Last night I played in my first concert as a flutist. It was a fantastic community event organized by our band, in which we play with the local high schools and elementary schools. Each band played a few selections on their own, and then we played all together. I can imagine the experience for the kids, especially the 11, 12 and 13 year olds, would have been inspiring. To hear the songs you have been struggling through come alive in a band of 150 people!
As I sat in my chair and looked around the the group of musicians that filled the gamut of ages between 11 and 60+ years, I realized: I was very likely the person with the least experience in the entire band! I knew that starting a new instrument meant I would be the novice in the community band; all of a sudden I realized that even the grade school students had been playing since September! I felt very humbled by the thought.
It was a great show. There were a few unusual fumbles, and the challenge of playing for new conductors and with new musicians, but the overall effect was amazing. We do it all again next week with a new round of schools, and then we have two more engagements to prepare for before we break for the summer. One thing for certain - I'll be back in the fall! I haven't decided if I'll keep with flute or take a turn on the clarinet, but I'm enjoying the immersion so much it won't matter which instrument I play. I'll simply be glad to be a part of this group again.
Friday, 24 April 2009
Thursday, 23 April 2009
Nine qualities essential for successful adaptaptation into the workplace
Most teens will tell you high school is pointless. Some are simply going through the motions to get to university. Some are simply complying with the law. Even those who like to learn and get good grades see the futility of the things they study. Very little will actually prepare them for university, life, or the workplace.
Most university students will tell you university is pointless. They will learn almost nothing that directly helps them in a career in their field. Nearly everyone will tell you they learn more in a few weeks on the job than four years in a classroom.
The following list was compiled and posted at a Harvard campus. It was included in a brochure containing advice for students planning a career in the new international economy - the state our world is becoming. It would seem to me, then, that these would be fairly important skills to be taught and learned by university students preparing for their careers. And since these types of skills are ones that need to be fostered and deep-rooted, it would seem to me you would need to start in high school. Or middle school. Actually, since most study habits and modes of thinking are already established by middle school, it seems to me they should be taught from the very first days of elementary school. Hmmm.
1. The ability to ask hard questions of data, whether from textbooks, authorities, or other "expert" sources.
2. The ability to define problems independently, to avoid slavish dependence on official definitions.
3. The ability to scan masses of irrelevant information and to quickly extract from the sludge whatever is useful.
4. The ability to conceptualize.
5. The ability to reorganize information into new patterns which enable a different perspective than the customary.
6. The possession of a mind fluent in moving among different modes of thought: deductive, inductive, heuristic, intuitive, et al.
7. Facility in collaboration with a partner, or in teams.
8. Skill in the discussion of issues, problems or techniques.
9. Skill in rhetoric. Convincing others your course is correct.
Is it any wonder why kids graduate from high school only to flounder at home for another 10 years before deciding they should maybe try and "make it" in the world on their own? Is it any wonder why we graduate from university and feel completely ill-equipped to actually get a job in our discipline? Of the above 9 essential (and although not compiled by myself, I would agree with the list) qualities, how many were taught with any sense of urgency during our schooling?
Most university students will tell you university is pointless. They will learn almost nothing that directly helps them in a career in their field. Nearly everyone will tell you they learn more in a few weeks on the job than four years in a classroom.
The following list was compiled and posted at a Harvard campus. It was included in a brochure containing advice for students planning a career in the new international economy - the state our world is becoming. It would seem to me, then, that these would be fairly important skills to be taught and learned by university students preparing for their careers. And since these types of skills are ones that need to be fostered and deep-rooted, it would seem to me you would need to start in high school. Or middle school. Actually, since most study habits and modes of thinking are already established by middle school, it seems to me they should be taught from the very first days of elementary school. Hmmm.
1. The ability to ask hard questions of data, whether from textbooks, authorities, or other "expert" sources.
2. The ability to define problems independently, to avoid slavish dependence on official definitions.
3. The ability to scan masses of irrelevant information and to quickly extract from the sludge whatever is useful.
4. The ability to conceptualize.
5. The ability to reorganize information into new patterns which enable a different perspective than the customary.
6. The possession of a mind fluent in moving among different modes of thought: deductive, inductive, heuristic, intuitive, et al.
