Speak by Anderson

Several years ago, I started a new job at a discipline campus.  This is a concentration of a select group of students who have done something to warrant removal from the main campus for a period of time.  I've honestly never been in the kind of trouble that these kids are facing.  I know how to listen.  I'm learning how to watch for signs.

When I started, a friend gave me the book Speak by Anderson because she thought it would be a book to which my new students could relate. She was right.  It is.  It has also been a good book for me to read as a teacher and a parent.

Many times, the point of books is more than the theme.  The point of many of these books in general is to help students learn to empathize with others.  There are several specific themes for this particular book:

• Speak up and don't be silent.  
• You don't have to be perfect, and that's ok.  
• Sometimes you have to get rid of the bad things in life so you can keep living.  

I love all of these themes and that the book really dives into the mind of the main character.  As the reader, I can really experience how Melinda feels as she goes through an intense withdrawal from society before she begins to find strength to deal with the tragedy.  As an English teacher, I love the symbolism of the tree that builds throughout the book.  As a parent, I would put a warning on this book.  It isn't for everyone.  I won't let my daughter read it.  At least not yet.  Maybe later.  She is close to the same age as Melinda is in the book.  However, my daughter's life experience is different than that of Melinda.

My friend's daughter read Speak after going through a tragedy of her own.  The book helped her to find a way to deal with her own unique situation.  That's the point.  That's the biggest point.  The student doesn't have to experience the exact same thing to be able to learn that there is hope in this world.

Hero's Journey of the Bible

I just can't help myself!  I love this story the best!  Can I use an exclamation mark on everything? I am an English teacher, and I get to evaluate a lot of literature.  I don't shirk away from a story because it isn't explicitly Christian.  Instead I compare everything to the greatest story ever written: The Bible.

An important plot line is known as the Hero’s Journey which was given recognition and made popular by Joseph Campbell in recent years (www.thewritersjourney.com/hero’s _journey.htm).  However, the basic plot line has been around since the beginning of time.  This basic plot line is demonstrated in the major plot and multiple subplots throughout the Bible.  Recognition of this major plot through the Bible is a valuable foundational tool of truth and of a standard by which all other stories may be measured and understood. 

            The Hero’s Journey is described by different people in various forms, but similar elements are present in each.  The hero begins in his home when he encounters a problem that he must solve.  Although the hero may not initially want to go, the hero will choose to cross over into a new world in order to accomplish a mission.  On the journey to complete this mission, the hero and his allies will encounter trials and challenges caused by enemies.  One challenge will be deep enough to relate the hero’s darkest fears.  After overcoming this monumental challenge, the hero will learn or gain something valuable and accomplish his task.  Finally, the hero will return home. 

            The biblical version of this journey is first and best seen in the story of Jesus Christ.  Jesus begins His journey in the Ordinary World with the Father in Heaven.  John 1:1 says, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.”  His Call to Adventure is found in the beginning also – the beginning of humanity.  Genesis 1:31 tells that God “saw all that He had made, and behold it was very good.”  Unfortunately, Genesis 3 also tells us that Adam and Eve sinned against God for the very first time.  Sadly, all people sin as made clear in Romans.  Romans 3:23 says, “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.”  Additionally, Romans 6:23 agrees that, “the wages of sin is death.”  The sin separated Man from God.  This injustice is the very thing that sends Jesus on his journey to Earth in order to rectify the relationship between God and Man. 

            The next step in the journey for most human stories is a possible Refusal of the Call.  The Bible never tells us that Christ did not want to come.  However, there is a moment later in the story where Christ expresses His understanding of the difficulty of the task and his desire to find another way.  Matthew 26:39 says, My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; yet not as I will, but as Thou wilt.” 

            The next step in most outlines of the Hero’s Journey is Crossing the Threshold or accepting the mission which will take the hero to a new and different world.  Jesus was born as a human into this world.  Luke 2:7 says, “She gave birth to her first born son; and she wrapped Him in cloths, and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.”  John 1:14 also says, “the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth.” 

            As Jesus begins His ministry, He gathers allies or Apostles and disciples around him.  John the Baptist came before Jesus making the announcement of His arrival.  Most importantly, Jesus continued to spend time with the Father.  Matthew 14:23 indicates that by saying, “after He had sent the multitudes away, He went up to the mountain by Himself to pray; and when it was evening, He was there alone.” 

