HAVE TO GET THIS ONE OUT THERE!

Good gosh! I sat down to try to get started on some things for school and I can't even think for being so excited about my day!

I got the call at about 6:30 this morning, from Mrs.Stanley, that her kids were sick and that she needed to take them to the doctor.......she ran through a few quick things about what needed to happen and then I, of course assured her that everything would be fine.........at that moment I was like, WHAT THE HECK AM I GOING TO DO WITH THESE KIDS? I talked myself through it and decided that I could do it, so I did.........I remembered what my mama tells me. She says "Michelle you were created and designed to do it, so just do it."

SO, I just did it. I knew that the kids needed to read "Henry and Mudge" so we had a really good time reading the story and then we incorporated what they had been learning in Math and created a huge venn diagram to compare and contrast characters! I loved hearing some of the things that they picked out......"Henry has 2 legs and Mudge has 4" "Henry sets up camp but Mudge chewed on a log"

I decided to turn the "boring Vocab routine" into a rhythm exercise........needless to say a couple of the words and definitions were less rhythmic than others, but hey, that's OK. THE KIDS LOVED IT!

The moment of me truly being fed today was when I saw one little boy that is usually very uninterested in what's going on, actually raise his hand and submit a thought, a great though and then smiled so big at me when I gratified his submission. :) I LIVE FOR THOSE MOMENTS when a child is truly happy with themselves, the moment that they believe in themselves, just as much as I beleive in them. :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :)

You know, some have told me, "Michelle teaching will take a lot out of you" and I'll have to say that it does, but I have to be completely honest and say as well, that I still beleive that if your heart is truly there, and that connection is made with those students, it puts just as much back into you, as it takes out!!!!!!!!!

At least this is my experience. :)

What was it about today?

I sang at a funeral this morning. HARD STUFF. It was not the plan, but when I got to my house this morning to ride with my parents to the funeral, my daddy says, "I need you to fill the harmony" What was I supposed to say to that? In all honesty, I believe that he needed me to stand beside him more than he needed me to "fill in with the harmony," but that's ok.

After the funeral he decided that he needed to visit with some of our church members that are in the hospital, I usually steer clear of these visits because one, I don't want to be exposed to the sickness and two, it has just never been my thing.

But, today was different. Today I decided that I would go with him.

We first visited a man that has no idea why he is in the hospital, middle aged, seemed to be in good health this past Wednesday, but began experiencing some after stroke like symptoms and his family took him to the hospital.

You could tell as we walked into the room that the man's spirits were low, he didn't want to be there and he was clearly disgruntled by the entire situation. As my daddy began to talk with him and listen to him, I watched as this man began to cry.......................................and I'm thinking WHOA! Wait a minute. What is going on? he's not dying, he's just sick and going to be fine in a few days.

This man began to voice the fact that if he could not get back to work that he was not sure how long they would hold his job and he didn't know how he was supposed to make things work. (GROWN MAN CRYING)

I felt something begin to grip my heart so tightly as I watched as my daddy wrapped his arms around this man and assured him that everything was going to be OK.

I've often asked myself, what gives him the ability to do this? to be so sure? To know that God will work it all out? and then I begin to think back on all of the times in my life when he told me the same thing, and how it was true, every time.

As I've grown older and I've begun to face things on my own, I can hear him whisper to me, "everything is going to be ok" and I know that it's true because I find myself saying the same thing to others.

I have grown up watching my father minister and I've never known, or understood, exactly how or why he does it.........but today, I figured it out. He does it, because he loves it and because he was created to do it. NO OTHER REASON. It's selfless and it's beautiful!

I pray everyday that I can be the truest person that my parents are to me. I pray that I can love as much as they love and help as much as they help. I especially pray that within my own, personal ministry that God would give me that same assurance that my daddy has to be able to say, with full faith, that "everything is going to be ok."