Whoo-eee

No voice left.

Not because I was yelling at my students--though there was a little of that today... Not really yelling, just couldn't be heard if I spoke regularly. Yes, now that is a bad thing. I love my students to death, and I sometimes think that day may be close.

No, today's lack of voice is due to the freshman volleyball practice.

Today was my first day of coaching freshmen volleyball. The team was in the same gym as the JV and Varsity and the football team. Yes, the football team was in the gym with us because it was raining buckets (for about an hour, as it tends to do). We have our second game of the season tomorrow. I'm going to try to stay positive and use it as a learning experience for the girls. I hope I can get some game footage to use in practice. We'll see. Today we drilled. I used some from my own days under a fabulous and (we thought) cruel high school coach. She actually heard through the grapevine that I was coaching, and she sent me a good-luck email with suggestions. I do not know what I would have done without her help, and I will likely be calling on it again. In the meantime, we'll see what tomorrow holds. To say the least, it was not the most promising end to a day.

Then miraculously, it was beautifully clear on the way home. I saw a rainbow in a blue sky, and heard some of my favorite country songs, so I sang along with what was left of my voice and my 32oz. of sweet tea.

Now that I'm done venting and am in a better mood, having reminisced on the pleasant ride home, I have to get back to work. Grades are due tomorrow, and I still have a week and a half of homework to check. On top of that, I still need to figure out how to entertain and educate 80 students in a computer lab for an hour and a half when I have nothing for them to do. I was supposed to give a computer-based test tomorrow, and the program managers cannot get the program to download through the school firewall. I'm stumped... Need to find websites and brain teasers... Need to find something to teach them in the meantime... So what am I doing chatting?!

Much love and appreciation. Goodnight to all who still see the promise tomorrow holds.

Long overdue

Dear friends and family,

Please forgive me. Not to make excuses, but as an explanation, you know how well I manage time... When teaching started, all else went out the window. Stacks of papers (fairly organized) lie all around my desk at home, in the living room, in front of the TV, in the stacking drawers I have for each class, in the box next to my desk, in a bin that serves as my storage closet at school, and in each of the 3 classrooms into which I float during the day. Yes, I "float." I have no classroom of my own, but I use the rooms of teachers during their planning periods.

School starts at 7:10 every morning, which means that morning duty starts at 6:30. For those of us driving in from New Orleans every morning, that means we leave around 5:30. The first period of the day is my planning period. I truly use this for last-minute planning, copying, writing overheads, etc. Without this time, I am sure I would be much more sleep-deprived than I am. Then I have three classes back to back, with only 5 min. between each. I pack up my stacking drawers and papers to pass out, my can of markers and tickets that I give for volunteering answers, my Kleenex, my computer and my clipboard with lesson plans, old homework, hand-outs and the bell schedule attached. Each class is 1.5 hours long. It is amazing how the time flies when there is much you have to get done. Third period, my second class of the day, is split over a 30-min. lunch break. My students have to rush madly to use the restroom and get in line for lunch, or they end up not making it through the line before class has to start again.

My students--what can I say? I love them to pieces, but I don't think it's highly reciprocated. Some do their homework, keep their heads up in class, maybe even study before our weekly quizzes, answer questions in class; but most don't. Unfortunately, the progress reports I have to hand out were not well-received. At all. I hoped for some it would be a wake-up call. For some, it might have been. For most, we are going to have to have a talk. These students have not been assigned homework for years, some say. They have never been expected to turn work in. They have devised more and more creative ways of copying and cheating, or they simply do it blatantly during lecture. I cannot get them to take notes, even when I give them hand-outs with blanks for all the important terms.

I will try again, though. That is my job. My goal. My life revolves around these 80-some students--trying to get them to believe they can do this work; trying to convince them that practice is important; trying to give them every possible resource and scrap of information I can to help them succeed.

Week in and week out, I look forward to Fridays as much as the students, though even then I am not as productive as I'd like. I usually end up lesson-planning at late hours, copying homework an hour before I have to pass it out, etc. I aim to be a few lessons ahead by this evening--thank the Lord for Labor Day. So much to do that I feel I have to cut this short.