7. Facility in collaboration with a partner, or in teams.
8. Skill in the discussion of issues, problems or techniques.
9. Skill in rhetoric. Convincing others your course is correct.
Is it any wonder why kids graduate from high school only to flounder at home for another 10 years before deciding they should maybe try and "make it" in the world on their own? Is it any wonder why we graduate from university and feel completely ill-equipped to actually get a job in our discipline? Of the above 9 essential (and although not compiled by myself, I would agree with the list) qualities, how many were taught with any sense of urgency during our schooling?
Wednesday, 22 April 2009
Education vs. Schooling
I loved school. I could never understand why anyone hated it at all. Now, as I get deeper into John Taylor Gatto's book, I'm starting to understand. I was never really exposed to "school" as the majority of kids and teens are. In fact, I can recall only three classes in 14 years - all of which were negative experiences for me. Let me share a little of what my education looked like.
There was little structure and much liberty given to myself and my classmates. Freedom to learn according to my interests, explore the questions I had, and to share the things I learned in meaningful ways.
1. The Paper Airplane Project - My grade 5 independent study project was just that - completely independent. We could choose absolutely anything the interested us. Perhaps influenced by my father who worked in the airline industry, I studied paper airplanes. I devoured books on different models. I built them all and studied how they flew. Then I gathered my research and created an "optimal" airplane based on different criteria. No one else in the class was doing anything to do with paper airplanes. It was my interest and my project.
2. Scrap the Essay - Grade 13 English Literature class, reading the play "A Man for All Season's." The "curriculum" dictated all 30 students read the play and write an essay based on one of 3 topics. As the teacher read the topics, I put up my hand. "Can we do something instead of writing an essay?" My question was not based on laziness or inability - I could have written an A paper overnight. The question stemmed from boredom. "What do you want to do?" the teacher inquired, entertaining my idea. I looked around the classroom, surrounded by students talented in many different areas of the arts. "Can we mount a scene?" Permission granted. Over the next two weeks I directed the pivotal jail scene. Our presentation included actors, set designers, musicians who wrote a score and costume designers. Everyone had been compelled to read the play more closely, research the time period, and really understand the message and themes.
3. Beowulf at age 10 - The inclusion of this text in my grade 4/5 class caused a stir among students and parents alike. It was "over our heads" and a "waste of time". I can still remember my frustration in trying to find imagery in the old English lines. I remember my teacher's frustration when I concluded there was no imagery to be found. I also remember his response, that the colour red was representing blood and violence. To this day I am acutely aware of the use of colour in imagery, and used colour prominently in all my filmmaking. All this stemming from that one lesson.
4. Games during class time - My time spent in grades 6/7/8 included a major game tournament each year. One year was V-gate, one year was Risk, (and the last game eludes me). We spent many hours in big tournaments. We worked hard at learning strategy. We interacted with follow classmates. One year we even designed, built and packaged our own board game, of whatever style and whatever topic we pleased. All during class time.
5. Schedule-shmedule - One of my elementary school teachers realized the futility of learning in hour long blocks, forcing kids to drop everything in one subject in order to start another. (He probably also recognized that we didn't need to respond to the sound of a bell, and that the constant shift in activity might lead to attention deficit issues). Instead, he gave us a blank schedule each week. On the side was noted the amount of time we needed to allot to each subject. Each student could fill in the schedule however we liked. If I wanted to read a book for English all day Monday, that was fine. If I was knee-deep in a science project, I could work on it all morning. The freedom was exhilarating.
6. Go beyond - I wrote my first essay when I was 10 years old. The assignment: to research an ancient civilization - any one of interest to me. Look into its political structure, model of society, the presence and influence of art, and more. But my essay wasn't about Ancient Greece. The topic was: was this ancient civilization more or less civilized than we are today? This meant I was going beyond regurgitation of facts from library books. I had to process what their lives were like, what our lives were like, compare and contrast, draw a conclusion, and then coherently express my opinion. Now that's education.
