Update!

I'm back!

We got moved in fine- it actually wasn't nearly as stressful as I was anticipating! Thanks so much to Andrew, Lori, Misty, Jenny, & Dawn for helping in various ways! Couldn't have done it without you!!

We were here for a whopping one whole day before packing up and heading to Atlanta for the weekend! We closed on the house Thursday morning and left from there. Leah & Katie, two of our students from Grace, came over to Rocky & Carolyn's house for dinner (see girls- I told you you'd make it on the blog! :-) We had a great time hanging out and catching up!

Friday morning we went to the school for the Awards Ceremony. I don't think ANYONE saw Sophie without commenting on how much she looks like Jon! I think my favorite comment was a staff member saying to Carolyn, "I saw Sara, then I looked down and saw Jon... in a dress!"

Saturday we went to Hudon & Carolene's (Sophie's "adoptive" grandparents)- Sophie loved taking her nap on Carolene!

We rushed from there to graduation! I am so happy for all these kids... hmm... maybe not "kids" anymore! :-)

It was really refreshing to hang out with Rocky & Carolyn. She even commented that she wasn't sure how it would go- we usually are together as couples! It was so great, though- it's nice to know that friends are still friends, even when circumstances pull us geographically apart.

In Sophie news, we've been doing solids for a couple weeks! She is doing so well- I am so proud of her! She's rolling over, scooting all over the place (though quite accidentally), and talking up a storm!

Monday already??

What a weekend! We made a whirlwind trip up to Atlanta to see friends- it was so much fun!

We started out at Hudon and Carolene's house for lunch. This is a couple that Jon lived with when he lived in Fayetteville the first time, before he met me. They absolutely fell in love with Jon (how could you not?), and I have enjoyed getting to know them over these past few years as well. Since Carolene couldn't get Jon married off to anyone in her own family, she has "adopted" us- though Sophie has 3 grandparents, 6 great-grandparents, and 1 great-great grandmother still with us, there is always room for a set of adopted grandparents as well! Carolene just couldn't bear to put her down all day- and Sophie seemed to enjoy getting loved on!

Then we went to Rocky and Carolyn's- these are good friends of ours from when we lived there. It was so great to reconnect with them! The last time we made plans to get together, Sophie changed them by deciding to enter the outside world that same weekend...

Sunday morning we went to Fayette Bible Church- I realize more and more how little I matter when I have a baby in my arms! It was great to see not only people from the church, but several of the students as well! (though it was weird that a couple jr. high boys who were shorter than me when we left now tower over me, only a year later...)

After that, we went to Jon's old guard unit for his farewell and awards ceremony. I'll let you read Jon's blog about that (hopefully he'll post tonight...) but suffice it to say it was REALLY cool- I'm so proud of him!!

Sophie must have been so tired from the weekend that she only got up ONCE in the middle of the night! I have been working on spacing out her feedings a little more and getting more scheduled- knock on wood, but I think it may be paying off! I fed her at about 8:45pm, she woke up at about 2:45, then not again until almost 7! For being a wee 7lbs, I don't think I could ask for much more...

Anyway, I'm off to unpack and do laundry! Hope y'all have a great day!

Good Times

We went to Grace's "Non-Prom Banquet" last week- it was a great time! It was at the Sundial restaurant in Atlanta, and we ate on the 72nd floor with windows all around. It was so good to see some of our students again (Hannah, a graduating senior, is in the pic with me). Dinner was heavenly... I even ordered the steak (instead of chicken), and the dessert was a delicious chocolate mousse cake. We sat with some students that hold special places in our hearts, then we hung out with some of the other teachers afterward!


We're sorry we won't be able to make it to graduation... this is the first graduating class at Grace, and it is special especially to Jon, since he was there at the beginning. We pray the best for these kids as they venture out to their places in the wide wide world...

at the end

as i sit here at my desk, i feel a strange sense of deja-vu. this morning i gathered with the same teachers in the same room that i did 5 months ago as school was starting... i have the same fear of the unknown... i now stare at the same empty classroom.

except this time, things are different. this time, my desk is piled with gifts from students. (thank you so much to all of you students and parents who were so thoughtful... we appreciate it immensely...) a stack of graded exams sits next to me. students come in to say good-bye, not hello.

this is our last day at grace christian academy. jonathan was called up to train other chaplains who are getting ready to deploy. we close on our new house near ft. stewart tomorrow, then after a week up north for the holidays, we'll be packing up the uhaul and heading south... yet again...

i will miss the students, interacting with them. they all have so many unique qualities, and when they weren't making me pull my hair out, they made me smile with joy! :-)

so, this is it. the final day of this journey. it is bittersweet... every time one journey ends, another begins.

love you all...

the most wonderful time

so a certain realization has hit me this week: final exams are as much of a pain for teachers as they are for students.