Do not believe this is as wearying as it seems--well maybe wearying, but worth it, just as everyone told me. There are some shining moments that make the sleepless nights bearable. One student told me for days that he would come in after class to make up a test. The week passed, and Friday afternoon, I'm packing up my materials. He pokes his head around the corner, and says, "Here I am." I stood perfectly still for a split second, not registering what he needed... Then with a thrill in my heart, I pulled out a make-up quiz and told him I was so glad he came in. He worked for an hour on that bloomin' piece of paper, and he tried so hard. He asked questions, he made sure he understood what each question was asking, and even if he didn't know exactly, he told me what he did know--and he improved greatly. I was so proud that I could hardly speak. No other single event could have lifted my spirits so much. Three other times have students come in to make up quizzes, and I still feel the pride welling up at their effort and commitment. This is why I teach.

This week's quizzes were much improved, so I really feel like I taught them something, that they retained it somewhat. Now what do I need for tomorrow...

With love and gratitude, goodbye for now.

Truly Teaching

I had my first day of school today--from the other side of the desk. Content that the day was pretty good, and exhausted from the early start this morning, I'm going to bed. I'll share all my excitement later. For now, thank you for your prayers and encouragement. They surrounded me and carried me through this exhilarating day.

Last weekend of freedom

This is my last weekend before I start my real job. Orientation for my distrct's new teachers starts Monday. Did I mention that already? Oh dear, when things start to fade together, you know you've been a holding pattern too long. So what did I do with my "free weekend?"

I went to my friends' party Friday night. They have a beautiful house--truly beautiful, with a decent backyard and a banana tree. They were celebrating the birthday of one of the residents and invited all of our corps. I think I actually showed some people that I can relax once in a while. Really, you must be thinkging, it takes so much for you to relax? Indeed, it took a lot of friendly and familiar people, a real home, welcome laughter, no plans, and a lot of the Cupid Shuffle. That reminds me: I need to get my dancing fix soon. I'm starting to go through withdrawals, dancing to anything that comes on--even the easy listening jazz on the radio. This makes driving occasionally awkward...

What did I do with my Saturday? I got up far earlier than any Saturday of late. I actually invested myself in this community I call my new home. I helped gutt a house in the 9th ward, along with a few volunteer coordinators and about 10 GNO people. We started at 8:00 in the morning at the house. By 3:30, we had the place nearly empty of walls, etc. I cannot quite put into words what this experience meant to me. It had some very difficult moments, often when I would try to place myself in the owners' shoes when they would return to this building which used to be their home. I could never get close to the actual feeling, but even the imagined was powerful.

I also saw the heart of the people with whom I'm working in a different capacity. I've seen them invest countless, sleepless hours in lesson preparation for their students. I even got to see some of them put those plans into action in the classroom. Today I got to see their consistent, compassionate, selfless gritt working through 95 degree weather, carrying load after load of full wheelbarrows, draining bottles of water in a single sitting, replacing the masks back over overheating faces and plunging back into the mold and dust. They never quit; they never got downcast; they never complained. Weary or not, they worked hard to do what they could. I could hardly be more proud of my new friends.

In other news, I also got a bed. A dear friend and fellow corps member grew up here. Her family still lives here and had a few spare twin beds. She and her father brought them over this afternoon. No more nights in my sleeping bag on my floor. Ahh, a lovely thought.

Plans for the evening: another party with friends for a little while, perhaps a concert, a shower, a good night's sleep, and the promise of frisbee and church tomorrow.

Exhausted, yet content to have done something so valuable with this day, I'll leave you again for the night. God be with you and watch over you.

All in two weeks

What has happened to the last two weeks?

I'll tell you what:
-moving to New Orleans,
-finding roommates,
-apartment shopping for days on end,
-exploring the city,
-driving a lot, and
-signing a lease!
Then the family left.
-then more driving,
-trying to set up a home with just a bunch of boxes,
-more exploring, and
-trying not to get lonely.
Then Orientation:
-several 2.5-hour sessions on delving into the state standards for high school math,
-eating lunches from the student center on TfA's dollar (which was very generous of them),
-dressing up every day again (watching out for blisters),
-dinner with sponsors in really nice houses,
-stories of those who stayed during the Storm,
-dinner with alumni (wonderful, previous corps members)--I think I got the best one,
-and a closing word from a student at one of TfA's placement schools. He is currently dually enrolled in high school and college. Gives me hope for my own students...