            Every hero encounters enemies along his journey as well.  Jesus certainly came across them as well.  Matthew 13:53 indicates, “His hometown questioned Him.”  Also verse 58 continues by saying, “He did not do many miracles there because of their unbelief.”  Matthew Chapter 4 explains the biggest enemy which Jesus refers to as Satan in verse 10.  Satan tempts Jesus three times in the wilderness to give up Himself and His mission on earth.  According to Matthew 11, Jesus came to fulfill the prophecies of Isaiah 35 to give sight to the blind, Isaiah 61 to preach the gospel to the poor, and Matthew 26:26 – 28 to be the sacrifice that would be our forgiveness for sins.  Satan was trying to stop Jesus from accomplishing the mission of the journey. 

            The most difficult part of the journey is labeled as the Ordeal or the Abyss.  Jesus faces moments without His heavenly Father in Matthew 27:46 when he says, “My God, My God, why hast Thou forsaken Me?”  Also in verse 50 Jesus gave up his spirit and died. 

            Fortunately, there are rewards for surviving such a crushing experience as well as his entire time on earth.  John 4:39 says, “Many of the Samaritans believed in Him because of the word of the woman.”  Luke 24:47 tells that repentance and forgiveness will be proclaimed to everyone.  Acts 2:41 says, “Those who heard had received his word were baptized; and there were added that day about three thousand souls,” as a result of the preaching at Pentecost. 

            Following the rewards of the journey is the Return to the Ordinary World.  Christ returned to God.  Acts 1:9 says, “after He had said these things, He was lifted up while they were looking on, and a cloud received Him out of their sight.”  Interestingly, Christ will also return to earth one day according to Matthew 24 and Revelation 1. 

            Some outlines of the Hero’s Journey say that the hero will be purified by a sacrifice and he will return with the elixir of life (Campbell).  In the Biblical journey, Christ is both the sacrifice and the elixir of life at the same time.  He came to pay the ultimate price for humanity’s sins and also provides the way of salvation. 

            This prime example of a plot resolving a conflict and a hero accomplishing a mission for redemption is the story by which every other story should be measured.  This example is truth.  All other examples are penultimate. 

            Understanding of the prime example is paramount so that readers may discern what truth is obtainable or omitted from other sources of literature.  There are hundreds, possibly thousands conservatively, of stories that mimic elements of the natural plot line and the Hero’s Journey.  Readers need to be familiar with these elements in literature and how they are first demonstrated in the Bible before moving on to other classic and contemporary literature as well as pagan mythologies from other cultures that hide partial truths or reflections of truth.  

Now take this knowledge and find a good book.  A good book draws you in.  A good book tells a story that is relevant in multiple settings and to different generations.  Sometimes the story is retold in a different setting like Romeo and Juliet compared to Twilight.  Compare the truth that you know to what the books represent.  Books are a reflection of the culture and times in which they are written.  What can we learn from books?  What truth is there?  What truth might be missing that we can find in Jesus Christ?  

Adventures in Teaching

This became normal attire for teaching with these ladies.
Yes, we are royalty!
Yes, our students thought we were nuts.  

Teaching is worth it when you are remembered
four years later and get a graduation announcement!

I've given up patrolling the gum issue!

To Kill a Mockingbird is one of my favorites.
 I don't know why the students don't love it as much as I do.

Taking notes in this century.
I spent all that time writing it out on the board.
Then the first kid says, "Can I just take a picture?"

And this kid?  He wore it the whole period.
Yes, I let him.  He still participated.  

No, I don't just work Monday through Friday.

I can't believe I actually did this.
I am not an elementary teacher!

Odysseus got lost for ten years because the gods were mad.
The Hebrews wandered for 40 years because God was upset.
I think I'll try not to make the real God upset.  

One time, I actually made these to introduce
The Odyssey to my students.
One time. 

I absolutely loved watching these students devour poetry!  

This is an award winning book,
and I got to share it with my kids
and talk to them about modern day slavery.
I get to do that with literature.  

I let kids write notes on a note card for the test.
This is just evidence of how different
each kid's brain works.
Each card is organized so differently.
My job is to figure out how to reach
each of those kids.  I have nearly 145 this year.  

50 Shades of Discernment

I started following a new Instagram and found this picture.

I try to be very careful about what I read and what I post about what I read or haven't read.  I don't like to bash a book if I haven't read it.  This image made me wonder about Fifty Shades of Grey again.  There has been so much talk about it.  

Most people pick a book after reading the description on the back or on Amazon.  I don't have a copy in front of me, so I headed over to Amazon to see what someone else wrote about it.  I wanted to know what the preview is about the book from someone who is trying to sell it instead of push me away from it.  

Here is the preview from Amazon: 

When literature student Anastasia Steele goes to interview young entrepreneur Christian Grey, she encounters a man who is beautiful, brilliant, and intimidating. The unworldly, innocent Ana is startled to realize she wants this man and, despite his enigmatic reserve, finds she is desperate to get close to him. Unable to resist Ana’s quiet beauty, wit, and independent spirit, Grey admits he wants her, too—but on his own terms.
 
