winter wonderland

In Virginia we've experienced the wonder of snow! A beautiful first snow, and since, a humdinger of a winter storm with two feet or so! Here my class poses with the first snowman of the year.

L to R: Darla, Natalya, Kaylene, Cheri, Alicia, Patrick; (front) Charla, Christine

stop and smell the roses

Tomorrow eve is our Thanksgiving program!

The students have practiced vigoroursly...

I look forward to hearing their songs.

I hear them hummed after music practice,

and occasionally I take a moment to listen.

4th-6th Program

“The Best Things in Life Are Free”
“Stop and Smell the Roses”
“How Great Thou Art”
“Praise Ye the Lord”
Two poems

The video clip image quality is poor, but I hope you can still enjoy their music. =)

through the doors of room c

Welcome to Room C! Walk on in, find a seat, and stay awhile! These are some of the things you might observe...

You might SEE...

*fraction problems on the chalkboard

*students working at the whiteboard with their spelling words

*yeast cells through the microscope

*word wheels on the wall (a thesaurus activity)

*35 animal tracks missing, which means 35 days down

*stacks of books on Miss Vinar's desk

You might FEEL...

*exhausted after a soccer game

*excited about a marvelous, new wall map

*tired of working through long math problems

You might HEAR...

*spelling word practice with clapping

*The Little Princess or The Tales of Jemima Puddle-Duck on tape

*Thanksgiving program practice

*requests to play soccer or volleyball

*storytime...and requests to continue

You might SMELL...

*moldy bread or strange mushrooms for Science class

*bananas and cinnamon for a Latin American treat

*wafts of good dinner smells on hot lunch day

*new books and pencil lead

You might TOUCH...

*the velvety underside of a chingapin leaf

*a soft piece of moss

*chalkdust

Would love to have any of you stop in and stay awhile, and you might even be pressed to check a stack of papers or wipe down the board before you leave! =)

service multiplied

So, my days are again full of timers and chalk dust,
of lesson plans and soccer games,
of multiple bells and racing class periods.

It is a busy life, and if I am not careful
I find my days measured by the piles of checking accomplished (or not);
by the success of a new concept taught,
by the attitude of my students.

There is more to my days, however;
and as Jesus told the bustling Martha
(and still speaks to every careful heart),
"One thing is needful...to know me."

Service becomes drudgery or mere discipline
without this relationship.
He is the One who brings meaning to each moment,
who sustains my heart as I give to others.

He takes the smallest fragments I can offer,
multiplying them until enough for a multitude of demands.
Is this a miracle? Yes.
And the baskets of grace remaining will meet my needs besides.

a note goodbye

deep blue evening above the clouds
and in the graveyard
one more quiet grave beneath the elm tree.


i could only feel glad, today,
that your eyes were closed.
you, who could barely say goodbye
after a weekend visit,
would have found this parting unbearable.


tears coming now, grandpa,
but i wanted to thank you.

thank you for the memories...
they are worthy of keeping.

Faithbuilders

Well, on my way back to the East Coast I made several wonderful stops...

thank you for the royal treatment, Reba and Juanita!

I attended Faithbuilders on my way,

spending 3 1/2 days with 250 other teachers,

soaking up sessions, workshops, discussions, and encouragement.

What a lift for the week of preparation ahead!

Sovina and I (above) took the chance to renew an old friendship,

and I thoroughly enjoyed our stay with a young family in the area.

Their boys took me spotting! =)

During which escapade we 'spotted' one kill deer, one skunk,

one turkey buzzard (was it large enough to be a buzzard?),

and one deer on our last lap around the field.

A blessing to see such a passion for teaching in others

with similar challenges and situations...

and to see that passion worked out with enthusiasm.

meeting lois

what a privilege to meet an author whose heart for spiritual encouragement is even more beautiful than the books she writes.

i was deeply encouraged by lois walfrid johnson on monday morning. my grandmother, through a mutual friend, connected us. it was a pleasure to have grandma show her belief in my writing, and a real blessing to meet this godly author.

i encourage you to check out lois's books, the adventures in the northwoods, the riverboat adventures, or the viking series, all middle grade mysteries with real characters and real struggles who experience real growth, and with the added benefit of authentic historical details.

you can find lois online at lwjbooks.com. but most of all, join me in prayer for her as she continues her ministry with her pen.

near the cross

"The nearer I come to the cross, the nearer I come to God;

and the farther I am from the cross, the farther I remain from God."

-Andrew the Apostle

i doubt any of us, if given a choice, would choose the death of the apostle andrew. tied to a cross in the region of achaia, andrew lived on for three days. was he overcome in his suffering, barely enduring the elements, the pain, the indignation? no. the martyrs mirror records that as long as he could move his tongue he instructed those who stood near the cross in the way of truth. the words above this illustration were spoken by andrew himself, as he went to the place of his crucifixion, "with a peaceful conscience and cheerfulness."

i have been thinking lately on the need to seek God. psalm 27 tells us to seek his face. i've been trying to spend more time alone with him. to read his word more. to meditate. good things, yes.

but andrew's testimony shames me.

seems to me that andrew did not focus on the actual seeking of God. instead he sought the cross, knowing that as he took up his cross of self-denial, of death, he would find the Crucified One.