More later. Low battery.

Much of my love and thoughts are yours.

Mixed Emotions

Closing ceremonies were last night. We had some corps members share stories from their journals of Institute. Of course, we all have a story or two. "This is why we teach for America."

I have such conflicted feelings that I am in a bit of a funk. I’m really glad this schedule will change for a while and that my family will be here soon. I definitely think I could benefit from some more tips and techniques for teaching before I get a class for a whole year. I’m more nervous than I want to think about (it will only get worse if I do) because I do not feel prepared enough to take on this next challenge with such little time before it starts. I also have so much to take care of providing for basic needs—a house, roommates, furniture, food, dishes, etc. It will also be difficult to leave the people I’ve met here from other corps. We have had to bear these trials together, and I’ve naturally grown attached to them in a very short time. These people have been my friends and family-away-from-home. I know their stories, their interests, their habits, their personalities, their pet-peeves, their food preferences, even some inside jokes now. We have shared triumphs and disheartening failings, weak moments and football games. I’d like to think I will see them again, and soon. In true TfA spirit, though, we are all across the country: South Dakota to the Rio Grande Valley to New Orleans with me. I will miss them.

Closing ceremonies were last night, but today is really, finally the end of the beginning. Tomorrow, I leave for New Orleans. Then we'll see just what God has in store in this new, real world.

Student Investment

She was the only student present for my review, but she seemed to enjoy it. More importantly, she seemed to get it! She improved greatly on this second quiz. I’m so proud of her. She is also the only one consistent in doing her homework and showing up on time (or close). She will be absent this Friday, she told me, but she would like the linear equation work early. What kind of summer student requests her work early?! This is when all the hours I stayed up finishing lesson plans and writing Math Millionaire cards pay off.

Where has this last week gone? Monday, I taught more linear equations—two different forms. It was tricky sorting out which form went with which name, but they did get the concepts very well. Unfortunately, I’m down to two students. Our chronically late student finally stopped coming at all. This leaves my two best students all alone with me. I can only hope that their scores will show the improvement I have seen. Wednesday was all review—with a little Jeopardy thrown in. A little competition goes a long way.

Why do they never ask questions until it’s almost too late? Today was our final test. It was the same as the diagnostic that we gave them the first day of class. This is supposed to see how much we taught them and how much they caught. I am not a fan of this particular diagnostic test: the questions do not assess the state standards they are designed to; they are also as confusing as all get-out, with several steps and extra information and unit conversion all to assess a simple equation or some such. Naturally, I’d prefer not to teach so that they can answer only the test questions. I want to teach them the things they need for future understanding and success. Yes, we can teach those types of questions, but the test does not even stress the key items from each standard. Alas, this is the life of a teacher with a state curriculum. I’m hopeful that Louisiana’s curriculum has been evaluated more thoroughly.

Dancing Fix

Weekend 3, 6/29: Friday made up for the long week! The TfA teachers at our school had a social of our own at Jax Grill. The restaurant is like a more spacious roadhouse kind of feel. They also have a wonderful outdoor patio to the side of the building. We teachers sat and relaxed for a full 2 hours. As the energy returned to our exhausted frames, the grill started to get busier. Then the zydeco band showed up. Zydeco is a New Orleans original style of music and dance. I had never seen it before, but the sweet strains drift over all the bayou. Some of us more adventuresome teachers got out there with the locals, but only to enjoy the music. We had no idea what we were doing. After most of our group had left, though, some of the locals took an interest in our dancing and asked us to try it with them. Imagine a 60-something cowboy from Louisiana with hat, pearl-snap shirt and boots included, dancing with a 20-something, stiff, blonde thing, one of three or so in the crowd. By the time we left, I actually heard one girl say, “White girl got soul!” Totally made my night.

