For the last few years, I have been a wake up call service for many kids. Their alarm clocks either aren't effective or don't exist, and when I've offered to get them loud, annoying alarm clocks, they assure me that it would be a waste of my money. "Just call me in the morning Ms. Walka. I'll wake up then."
And so it began. Some mornings I would make up to 10 different phone calls to wake up various students, greeting them and telling them it was time to get ready, don't forget x, y, and z is happening today, check in at blah blah blah time.
This is my first year where I am not consistently making wake up calls in the morning. Many of the students who I was calling have graduated, so that's part of the reason. While I've still offered when a student is having tardiness issues, most of my students sort it out on their own.
Today I made a wake up call of a different nature. Even though I'm not Christian, I attend a Bible Study with several of my teacher friends and a few other educator types. Several of us were given some tough news yesterday about changes that were made to our schedules that are going to negatively affect several kids, and cause more problems than solve. We also know that more changes are to come, but we haven't been told yet. We were all on edge last night.
Before leaving, I was talking with Ms. Art and Ms. D. We were discussing how early we needed to wake up in order to get everything prepared for today. I told them I wake up everyday at 5am, it's just a question of how many times I hit snooze. They both wanted to wake up at 5am, but felt that they were going to ignore their alarms. I jokingly said that I could call them in the morning if they'd like, because it's harder to ignore a person than an alarm clock. Ms. D got excited and started telling us about this 5am prayer session these women did with each other because of their busy lives and families, and that was the only time they could gather spiritually and pray together over the phone. Ms. Art said that would be a great way to start the day. I told them be ready for a 5am wake up call.
It's now 5:28am and I just got off the phone with them. That wake up call was not my usual symphony of grunts, moans, and whining. It was beautiful to hear about the things we should remember to be thankful for, the people who we should be mindful of, and the emotions we need to keep in mind. As I said, I am not a Christian as I do not firmly believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God who came to Earth and died for my sins. However, I do firmly believe in the power of prayer and the power that it gives us to hear myself and other humans be humble in their work, be thankful for what they have, and mindful of what they don't.
While a million things can go wrong today, and 999,999 probably will, I feel more prepared than usual. Maybe it was the 5am Prayer Session, maybe it's because I only hit snooze once. Either way, I am thankful for waking up another day to serve the beautiful students at my school, despite what poor decisions adults and institutions make.
Amen.
Time for coffee.
And so it began. Some mornings I would make up to 10 different phone calls to wake up various students, greeting them and telling them it was time to get ready, don't forget x, y, and z is happening today, check in at blah blah blah time.
This is my first year where I am not consistently making wake up calls in the morning. Many of the students who I was calling have graduated, so that's part of the reason. While I've still offered when a student is having tardiness issues, most of my students sort it out on their own.
Today I made a wake up call of a different nature. Even though I'm not Christian, I attend a Bible Study with several of my teacher friends and a few other educator types. Several of us were given some tough news yesterday about changes that were made to our schedules that are going to negatively affect several kids, and cause more problems than solve. We also know that more changes are to come, but we haven't been told yet. We were all on edge last night.
Before leaving, I was talking with Ms. Art and Ms. D. We were discussing how early we needed to wake up in order to get everything prepared for today. I told them I wake up everyday at 5am, it's just a question of how many times I hit snooze. They both wanted to wake up at 5am, but felt that they were going to ignore their alarms. I jokingly said that I could call them in the morning if they'd like, because it's harder to ignore a person than an alarm clock. Ms. D got excited and started telling us about this 5am prayer session these women did with each other because of their busy lives and families, and that was the only time they could gather spiritually and pray together over the phone. Ms. Art said that would be a great way to start the day. I told them be ready for a 5am wake up call.
It's now 5:28am and I just got off the phone with them. That wake up call was not my usual symphony of grunts, moans, and whining. It was beautiful to hear about the things we should remember to be thankful for, the people who we should be mindful of, and the emotions we need to keep in mind. As I said, I am not a Christian as I do not firmly believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God who came to Earth and died for my sins. However, I do firmly believe in the power of prayer and the power that it gives us to hear myself and other humans be humble in their work, be thankful for what they have, and mindful of what they don't.
While a million things can go wrong today, and 999,999 probably will, I feel more prepared than usual. Maybe it was the 5am Prayer Session, maybe it's because I only hit snooze once. Either way, I am thankful for waking up another day to serve the beautiful students at my school, despite what poor decisions adults and institutions make.
Amen.
Time for coffee.
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