events that recently sapped my own muchness. That little confession seemed to do wonders. It's so easy to fall out of step with myself. In fact, I do it quite naturally. Growing up in a Christian home, I took to heart the instructions to love my neighbor more than I love myself. Oh, wait! I just checked the scripture. "Love your neighbor as yourself." I may have been doing this the wrong way. I ended 2010 with the resolution that I would no longer make decisions out of fear. I am starting 2011 with the resolution to make decisions based on what I want. I've struggled with this because I've always believed that I should consider the needs and wants of others before my own. I'd like to think this is a valiant approach, but the truth is that it only leads to martyrdom...and I don't think I was given the opp...