Saturday, I was planning to work hard, get ahead for the week, and finish a video I was making for my family. I did get the video done and sent, which was a bit of an ordeal. (There’s no way to send something that big. L) Just as I finished that, a friend sent out a quick e-mail inviting people to go to the Johnson Space Center, the place to which the quote “Houston, we have a problem” is referring. Simply put, it was incredible. Much of the entrance hall is devoted to children and families. It has games and interactive learning centers and a maze, complete with ball pit. The rest of the center is across the street. They offer tours of the astronaut training facility, operations center and the Saturn V—the rocket which landed on the moon. My camera almost overheated with all the activity.

For dinner, we decided to try a Mexican restaurant down the street. For TexMex, it was really good. Fortunately for my social nature, some of them mentioned making a visit to Wild West later that night, and they didn’t mind my tagging along! Ohh, I have missed country dancing. I did have to teach a bunch of these New Englanders how to two-step, though. I also got asked to dance by some cowboys, one of whom we could have sworn was Willie Nelson.

Sunday was a bit rough, I admit. At home, my father was celebrating 20 years as the pastor of the same church. They are throwing him a party. How I wish I could be there. In my place, I did get to send a video-message, with which they surprised my dad at the commemorative dinner. Neither he nor I can talk about it without Kleenex around

Another chance at teaching

Week 2: our first formative assessment. In other words, a mid-term. Results: not too pleasing, considering the work put into this, on their part as well as ours. None of them improved significantly. One even pretty much gave up. I know that she can do more than this, but she didn’t answer half the problems. I’m disappointed, dejected, disheartened. How can I make this more interesting? What am I not doing that might help? What can I do to get them to try?

Ahh, a strange relief. The girl who didn’t try on the quiz dropped the class today. She came in with a note saying that she’d already gotten credit for this class but that she had been put in this one anyway. That means she was not just slacking off in my class for no reason. Alas, she could have gained from this, I think.

Tuesday, TFA day: totally free afternoon. It was a joke, really. The afternoon was fun. True, they canceled our meetings and had some games and fun activities back in the dorm commons. This was a misleading title, though. They let us go only half an hour early, whereas other schools got literally everything after noon free. We also had lesson plans and guided notes and homework to make for the next day. I admit, though I did get some work done, I did go out to eat with my sweet roommate and some of her friends, and I did get a 5-min. massage downstairs.

On the up side, my collaborative partner (my co-teacher) and I decided to split the days instead of the class periods. This means that I get to teach for an hour and 45 min. every other day. It works pretty well, as long as my lessons can fit well into that time. Either they run long, or we end up sitting there, staring at each other all day--that's very boring. This lesson style does mean that we only have to write half the lesson plans.

A long week of teaching

6/22: I now understand the phrase "It's five 0'clock somewhere." What did we do as a school full of new teachers when class let out on Friday? We went to happy hour at the Armadillo grill-something-or-other. I really don't remember the name, but if you drive past it, you won't miss it. There is literally a 20ft+, metal-plated armadillo with horns and red light bulb eyes out in front of this place. It was actually really nice to hang out with these people without the pressure of student scrutiny or staff observations or any sort of schedule. I'm still getting to know some of these people, even the ones I see for most of the day. I got to spend time just talking (and taking pictures, of course). My camera already has a reputation. )

Teacher's hands

Monday, June 18th—my first day as a teacher. It didn’t feel much like teaching because we started by giving them a test. We call it a diagnostic, and it doesn’t count for a grade. It actually includes all the material that we’ll be teaching this summer, so it’s supposed to gauge where the students are in the process. Math builds on itself wonderfully, so once we know what they know, we can figure out where to go from there.

My students!

I have 4 students. One came a few days late for a good reason, but she will have some catching up to do. Another one is very smart, but she doesn’t think so. We’ll have to work on her confidence. Her friend doesn’t seem to be that invested, but that’s what I’m here to help. My last student, bless him, is behind the others. He has so much on his plate without adding math homework to it. He pays attention, though.

The coolest thing I have discovered about the actual work of being a teacher is getting teacher’s hands. I use the overhead projector to deliver my lessons. Thus, I have to clean off my projector and transparencies of the various colors of pens I use. I always used to think the ink on my teachers’ hands was odd and a little gross. Now I realize not only that it is inevitable, but that it represents so much of who teachers are: the teacher’s hands hold the future of these children—their learning, their hope, their inspiration. I am proud of my teacher’s hands.