I bet you're wondering if amid all this chaotic, open, libertarian education I ever actually learned the basics. Well, I read "Les Miserables" at age 13, took Grade 13 calculus to raise my grade average, and wrote several short stories, books of poetry, a few plays and a musical before high school graduation. (I don't say that to brag about myself - just that open-ended learning doesn't mean sacrificing essential learning tools.) For the record, I should also include the three isolated examples of schooling that marred my otherwise exciting years of education. Also for the record, these three experiences were my exposure to what most children are exposed to day in and day in schooling.
1. You know as much as I do - This is how my grade 11 biology teacher introduced herself on the first day of class. She was a math teacher told to teach science, a subject she had barely studied past high school herself. She self-admitedly didn't want to be there, which didn't spark much excitement in her students.
2. Just read it. Grade 13 English. Our class reading assignment was a book dreaded by all high school students. I don't know one person who ever read it that liked it, or found anything to related to in it. I have no problem with "hard" texts (and this one was particularly challenging) but was it this teacher's mission to make us hate reading? Literally, not one person I ever met liked reading this book in high school. Pay attention a little, teacher!
3. I'll read it. Grade 13 calculus. I took it to boost my average for university admissions. The teacher spent 10 minutes reading from the text book on how to solve a problem, then dismissed us from class to complete the pages of exercises. The only class I ever considered skipping, but as we only had to be there for 10 minutes anyway, what was the point in ruffling the administrative powers-that-be with that behaviour? (By the way, my plan to boost my average with this class failed. I went into the exam with a 98%, completed the simple exam in half the allotted time, then gasped when I saw my final grade in the mail 6 weeks later: a 72%??? Yes - that meant I had scored about 14% on the exam. Yeah right. But my wonderful, caring, attentive (ha) teacher didn't notice the discrepancy. I didn't bother with a fight - I was just glad to be graduated).
So now you know what my years of early learning looked like, why I was a huge advocate of schooling, and why I'm scared to think of the schooling my boys might get in the "mainstream" class. I only wish all students could (and firmly believe they should) have the type of education experience I got.
There was little structure and much liberty given to myself and my classmates. Freedom to learn according to my interests, explore the questions I had, and to share the things I learned in meaningful ways.
1. The Paper Airplane Project - My grade 5 independent study project was just that - completely independent. We could choose absolutely anything the interested us. Perhaps influenced by my father who worked in the airline industry, I studied paper airplanes. I devoured books on different models. I built them all and studied how they flew. Then I gathered my research and created an "optimal" airplane based on different criteria. No one else in the class was doing anything to do with paper airplanes. It was my interest and my project.
2. Scrap the Essay - Grade 13 English Literature class, reading the play "A Man for All Season's." The "curriculum" dictated all 30 students read the play and write an essay based on one of 3 topics. As the teacher read the topics, I put up my hand. "Can we do something instead of writing an essay?" My question was not based on laziness or inability - I could have written an A paper overnight. The question stemmed from boredom. "What do you want to do?" the teacher inquired, entertaining my idea. I looked around the classroom, surrounded by students talented in many different areas of the arts. "Can we mount a scene?" Permission granted. Over the next two weeks I directed the pivotal jail scene. Our presentation included actors, set designers, musicians who wrote a score and costume designers. Everyone had been compelled to read the play more closely, research the time period, and really understand the message and themes.
3. Beowulf at age 10 - The inclusion of this text in my grade 4/5 class caused a stir among students and parents alike. It was "over our heads" and a "waste of time". I can still remember my frustration in trying to find imagery in the old English lines. I remember my teacher's frustration when I concluded there was no imagery to be found. I also remember his response, that the colour red was representing blood and violence. To this day I am acutely aware of the use of colour in imagery, and used colour prominently in all my filmmaking. All this stemming from that one lesson.
4. Games during class time - My time spent in grades 6/7/8 included a major game tournament each year. One year was V-gate, one year was Risk, (and the last game eludes me). We spent many hours in big tournaments. We worked hard at learning strategy. We interacted with follow classmates. One year we even designed, built and packaged our own board game, of whatever style and whatever topic we pleased. All during class time.