Shocked yet thrilled by Grey’s singular erotic tastes, Ana hesitates. For all the trappings of success—his multinational businesses, his vast wealth, his loving family—Grey is a man tormented by demons and consumed by the need to control. When the couple embarks on a daring, passionately physical affair, Ana discovers Christian Grey’s secrets and explores her own dark desires.

Erotic, amusing, and deeply moving, the Fifty Shades Trilogy is a tale that will obsess you, possess you, and stay with you forever.

This book is intended for mature audiences.

I found the reviews really helpful too.  It seems that quite a few people have read this book and had something to say about it.  I really enjoyed one person checking to see if the book was written by a 16 year-old girl because it was so ridiculous!  

Either way, I don't think the content of the book is appropriate for me to read.  I don't want to imagine these situations when I'm with my husband.  We have our own thing going.  

You might ask why I'm even spending this time on such a book, to research it, to blog about it.  I'm trying to show that all literature has value.  So what is the value in this type of book?  Even without reading it?  I don't know that it has any moral value that would make God ok with it.  Of course, I haven't read it to know the answer to that.  However, I can see from the reviews that it does highlight the values of an immoral society.  This is a snap shot of the culture in which we live.  Not many people may be living this life style, if anyone at all, but people crave this type of entertainment and fantasy.  

Personally, I've read enough from Amazon to move past this book.  

Do you know this story?

The main character starts in a very ordinary, almost boring setting. Suddenly, something happens that causes him to start off on an adventure. He must leave what is comfortable to set off on his journey. Along the way, the main character makes helpful friends and fights enemies through a series of challenging situations. At one point, he thinks that he will possibly fail what he has set out to do; but after surviving this particular personal low point, he is revived with new energy to finish the adventure. Through all of these situations, the main character learns something special, grows as a person, and accomplishes whatever sent him on the journey. He will return home, but will things ever be the same? Probably not.

Which of these stories could this be?









I could add possiblities all day.

Locked Out!

Welcome from inside my air-conditioned home!
 I bring this greeting only because earlier this week, I was locked out of my own home.  I was in a rush to get somewhere with my girls and grabbed everything except my very important keys.  My husband left earlier that morning for trip and would not return for several days.  I was in a lovely mess.  Thankfully I was able to get a locksmith to my home in only twenty minutes to save the girls and me from my rushed disaster!  Life Lesson: slow down.



The weekend is always the time to catch up on boring house chores like laundry.  I dread laundry.  I hate putting clothes away.  Thankfully, Model T has started putting her own clothes away.  Now I only have to do mine and Model C.  My sweetie does his own.  In fact, he even washes most of the laundry.  I think that is a fair trade for having to put up most of it.  My closet is a strange configuration.  It has a regular door, but it is wide and narrow.  It probably should have had accordion doors. However, I wasn't around 50 years ago for the builder to ask my opinion on this matter.  I've had a difficult time stuffing things into my closet in any organized fashion; so today, I cleaned my closet!  I haven't taken out seasonal clothes in several years and rediscovered what a tremendous difference it makes.  When I saw that the weather was going to reach near 100 this week, I thought it might be a good time to take out the hoodies and jackets.  I won't need them again until late October maybe.

Thank you Sweetie for taking pictures!  

The highlight of the week, maybe the month, was getting to visit with Craig and Alyse!  Alyse was my mentor in college.  She and her husband are traveling over the next month to gain support for their big move to the Manila!  There is a seminary there where they will be joining the staff to teach and prepare pastors.  If you are interested in what they are doing, you can visit either of the websites listed below.




www.CraigAndAlyse.com

www.IGSL.asia


Forty and Fabulous

I regret to say that I have not been jogging at all this week.  After the 5k, I just quit.  The only thing to do is to start again.  I really need to because I have so many clothes that I could wear if I lost a few pounds.  I wouldn't have to go shopping at all.

My hair over the past twenty years.  

My other concern lately is my hair.  The Mr. wants me to grow it out.  However, I'm looking very small-town-country with my bangs and shoulder length hair lately.  I much prefer a pixie cut.  The bottom left side has been my favorite hair cut of all time.  Does anyone else have a thought on that?  Or one of the others?




Book Talk

 Did I mention that I finished this book about two weeks ago?  I loved it!  The ending was surely a God thing.  I knew it was coming, and it was still good when I got there.

Now I'm moving on to From Achilles to Christ.  It is a recommendation from my seminary professor.  I'm looking forward to it.  Of course I will update everyone as I read!