First week of teaching down; three to go. Actually, it’s closer to 148 weeks, including the future 2 years I’m facing. I’ve gotten some great ideas from other math teachers here. They made a specific effort to put together some of the games and tools they use successfully in their own classrooms. I’m running on little sleep (5 hours at the most per night), and I’m still having to write lots of coherent lesson plans. Then I get to shake myself awake the next morning, give my lesson and pretend to be energetic. Uff. How do people keep this up?

Answer: the weekends.

A month later...

Truly a teacher now.

Let me start at the beginning. Friday, we as the class of corps members at this particular high school in Houston, graduated to being teachers. We were given a small ceremony, where they really did play Pomp and Circumstance, call us forward and present us with “teacher name” tags—last name only. Then we were free for the weekend.

This freedom involves much resting and relaxing for the first time the whole week. What did I do? I was social until late at night. Friday afternoon, my regional corps had a social at a local outdoor bar. Yes, just about every social they have is at a bar of some sort. This one had live country music, though, so I don’t mind too much. After a while, I might be more able to convince people to get up and dance there. The not-so-cool part was driving a friend’s car home for her. I wasn’t thrilled with the thought of driving in big-city traffic. I admit, though, I did appreciate the power of a steering wheel in my own hands again.

A good portion of Saturday was spent in sweet slumber—and you never know how great that feels until you’ve been running the whole week on between 4 and 6 hours per night. Yes, I did work on lesson plans, etc. on Saturday. In fact that’s what awakened me rather abruptly: I had a meeting scheduled with my advisor and my co-teacher to review rough drafts of lesson plans. I met my co-teacher outside the advisor’s door. He didn’t answer our knocks. So I called him. I could hear the phone ringing through the door. Then it stopped. We heard the deadbolt slide into the lock. No other response. Yes, we woke him up. So this is what good teachers do on the weekend.

Saturday night: I got to be an Astros fan for a full professional baseball game. TfA got 200 free tickets for this game, and we all took the bus downtown together. I've heard they are not the most consistent team, but they showed up to play that night and made all their local fans proud. Yes, the Astros won. I got to see Craig Biggio make his 2,989th hit. Now that is old news--congrats to him on the big 3000. We were in literally the top rows of the stadium, but it was wonderful. GNO got rowdy and started our corps cheer—which no one outside of TfA would understand. We got some great looks from the locals.

The next morning, a truly dear friend from college drove half an hour across town to pick me up and give me a ride to church, half an hour back across town. It warmed my heart to be with friends on Father's Day, when I was missing my own family. I even got to join her family for lunch. They took me with them to Chili’s and let me celebrate with them. Being far from home, this was a welcome bit of family and familiarity in the midst of a hectic time.

Introducing...

Ms. Last Name, Geometry teacher. I graduated. They had a ceremony and gave us new name tags and everything. More about that soon.

Now for the Institute.

This week has been one long rollercoaster. Sunday, we pulled up to a driveway full of people: some hot and sweaty (who had clearly been there all day), and some just starting to unload their cars. We were told to come on through, and those poor, tired souls helped us pull stuff out and moved it up to the building for us. We were sent through a maze of tables and stations to register, collect IDs, turn in paperwork, and whatever else we needed to accomplish to get started. Then we were released to find our rooms.

Mine is on the 10^th floor. I take the stairs at least once a day and feel like I’ve gotten enough exercise for a week. My calves hurt for the first two days. The rooms are decent, though. We have a corner desk, several shelves, a little chest of drawers, a kind of sketchy closet, a mirror with a light, and a bouch.

Yes, a bouch. A bed-couch. At night, it’s a regular twin-size bed. During the day, though, it pushes back into the wall to become a couch of sorts, kind of like a hide-away without the huge frame and top cushions. I’ll put up a picture when I get my camera cord back from NM. The bathroom is down the hall. I’ve not had any problems with it, but I’m still afraid to shower without shoes.