*sigh*... it has been a long week of entering grades, writing exams, copying exams, making grading sheets... and soon to be actually grading these things. my first hour class is working busily on their 5-page test right now. i see a girl in the corner of the room trying to get the cramp out of her hand, another boy staring at the ceiling, hoping to find an answer written there. ah yes. the most wonderful time of the year, right?

it has been busy, but i have been enjoying myself of late. i happen to absolutely love christmas and all it entails... cookies, trees, decorations, music, movies (i even got jon to watch elf!... still working on a christmas story, though) i also- with the help of my loving co-worker/husband- took the 7th and 8th graders to see a stage play of a christmas carol at the shakespeare tavern. even now, i'm nibbling on some wonderful white chocolate peppermint bark a student made and gave me.

it is wonderful that jon is home for it this year! i was reflecting earlier about my breakdown last year at meijer shopping for decorations for him... then leaving up the tree until the end of january when he came home. not this year, not me!

the thing that i do miss this year is cold weather. and snow. yes yes, i know- i HATE cold weather. but it just doesn't seem like christmas when it's 65 degrees outside!

ah... i need to get back to making the spanish answer key... soon it will be over!!!

disclaimer

i just wanted to add another update to yesterday's post, for i have felt badly about the way i portrayed my students.

in her defense, pbf said some of the most intelligent things in class yesterday- there were some things in our lesson that none of the students knew of, but she used context to correctly guess what the term meant. she is delightful and fun.

and, apf has one of the top grades in my class and is a bright student.

yesterday wasn't a banner day, but hey, everyone has their moments...

all in a day's work

me: "since we're studying the middle east, we're going to learn about islam today."

pretty blonde freshman: "why do we have to learn about her? and who is she anyway?"

(me staring dumbfoundedly at pbf)

(pbf sees look on my face)

pbf: "j/k mrs. fisher, j/k! ['just kidding' for those of you out of the 15-year-old lingo] but... for real... where is that place?"

(realizing i have more work to do than i thought)

me: "try again. not a girl, not a place..."

pbf: "COUNTRY! it's a country!"

(other students start putting their heads in their hands, shaking them in disbelief)

me: "nope. a country is a place."

pbf: "building?"

finally another student says, "[pbf], it's a religion."

pbf: "oooohhhhhhhh....... that's right...."

me: "so can anyone tell me what people who follow this religion are called?"

one student answers, "muslims."

me: "that's right."

another pretty freshman: "i thought they were arabs."

me: "no. that's their ethnicity, if they're from the middle-eastern region."

apf: "oh. so don't they speak muslim?"

me: "no. muslim is an adherant of islam."

apf: "so what do they speak?"

me: "well, if they're arab, they would speak arabic. if they're american, they would speak english."

apf: "so what do arabs speak?"

me: "arabic."

apf: "i thought that's what muslims spoke."


this led into a conversation about how, as one student pointed out to another, we don't speak american; we speak english (apparently new information). i used the example of how people from mexico- mexicans- don't speak mexican; they speak spanish. this led into a conversation about the differences between spaniard, mexican, hispanic, and latino.

apf: "so what do latinos speak?"

me: "spanish."

apf: "so who speaks latin?"

me: "no one. latin is a dead language."

apf: "WHAT???? how can a language be dead? and why are they called latinos if they don't speak latin?"

i quickly answered the question and moved on to the lesson on islam. about half-way through, the notes containted some text unknown to the students.

pbf: "what are those squiggly lines?"

another student: "that's arabic."

pbf: "ooohhhhh...... so that's what muslims speak?"


update: pbf just came into my classroom to ask me a question about her grade. just to prove what she had learned, she said, "islam is a country... NO... i mean... religion." she sighed proudly. "good job," i said. "and what are the people who follow islam called?" "arabs." "no." "oh...uh....muusssllliiiiims?" what a feeling of accomplishment.