Life and Death

Obituaries seem to have become a regular this spring.  This past Monday, my family attended a funeral for a sweet neighbor.  She was 74, I think.  Grandma had been fighting cancer for only the past year.  We were fortunate to live next door to her for a few years when Model T was born.  Grandma had a very interesting history that she didn't talk about much.  She was a German born in Yugoslavia in WWII.  She had a rough start, but eventually made it to the United States.  Yes, I left a lot out just now.  Not long ago, another neighbor invited her to church, and Grandma became a faithful church goer until the very end.  We call her Grandma because she took us all in and treated us that way.  She nicknamed Model T as Goldilocks.  She hosted Christmas dinner at her house.  She joined us for Front Yard Fridays each week.  She quilted and baked.  She was a grandma by pure and living definition.  The week before she moved to Heaven, my girls insisted on going to see her in the nursing home.  I thought about putting it off but then realized how sweet it was that they wanted to go see her.  My husband took Model C back again the next day.  I am so relieved that we went because she was gone the very next week.  When I lost my Papa, I was on my way to see him.  I was only two hours away, and we weren't expecting him to go that night.  He didn't wait.  When I lost my Grandpa J, I told my mom, "If he is still around this weekend, I'll come and see him."  He died on a Friday.

What is the point?  Don't wait to spend time with people.  You don't know what kind of time you might have.

Forty and Fabulous

This is really tough!  I made Model T and C go jogging with me.  I thought I was going to have to carry Model T home!  She thinks she is so ready, but when I make her go out to practice, it is a fiasco!  Model C is in better shape right now.  I might let Model T ride her bike with me tonight just so I can go for myself.

This morning, my wedding ring was really tight.  That always makes me nervous.  One good reason to get rid of this extra weight is so my wedding ring will fit.  I'm just being honest.  It is very embarrassing to me to not be able to wear my engagement and wedding ring.  Lately, I can't wear both, and sometimes I can't wear either.  That will not be fabulous at all!

My sweetie will turn 40 this week.

Book Talk

I finally reached the turning point in The Scarlet Thread.  I can see things changing.  In poetry, we call it the shift.  In literature, it is the climax.  I can see the tension, the heart ache, the solution coming.

I also went to Goodwill and stocked up on several more books to replace lost ones on my shelves at school.  I should be upset about lost books, but I'm not.  Lost books means that students have books, and that is a good thing.




Scripture

This morning in Sunday School one of the verses we read was Romans 8:1 which tells us that there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.  The beautiful part of this verse is the freedom it proclaims for the believer who dwells in fellowship with Christ!  Whatever sin from the past of the believer is not held against him because of the love in the relationship with Christ.  In Him, we are again clean and pure.  Amen!

Poetry 

"The Beginning of Sight"

Surrounded by blinding darkness
until the foreign light beckons.
Struggling, trudging, walking
toward the light
with a shadow
behind, our sin
behind us. Then,
we stand in full Sight
in the middle of the Light.

Psalm 112: 4 - Light arises in the darkness for the upright; He is gracious and compassionate and righteous.
John 1:5 - The Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it.

Road Trip

We are on the road, so I'm trying out the iPhone for blogging.  My thumbs won't tolerate typing too much; however, it will be late when we get back.  We left home this morning and made a day trip to the coast for a birthday party and to meet our new niece.  The wild flowers have been amazing!  I didn't even mind the rain.  There is just something calming about driving through small towns on country roads that lowers my blood pressure.  The kids have been well behaved all day, and I have enjoyed the conversation with my sweetie.  I hope you enjoy the scenery too!

Book Talk 

Let's just say that I've gotten to the scarlet part in the book and will have to keep my mouth shut now.  It is so good and I can't wait to see how redemption happens!  

I also visited Half-Price Books for a birthday present for my niece.  I couldn't help myself and bought several books for my classroom.  

Forty and Fabulous

Now I'm the one pushing my trainer, Model T.  She wants to ride her bike and push me instead of run with me.  Well, we'll just keep going.  I bet the day of the race she will change her mind.  Model C also wants to go with us.  I don't know how much she can handle, but we do the blocks just around our house.  The point is to start somewhere.  

Finally . . . 

I thought I had lost my grandfather's guitar.  I don't remember if he gave it to me before he died or I got it after he died.  He started to teach me a few chords when he could still move his hands.  I also inherited my great uncle's guitar.  That is the one I'm using now.  No, I don't play well enough to lead any music, but I enjoy a few tunes in private.  A few days ago, my mom texted a picture of Papa's guitar.  She found it in a closet in her house.  I nearly cried because I was no happy that it was not lost!