Monday morning, breakfast starts at 5:30. The buses to various schools leave between 6:10 and 6:45. Mine leaves at 6:30 exactly. I know this because I missed it the first day, along with about 5 others. This means I caught a ride with another guy who missed the bus, and we drove like crazy (sometimes literally) through the maze of highways in Houston. They have about 7 major highways and interstates, no kidding. Some places have about 5 overpasses all stacked up. I have no idea how people manage this on a daily basis. We made it, though, after looking for a street which I don’t think actually exists, and having to backtrack a mile or two.

The first day involved a lot of seminars on how to take state standards and write a learning objective, from which we can make our lesson plans. Unfortunately, all of those words get interchanged a lot, so straightening out which one someone meant is often a challenge. It was a long day, and I felt a good bit overwhelmed by the time we got back at 4:30. I have a wonderful group of other corps members at this school, though, who are all teaching math. We are guided by a 2005 corps member, who has been breaking his back to help us in any way possible, so I am grateful, and I’m staying positive.

Monday night, all 700+ corps members here were packed into an auditorium. The Greater New Orleans corps made our leaders proud. We have a cheer, and it echoed as we enter the marble atrium and processed into the auditorium. We got settled down and had some good presentations by past corps members, Houston Institute staff and the founder of TfA herself.

The last few days have been much the same: workshops and lectures and seminars from 7:00 to 4:00, with breakfast at 5:45, travel time from 6:30 to 7:00 and 4:00 to 4:30, occasional meetings in the evenings, a little yoga to loosen up, and crash somewhere between 10:30 and 11:30. There was one gem in the midst of this routine. Tuesday night, we had the opportunity within our school groups (called Corps Member Adviser, or CMA groups) to create a personal life map, a sort of pictorial autobiography. We had dinner together, walked across campus looking for our assigned room, got slightly lost and settled in a second-floor common area. We worked on these life maps for maybe 25 min., then shared them for almost another hour. I realized again through this that I have been blessed, and that these people are truly remarkable. Such different stories and paths and backgrounds have all led to this same place.

We're all here for the same reason, and that reason becomes a reality on Monday morning. All our work, our sleepless nights, our lesson planning and re-planning, our coffee downing and hurried eating leads to this. In one week, we have learned what most education majors learning a year or more. What we learned in a day, they learn in a semester. Given, we will not be the best teachers this first day. In fact, we'll all be scared and nervous and still have some bugs to work out. We will be dedicated, though. We've fought so hard to be here, to reach this point, because of our students. Monday, we meet them, and the work is all worth it.

Please keep us in your prayers.

Love and blessings.

Whirlwind

What a whirlwind of a week. Where did the time go?

Tuesday is almost a blur now. As I was getting ready to leave for the airport, I heard a knock on my door. My sister came to say goodbye before she left for work. It was short and sweet--no tears, a few inside jokes, and she was headed toward the door. Dad caught her on the way out. i don't know what he said, but by the time she left, all of us were losing it.

We were ok 'til we got to the airport. First, tell me this: when was the last time you heard a live Swing Dixie band in an airport at 11:00 in the morning? What kind of a sign is this when I'm finally headed to New Orleans and there's a band playing Lou'siana music to send me off. I got a picture.

My goodbyes with Mom and Dad started off well, but they never end without some tears. Some people might not appreciate that in the middle of a busy airport, but despite the looks we got, I could have asked for no deeper sign of love, and I loved in return.

The flight was smooth. We had one stop in Dallas, but I didn't even have to deplane. I was picked up by the TfA corps member I'd stayed with in May, and I can hardly say how nice it was to see a friendly face. I stayed with her one night, along with another new corps member, and we were off at 6:30 Wednesday morning. We registered and got settled in the dorm on the campus we were using for Induction. A bunch of people showed up an hour later or so, all dressed up and looking professional. The other girl and I felt like we'd missed something, as we were standing there in our jeans and tank tops. They were headed to an interview, we came to find out. Our interviews weren't until the afternoon.