5. Schedule-shmedule - One of my elementary school teachers realized the futility of learning in hour long blocks, forcing kids to drop everything in one subject in order to start another. (He probably also recognized that we didn't need to respond to the sound of a bell, and that the constant shift in activity might lead to attention deficit issues). Instead, he gave us a blank schedule each week. On the side was noted the amount of time we needed to allot to each subject. Each student could fill in the schedule however we liked. If I wanted to read a book for English all day Monday, that was fine. If I was knee-deep in a science project, I could work on it all morning. The freedom was exhilarating.
6. Go beyond - I wrote my first essay when I was 10 years old. The assignment: to research an ancient civilization - any one of interest to me. Look into its political structure, model of society, the presence and influence of art, and more. But my essay wasn't about Ancient Greece. The topic was: was this ancient civilization more or less civilized than we are today? This meant I was going beyond regurgitation of facts from library books. I had to process what their lives were like, what our lives were like, compare and contrast, draw a conclusion, and then coherently express my opinion. Now that's education.
I bet you're wondering if amid all this chaotic, open, libertarian education I ever actually learned the basics. Well, I read "Les Miserables" at age 13, took Grade 13 calculus to raise my grade average, and wrote several short stories, books of poetry, a few plays and a musical before high school graduation. (I don't say that to brag about myself - just that open-ended learning doesn't mean sacrificing essential learning tools.) For the record, I should also include the three isolated examples of schooling that marred my otherwise exciting years of education. Also for the record, these three experiences were my exposure to what most children are exposed to day in and day in schooling.
1. You know as much as I do - This is how my grade 11 biology teacher introduced herself on the first day of class. She was a math teacher told to teach science, a subject she had barely studied past high school herself. She self-admitedly didn't want to be there, which didn't spark much excitement in her students.
2. Just read it. Grade 13 English. Our class reading assignment was a book dreaded by all high school students. I don't know one person who ever read it that liked it, or found anything to related to in it. I have no problem with "hard" texts (and this one was particularly challenging) but was it this teacher's mission to make us hate reading? Literally, not one person I ever met liked reading this book in high school. Pay attention a little, teacher!
3. I'll read it. Grade 13 calculus. I took it to boost my average for university admissions. The teacher spent 10 minutes reading from the text book on how to solve a problem, then dismissed us from class to complete the pages of exercises. The only class I ever considered skipping, but as we only had to be there for 10 minutes anyway, what was the point in ruffling the administrative powers-that-be with that behaviour? (By the way, my plan to boost my average with this class failed. I went into the exam with a 98%, completed the simple exam in half the allotted time, then gasped when I saw my final grade in the mail 6 weeks later: a 72%??? Yes - that meant I had scored about 14% on the exam. Yeah right. But my wonderful, caring, attentive (ha) teacher didn't notice the discrepancy. I didn't bother with a fight - I was just glad to be graduated).
So now you know what my years of early learning looked like, why I was a huge advocate of schooling, and why I'm scared to think of the schooling my boys might get in the "mainstream" class. I only wish all students could (and firmly believe they should) have the type of education experience I got.
Tuesday, 21 April 2009
A hunk of bread
I had an interesting flash of a notion today. Colin, still hungry after lunch, asked for one of my homemade buns. I watched him take a huge bite and go to chewing it. Chewing, chewing, chewing. As I watched the muscles in his mouth work, I thought: all that dough is just going to gum up his system inside. Then I imagined his digestive system working overtime to process that sticky chunk of bread. I thought of ducks, to whom you should never give bread because it gums up their insides.
Then my thoughts turned to what our world naturally produces. Fruits, vegetables, herbs, spices, those things that grow from the ground. As a human race we have fiddled with food for so long. Certainly most of the packaged foods in the grocery store have little naturally occurring food inside them. But even the idea of "homemade food" - like baking my own bread - is really fooling with Mother Nature. Was wheat ever intended to be ground, mixed with water and salt and yeast, leavened, baked and then eaten? Is that really the best nourishment for our bodies? Are our bodies even designed to really want that, or does it adapt and tolerate it? Was it simply a cheap creation years ago that would fill our stomachs and satisfy hunger, without the labour of planting and cultivating and waiting for something to grow?
