The GIFT ...... a long post but WORTH the read
Isaiah 41:17
"When the poor and needy seek water, and there is none, and their tongue faileth for thirst, I the Lord will hear them, I the God of Israel will not a forsake them. "
Mrs. S. & Daria
When I first met Mrs. S. Daria's pre-AP language arts teacher during parent teacher orientation I wasn't sure what to think. This woman was spicy, direct, and passionate, which I liked. Passionate is probably an understatement. I sat in orientation with my head swimming hearing words like - ultimate gifts, impoverished people, gangs, violence, gardens, ministry, and callings. I didn't really hear anything related to language arts, yet, it sounded so awesome and over the top all at once. Was this even real or should I be worried? Parents whose older kids had Mrs. S. in previous years repeatedly said how her class changed their child's life. Quite frankly at first it scared the dickens out of me... but I knew this would be something good for Daria.
Let me tell you about Mrs. S. She had a rough childhood, lived through the darkest aspects of humanity and in her own words, "through the grace of God was given the chance to make it through it and has dedicated herself to making a difference." She feels that this is her ministry, to make a difference through teaching her students. I would come to find that ultimately she is 100% genuinely passionate about each individual student, she's been known during difficult situations to stand outside her room and say a prayer for a student who is struggling, or stand down the toughest parent who is not willing to teach his child responsibility. This woman really should have been on the CNN heroes of the year. While she makes no bones about the fact that she is Christian and that what she does is because of Jesus Christ, her ministry is to help her kids understand that there are those out there with greater needs and that they can do something about it not to glorify themselves but to glorify God. Thus every book this year that they will read will focus on people who face challenges such as poverty, gangs, bullying and violence (all age appropriate of course).
Daria & her cousin work at clearing underneath the Pecan trees.
Mrs. S. tackles it by incorporating the book "The Ultimate Gift" into her curriculum, with the support of the school Principal. There are 12 gifts from the book that the students will do/learn. The first was the gift of work ... 6 hours of back breaking labor ... for free, and it can't be something they normally do as their regular chores at home.
the dreaded cattle trailer
Daria goes to work
That's when Daria spent 3 hours power washing the cow pooh off of her grandpa's cattle trailer, clearing leaves and branches underneath the Pecan trees and spent a day loading up wood. It was not a pretty sight. There were tears and tantrums and to say Daria learned a lesson about hard work and service would be an understatement.
The second gift which is what this post is really about was the gift of money. Each student was given a 5 dollar bill and they were required to make that 5 dollars grow. How much it grew and how they made it grow was up to them. Daria chose to cook dinners, clean, or organize, for our neighbors for a fee.
Mrs. S. looks on as her students listen to the Living Water presentation.
On Tuesday of this week parents were invited to the school to celebrate the "Gift of Money" with Mrs. S.'s three classes. How much money do you think sixty 11 and 12 year old students in the "it's all about me stage" earned? Take a wild guess .... a whopping $11,507.00! they cleaned, baked, road bikes for pledges, made jewelry, raked lawns and the list goes on.
The students chose two organizations to send the money to. The first being "Living Water International" http://www.water.cc a Christian based ministry that over the past 20 years has completed over 9,000 water projects in 26 countries. Daria's 6th grade class earned enough money to have one well drilled and built in Ethiopia by the end of 2011. The second organization was AIM, another Christian ministry which provides sports equipment and sports camps to impoverished children in the Dominican Republic and Haiti. These kids are amazing.
Daria helps carry water that equals the weight a woman will carry walking up to 7 miles a day to get dirty water to drink.
As I stood there in the school library already amazed at the amount of money that was earned I realized that maybe we have already received the "ultimate gift". A teacher who is making a difference in Daria's life. But Daria isn't the only one who's received a gift. This Tuesday during the celebration I received a gift. I experienced something real, something rare and something worthwhile and yes something that has to do with God and in a very very cool way.... at school. Something that would probably spark debate, but if debated, miss the pure awesomeness of the magnitude of the situation.
There are politics and opinions that we swim in the murky disagreement of on a daily basis and in so doing often miss poignant real moments that transcend beyond the political correctness of our time .... the poignant moments that just for a second allows us to enjoy how simple things really can be, that every good thing doesn't have to be complicated and up for debate. Read on.
Examples of water that impoverished countries often drink from. Daria held up the Cyclosporiasis sample.
The representative for A.I.M. reminded the kids not to believe the myth that teenagers are lazy and can't make a difference. Here was proof. Three classes out of 32 made a huge difference. He reminded them that they were born to change the world. He used a basketball to remind them that they were created in the image of God, he fills you with the air, you were made to bounce, you were made to make a difference.
The assistant principle Mr. M. (who I swear only looks about 18) spoke about a mission trip he went on to Uganda during the summer and reminded the students to "let their light shine", that even the smallest, tiniest light can overpower darkness.
There was not a dry eye in the crowd. I almost could not believe I was standing in a school. I felt grateful, I felt empowered, and I felt uplifted, and for the first time this season I felt the true Christmas spirit. But most of all, it felt so good to hear people be able to express their beliefs without some political correctness hanging over our heads. It was simple, it was real. No matter what the debate, no matter what the religion, these kids chose these two Christian organizations, and that is ok. It doesn't mean that other non-Christian organizations aren't as important or don't do as great of service. Just for the record, in a school filled with students of various relgions, she has never received a complaint.