Speaking of which, I was grouped with about 10 other new corps members to travel out to a little city about 45 min. outside of New Orleans. It's a cute little place. I don't know how big it is. We were herded into a room with 5 school principals already seated in it. The process was explained to me as a sort of speed-dating interview. We introduced ourselves and told what subject we would soon be highly qualified to teach. Then we were sent one at a time to speak with principals who might need such a teacher. I had three interviews. The first was with a lady who had started her own school. This school includes grades 5-7, and it is designed for students who are several grade levels behind in work. The work is very individualized and based around interdisciplinary projects. The students can take a test at the end of ever semester and, if they pass, move up to the next grade. The second principal was very young to be in such a position. She was very proud of her K-8th grade school's accomplishments and is determined to make it the best in the state of LA.

The third principal reminded me very much of my principal in high school. This was my most comfortable interview. The way she described the school sounded a lot like mine, and it has many of the same extracurriculars. She also happened to need a Geometry teacher for this coming year. As the last principals left, we were rounded back up, and we went off to dinner with the corps who were placed there the last few years. This is a fantastic group of people, believe me. That night, they invited us, all 120 of us, out to a local joint with a live band. The music was great: somewhere between rock and country and brass band. The company was wonderful. I got to sit and talk with a few new friends for most of the night. Sadly, I haven't seen them much since.

Guess what: 8:00AM Thursday morning, as I was headed downstairs to breakfast, I met one of the girls who had driven us out to this district. She told me that the director needed to see me. The first things through my head were that none of my interviews had felt solid, and that I was probably going to be told I needed to go with this other group who were going to interview in the Recovery School District in downtown New Orleans.

Instead, she smiles as I enter the downstairs lounge she has turned into a makeshift office. She says, "I just wanted to let you know that you have your placement already. What do you think?"

What?! Dude! Cool!! Wait, this means I have a classroom. I have students who will be looking for me, waiting for me come August. I had darn-well better get my act together and be ready and waiting for them, too... Sweet!

So we just bummed around for a good portion of that day. We drove back out to a K-8 school in that district to observe a little summer reading program a TfA corps member had started. We got back in time for dinner and a lecture/seminar about I-don't-remember-what. All I know was that it was hot and sticky, we had packed 120 people in there, the kitchen staff wouldn't let us go get drinks, and the air conditioner was broken in that room.

The next days I hardly remember. We had more seminars to familiarize us with procedures in New Orleans, the principles of TfA, the goals of the corps, etc. Good stuff, but there's been way too much proactive interference (new stuff getting in the way) since then. I do know that I spent a good bit of both nights in the lounge/lobby, borrowing math books to study for the test I had to take on Saturday. The math test turned out to be about what I expected, which was not pleasant or easy, but I think I survived. The other test I had to take was on principles of learning and teaching. What educational training have I had in this area? None. Conveniently enough, though, much of the research to validate what they teach teachers comes from psychology--and I'd just finished a class on learning and behavior. Thank you, Lord. This second test feels like it went great. In between, a few of us New Orleans folks got a scenic tour of the area around Baton Rouge as we looked for a Cracker Barrel that wasn't there. The Sonic served us nicely, and the drive was lovely. :-)

Saturday night, people went out, so what was I to do? Yes, I went out. Fun? Not really, until we went by the Cafe du Monde. My first time. Sunday, we packed up, loaded up, and headed for Houston to begin our Institute training. I caught a ride with a wonderfully sweet corps member. I was planning on reading a good bit more of my pre-Institute assignments, but we ended up talking the whole 5 hours. I regret not one minute.

If I ever did, I have no doubt now that God watches over us. He has left a train of signs. He provides just what we need, just when we need it. He teaches us that we don't need everything we think we do. He has a plan, and He will see it through in each of us. No matter where this road leads, He walks with me and cares for me and prepares the way for me long before I round the bend.

The next corner is coming.

All the love in me is yours, through Christ our Savior.

Milestones

Mile-marker #1) I own a car! My dad and I went to Santa Fe last week to scope out some stuff. The first car we saw was at this dealership: a beautiful little Toyota Camry. It's not new by any means (not with the mileage it has on it), but it runs smoothly, and I have heard it will last for maybe twice as far as it has already gone. It's somewhere between sage and emerald green. Mom says it changes colors with the light.