guest speaker

we had a great day in geography today. there is a student here at grace whose parents are from nigeria- his mother came in and spoke to the class today. i found it quite intruiging. she talked about religion, food, tribes, and culture. she spoke of how the entire continent used to be pagan and animistic, worshiping carved images. she went on to tell us about how grateful the african christians are for the missionaries who first brought the gospel to their land. she talked about how, because of disease and climate, many of them got sick and some even died. "but," she said, "when you love God, you must continue the work of God." it was encouraging to hear such passion.

she then went on to speak of the community of believers, and how the christians in africa worship the same God the christians in america do. they may do things differently, she pointed out, but they are all the same within. this also relates to her view of the missionaries-that the commitment of those who first brought the gospel to africa over a century ago has opened doors for her belief in Christ now. our christian community not only transcends space, but also time... i wonder if david livingstone or robert moffat had any idea the impact they would make on the world...

week 2

i'm now into my second week teaching. i have to say, i love it. i have great classes, and enjoy my students. i'm getting into the swing of how it all works too, feeling out the cirriculum, adding my own spin to it. it is fabulous. i think my favorite moment so far was yesterday. i had had my 8th grade english class write a 1/2 page compare/contrast of two characters from their literature book. one student did an exceptional job- not only in content, but even more so in writing style. i don't think he even knew how great his structural and syntactical dynamic were- but he is genuinely a gifted writer. yesterday i pulled him aside to tell him this, and his eyes lit up in wonder as he said, "you mean you liked what i wrote?" his smile after that was irreplaceable.

in other news, jonathan and i went to savannah this past weekend. it is about 3 hours away, and is a lovely city. we went on a "ghost tour" on a trolley, with a man with a forced goulish voice telling us about legendary deaths in the town. we also went to see these two guys on "dueling pianos" who played anything the audience requested.

by the way, it has been rumored that i am a tough teacher. some of my students would agree (as would their parents...)- but what can i say? when you look younger than your students, you have to do SOMETHING to maintain authority! :-)

almost there...

today i sit at my desk with a mix of confidence and fear. the syllabi are copied, the lesson plans are written, the class lists are in the book, the desks are neatly arranged. now all that's left to do is this actual thing called teaching.

the class i'm most excited about is the 9th grade geography class... the only one i specifically asked for. "geography???? that is the most boring class ever!" many of you are saying...

well. that's true. though, i have to admit, i have always found geography fascinating- i still have the books i asked for for christmases in elementary school on u.s. and world geography. but even as a child, my interest in it was not for the map alone...

to me, the christian should be MOST interested in geography, for it is not about places on a map, it is about the people throughout the world who need to hear about Christ. it is about our brothers and sisters in persecuted countries, suffering for their faith under a regime that disallows it. it is about the community of believers, the body of Christ, the spreading of the gospel, and ultimately, the glory of God.

my main source for the missions emphasis of the geography class will be Operation World. if you don't have it, it's worth the buy. it is an incredible book compiled by Patrick Johnstone and Jason Mandryk- it is a catalog of EVERY country in the world, including not only the geographical facts, but also what is taking place in missions, specific prayer requests for that country, and challenges to the faith.

as the semester goes along, i hope to post some of the things we discuss in class- feel free to share your thoughts in the comments section (i just set it up so that you don't have to have a blogger identity to comment).

"Declare his glory among the nations,
his marvelous deeds among all peoples...
great is the LORD and most worthy of praise!"

the winds of change

here i sit, behind a desk. i glance up to the front of the room. "Mrs. Sara Fisher" it reads. underneath that heading is a list of 5 classes and 2 study halls including every grade from 7-12. how did i get here???




monday afternoon we arrived at our new home. jonathan had done a lot- i mean A LOT- of work those 2 weeks he was here without me, getting it ready. everything about the house far exceeds my expectations- he did an excellent job cleaning and decorating. i will post pictures as soon as i find my cable! :)

tuesday morning he started work at the school... long story short, by wednesday morning i was agreeing to help fill in some holes in teaching. i have an excellent schedule with classes i am quite comfortable in, and i am blessed with a very helpful faculty. yet, the knowledge that in a few days- 5 to be exact- this very classroom will have the energy of dozens of teenagers... well... it's just a bit unexpected.

all in all, i'm excited. a new state and a new career, all in one week. i have to say though, so far i'm loving it!!

(oh, and for all you in michigan who are saying, "she's FINALLY warm enough down there!"- yeah... not so much... i have had goose bumps more down here in the frigid air conditioning than i have in MONTHS!)