Last night I was scrambling under my bed for an article I remembered from college. I thought one of my students might want it for a resource for his huge-o senior thesis project. Alas, not only was I unable to find the article, I couldn't even find the notebook from the class! Argh. It was okay, though, because I e-mail my college prof about it, and he wrote back telling me where the article came from and I've already ordered it through inter-library loan (insert long post of gratitude for the RI libraries, again).
Anyway, while I was scrabbling in the underbrush of papers and folders and notes, out came a notebook from before college, yea, even before Bible School! It was one of those marble notebooks, full of lists. Yes, lists. And as I opened it up it was like travelling back in time.
I had lists of Red Sox quotes, favorite people (many of whom are in this blogging world!), career ideas (I was glad to find it written down... I used to have it memorized, but had since forgotten it. Yay that it wasn't lost forever! Write things down, people!), prayer concerns, favorite pieces of music, quotes from books, heroes (some of which I roll my eyes at now, but some of which still remain on the list - like Tim Naehring and Ben Hansen), a guest list for my wedding (an important thing to figure out when you're in high school), letters I'd written and received while staying at the Hills, lists of people I've dreamed about (yes, yes, very important, and including such people as Harrison Ford, Roland Brooks, Frankie Walker, and Steve Wakeman), funny things the Holscher kids did while I lived out there, places I want to travel (got Israel crossed off the list, and Scotland and England are coming this summer!!!), books I want for my children, teachers, names I like (my firstborn's name now belongs to one of my nephews... but I don't mind), movies I'd watch again, and, perhaps most impressively, 100 things for Kimberly to do if she got bored while I was at the Hills.
I thought I'd share some things from the 100 things, in case any of you are bored:
5. Play "Risk" with yourself, putting 50 armies on Great Britain and one on every other country and try to make Great Britain win (can you say Anglophile?)
11. Throw stones (small) at men's dorm windows (scandalized looks at my past self until I remembered I was kidding).
12. Explore the dining hall top to bottom (that's actually a pretty cool building)
18. Go visit Gerry in the garage
28. Hide in the cellar door and watch people's feet go by
51. Set the clock in the main house kitchen ahead one hour and walk through saying "wow, I can't believe it's already ____ o'clock!"
60. Climb the crab-apple tree on the front lawn and yell "BEAUTY!"
61. Lie outside, look up at the stars, and howl loudly at the moon
71. Read my old journals (and die) :)
74. Talk to your plants
81. Get George and Arthur to teach you how to speak Swahili
90. Tease Dad to make up for all the times he teases us
96. Play a game of WWII escape in the main house basement
100. Read a book (the future Lit teacher speaks!)
Anyway, it was a pretty cool glimpse into my past. I love how some things have changed so much, and others not at all. Continuity, but not stagnancy... God knows what He's doing with me!
8 comments:
Hurray for blasts from the past! And I remember that list... I think every multiple of 11 was supposed to be a joke or something funny/crazy. I still have my copy of it somewhere....
Good heroes too! :)
I love those kinds of notebooks- I have one or two myself. Time capsules in written form.
I smiled at the one of climbing the crab-apple tree and yelling, "Beauty!" I've done that!
just to let you know I droped by! I'm now a longterm 7th grade sub...the teacher is out on maternity leave. I feel more like a "real" teacher....1st period is kinda hard...though...they are chatty. Any suggestions. Today when everone was gone I wrote them a short letter on the board...saying I can keep gettin' after them and we both won't be happy or they can learn to listen and we can do fun stuff like I can read them a book outloud...we're studying WWII and the Holocaust which has some excellent books...like the Diary of Anne Frank, or Parellel Journeys (a real story of 2 differnt people...one a Hilter YOuth, a boy and the other a Jewish girl)...started reading that to one of my great classes today...
3 of my periods are wonderful...but my first has more to be desired. I feel that it's my fault though because I didn't take control of them like I shoulda from the start...plus I had to figure things out too....they are my "figure things out" class....
anyways sounds like you're doin' great!
Blessings!
-marie p.;)
I know I used to keep semi-journals when I was in HS, but then I'd end up throwing them away. From what I remember, it was all sappy junk anyway. My REAL journalling started with my first night in Bibleschool.
I don't read my old journals anymore. Well, maybe the previous years to see how things have stayed the same :-)
Yay Marie! 7th grade can be really fun. And really hard:) The thing I've discovered is that I can tell them to be quiet until I'm blue in the face, but if there's no real consequence (extra homework, or 3 strikes you're out, or seatwork of some kind) they'll just keep talking. I, too, started too soft and spent a long time making up for it. It's such a live and learn thing! You don't have to be heartless and cruel, but firm is good... I was just discussing that w/ a fellow teacher today. I haven't found the perfect balance, but the consequences thing helps a lot. Hope this helps!
I am such a list person. I have many notebooks filled with all kinds of lists. A bunch of them are similar to yours: books I'm going to read to my children, children's names (one Christmas Casey and I exchanged books of baby names), favorite people, etc. For my 18th birthday my mom made me a list of goals to accomplish that year. One that I remember was to kill, feather, cook and eat a chicken. Sadly, it was unfulfilled, but someday...
What?? Heartless and cruel is not the way to go with disciplining wayward students? Guess I missed that memo! :-)
Actually, I agree with drewey fern, if I might add my two cents. Have to have consequences they are likely to care about. And worst case scenario, start kicking students out of your room and sending them to the principal, after communicating with them that you are now going to be firmer with them before for their own good.
If that doesn't work, throwing a chair or two around the room and smashing a couple of windows while yelling and screaming would be the next option...
Hee hee hee! I LOVED this!
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