Now don't worry, we didn't just buy the first car we saw. We spent the next few days searching online, scouring other dealerships, and even looking for some less typical sources of used cars (ever thought about old rentals?). We came back eventually to the first and what we believe is the most reliable car for the best deal. Can you tell I'm a little excited?

Mile-marker #2) Too many friends recently have gotten engaged or married. Not to say that I think this is either unwise or evil or even tedious. In fact, I am truly happy for them and I pray God will bless them richly for decades to come. I admit, though, it's been a bit overwhelming.
I love any excuse for a party, especially when it involves dancing. I only hope that much consideration has been put into these relationships.

I don't know what it is, but Spring so often seems to get to people. They start doing crazy things. I do hope this is not what overtook some of my friends. May God bless them in their decision-making and in their futures.

Mile-marker #3) Maybe the biggest marker is this: I leave for training on the day after tomorrow. Actually, I have interviews in New Orleans first. I may or may not get the classroom of my choosing in the district I would prefer, but I'll leave that to their discretion. Then I go to Houston for more than a month to learning how to manage a classroom and deliver self-planned lessons. Then I'm back to my school, so I will be in place for the next milestones.

First steps

It is time. I have finally committed to a path for my future. Yes, I admit I made the decision over a week ago. Much has happened in the meantime, though. This includes a whirlwind trip to New Orleans (literally less than 48 hours, which is not much time to absorb all that comes with the city), and graduation from college. I have some rather ridiculous pictures and a substitute diploma to prove it.

The trip:
New Orleans is unlike anything I've ever experienced. The culture is entirely foreign and different than what I've lived in before. It's beautiful and intricate and honestly overwhelming. The variety of architecture is stunning. The city itself is not the only attraction, though. Flying in over the bayou was incredible. I couldn't at first figure out what made the landscape so colorful. I would have been highly disappointed if I am supposed to be teaching and I'm not smart enough to distinguish swamp from solid ground. I did get to eat a wonderful variety of native food and drive down St. Charles Street (where the Mardi Gras parades pass, and the trees look as if they are growing multicolored moss as evidence).

I also visited a school in a district outside of Greater New Orleans. I went to work with the Teach for America corps members who had offered me their home for the night. This visit is what finally convinced me. It was nothing spectacular. Just regular, goofy middle-schoolers desperate for attention and assistance. I had the pleasure of sitting with several of the students and helping them figure out some of their math assignments. I got to be a tutor for a few hours, and I loved it!

Graduation:
One big party. Family from across the country came to celebrate with my sister and me. Parents, aunts and uncles, even my older sister and brother-in-law found room in town or came for the day. I am thrilled that my family uses any excuse to get together. Though we didn't have long together, I could not have asked for more love and laughter. It ended too soon, and we headed back home, far away. Far away from friends at school, friends at church, friends now also across the country. I will truly miss them, and I pray our paths cross again some day soon.

Dear friends, for those who actually made it through this post, I thank you, and I hope you know how much I care about you. Please say hi. Please.

Now on with the journey.

Life's a trip.

Let me rephrase that: life is a journey. It's one experience after another, and we have to pay attention, or we'll miss the important things as we let the time roll by. We'll keep racing toward an end without seeing the value of how we got there. Take the trip for the sake of the journey, the process, the experience.

Yep, I'm going to visit New Orleans--on their dollar. Teach for America is paying for me to go out there to look at the school they might have me teach in, meet some students and other Corp members, and see some of the city. This will make up my mind, one way or the other. All I have to do now is accept that the decision of my heart could lead me into the most difficult experience I've ever faced. But that part of the journey, just like the rest, will not be made alone.

So let's go.

Flying to a new world

Yes, before graduation, I will actually be flying to New Orleans. This is about as close as I'll get to visiting another world before I end up living in it. Never been before. I'll get to see some of the culture, and I'd get to spend a day in the classroom of a Teach for America corp member. This will make it or break it, so here we go.

First time...

Strange, I never thought I'd blog. If I'm about to venture into the real world, though, I figured this might be a good way to keep people wise to my journey. I'd hate to write to all my friends and family, then realize that I'd forgotten someone. I'd be crushed. SO, here you have it: my form of communication with the home base. I love you all dearly. Let me know what you think.