"O Lord Jesus Christ! suffer not that Thy servant,

who hangs here on the tree for Thy name's sake, be released,

to dwell again among men; but receive me.

O my Lord, my God!

whom I have known, whom I have loved, to whom I cling,

whom I desire to see,

and in whom I am what I am."

-the Apostle Andrew's last words

a complete history...

a complete history.....of my year. ::wry grin:: not really. but i do want to backlog a bit, and let you in on some of the highlights and day-to-day stuff of my year in va.

one thing i've learned with teaching is that priorities must change, out of necessity. sometimes the things we love (such as blogging) simply cease to be.

i'd like to begin with a tribute to someone,

to my grandfather, paul olson.

he went to be with the Lord last february,

and the example of his life,

the story he lived,

the family he left behind,

have blessed me abundantly.

i was glad to be home for the funeral and family times.

a man of prayer with a clear testimony.

a reverent and reserved person

with a deep love of God's word.

i wish to be like him.

over easter vacation, another great surprise...

my family drove, (yes, all twelve of them in our 15-passenger van!)

to virginia to spend time with me and meet my world and see my haunts,

sneaking in a tour of dc on the side.

they arrived in harrisonburg, getting the better of spring by about 2 weeks,

so we had some rainy, dreary days to work with.

a couple from church offered their basement, and we had great times,

talking, touring, meeting people.

a picnic on skyline drive was a highlight.

and then the rush of end of school was upon me,

and i began to feel like the old woman who lived in a shoe,

not knowing what to do with my 'children'...

beings as they were as ready for vacation as i.

but we stuck it out, spending time on reports and displays for the openhouse,

doing a few book reports,

plowing through chemistry,

and taking a picnic to hillendale park.

that 'twas a fun day and produced a relatively nice class photo...

as nice as this non-photographer could coax from camera and class.

school ended on may 21st, leaving me weary, satisfied,

and somewhat more ready to see august come again...

after a long vacation, of course.

a chorus tour with the shenandoah valley chorus was the next thing on my calendar, so off we rolled to philadelphia, lancaster and ohio.

good to enjoy the values of singing, hospitality and friends.

below, a five dollar ride in this carriage around the olde city of philadelphia.

not soon enough, and yet long before i was ready,

the morning came to begin the trek home to minnesota.

it was a journey, and i was so thankful to have ruth to share the wheel

and keep me from too many inner musings.

we made a single stop on our way, in michigan,

where i was privileged to attend the wedding of

william hoover and rebecca gingerich.

in the words of jane austin,

'it's such a happiness when good people get together-and they always do.'

i have now been home for three weeks, and find myself in the midst of writing, sewing, reconnecting with my sisters and brothers, and relaxing thoroughly.

a good place to be.

gem of a quote

Thou hast given so much to me,

Give one thing more-a grateful heart;

Not thankful when it pleaseth me,

As if Thy blessings had spare days,

But such a heart whose pulse may be

Thy praise.

-George Herbert

glory of a minnesota summer

Rest is not idleness, and to lie sometimes on the grass on a summer day listening to the murmur of water, or watching the clouds float across the sky, is hardly a waste of time. ~John Lubbock



Minnesota summer is here, and I am agreeably reminded that there is nothing like it! The bluest of blue skies, the cooling but sultry summer breeze, the mirrored pines on the lake's edge, and yes, of course, the bugs.

Some things I've been enjoying lately:
*playing Ladder Golf with Justin
*reading good books
*making food for a LARGE number of people
*buying 12 birthday gifts for the year ahead
*dreaming idealistically of school (don't worry; this phase seeps away by August)
*listening to an audio book with Megan
*sitting and scribbling...thinking...a little bit of nothing
*coffee with Mom and lunch with Dad
*reconnecting with my girlfriends
*seeing a dear friend happily married
*writing a book

Someday soon, an update on my busy year.

spring reminder

''the time of the singing of birds is come..."

reminders of spring...

***the perfume of daffodil bouquets

***the campfire and picnic at miss vinar's house

***the day we scribbled spelling on the driveway

***open doors letting fresh, brisk breezes into the room

***morning walks by the river

as i see the rushing river running beneath the bridge,

as i smell the daffodil perfume on my woodland walk,

as i feel the gentle warmth of sunlight on my face,

i sense a real reminder of God's everlasting care.

winter will never fail to pass;

spring, never cease to come again...

joy, to come like morning dew after the drenching storm.

my coworkers

a fun evening at woodgrill buffet!

i thought you might like to see a picture of my coworkers.

l to r: myself, lola (gr. 2&3), lynne (gr. 1), and diane (gr. 4&5)

they have been great friends and have helped me in many pinch with wise advice

or a listening ear. thank you, gals!

snow day

hushed as a whisper the snowflakes fall,
dusting the gray earth
with purity and beauty,
a reminder, yes,
intricate gift of the creator himself.

and i, a mere particle in this crowd
of individuals on my street, in my city,
under a wide, common sky.

design? i suppose. but what does it matter
in this vast diversity...
i feel a particle small in the atmosphere.

only this. i, too, fall from the sovereign hand.
who am i to question?
each snowflake, each soul, here for His purposes
a bit of beauty in the gray of January.