I love breads. Bread, cereal, bagels, buns - all forms. But suddenly I find myself thinking even more closely about what I am putting in my body, and what it naturally craves.
Then my thoughts turned to what our world naturally produces. Fruits, vegetables, herbs, spices, those things that grow from the ground. As a human race we have fiddled with food for so long. Certainly most of the packaged foods in the grocery store have little naturally occurring food inside them. But even the idea of "homemade food" - like baking my own bread - is really fooling with Mother Nature. Was wheat ever intended to be ground, mixed with water and salt and yeast, leavened, baked and then eaten? Is that really the best nourishment for our bodies? Are our bodies even designed to really want that, or does it adapt and tolerate it? Was it simply a cheap creation years ago that would fill our stomachs and satisfy hunger, without the labour of planting and cultivating and waiting for something to grow?
I love breads. Bread, cereal, bagels, buns - all forms. But suddenly I find myself thinking even more closely about what I am putting in my body, and what it naturally craves.
Monday, 20 April 2009
Arghhh!
The other day James was expressing his frustration over work. As a business owner, he lamented that he hated the fact that he never knew if he was succeeding or failing, and that there was no definitive end to anything he was doing. I told him the problem was clear - he simply had to unlearn everything he had learned in school, and then he would be alright.
Seriously. What he was longing for was someone to give an outline for a project, with a list of expectations and a due date. He wanted a mark upon completion, a definitive reward for having worked hard and completing the task according to specifications. But the real world doesn't work like that. Not the individual, thinking, business owner world. He actually drew the parallel to his previous university job at Chrysler, which was not an assembly plant, but operated in exactly the same way.
My frustration is boiling over. I am battling my own education background. I was thankfully allowed critical thinking and some educational freedom in the enhanced learning class I attended, but I still struggle against the futile act of simply performing as instructed to receive the paltry (and meaningless) reward of an 'A' grade.
I see how easily I am manipulated. I see how easily I fall into the mainstream. But I also see how easily I am picked up by every canoe paddling upstream. Persuasive government lulls me into a state of passivity; persuasive revolutionists convince me to string along the back of their tails. What I find hard is swimming on my own - being able to listen and analyze and understand the issues and really figure out what is best for me, my family, my community, my society, my culture, my world. I'm allowed to do that, right?
I am furious at our societal model. Wake up, go to work, collect a paycheque, spend it on things, lather, rinse, repeat. We are driven by the media and I'm appalled at the control wielded by people using this vicious tool.
Consume: Why on earth do I need a new top, because I don't have one in mauve? My boots still fit fine - even if they are only a 2" heel rather than the current stylish flats. My TV projects an image, if I even dare to turn it on. The toy room can't be kept tidy for an hour because of the mountain of toys. And yet I am bombarded by the argument that I need/want/deserve more. I have the urge to abolish gift-giving. Can there possibly be anything else I need? Is there an empty nook or cranny to be found?
Entertain: How is it we can empathize with a television character when we so sorely lack empathy in the real world? Why do we know more about 6 "Friends" than our neighbours? Why are our children unable to entertain themselves without a black box? There aren't enough hours in the day already - why on earth do I give up precious time to sitting uselessly in front of the TV?
And so you have it. Work to get money, and then have other people tell you how to spend it, then mindlessly engage in a fictional world so you aren't distracted by the real issues going on around you.
I'm not giving up everything I am. Questioning doesn't mean discarding. It just means knowing why you are doing it. It means understanding what it's really about, not just what others tell you it's about. It means making a truly informed decision about the real issues and motives. It means asking harder questions, not just answering the polite questionnaire distributed in the name of "free choice". It means beating your own drum because you know it's the right way to go, in spite of politicians, experts, media, and even friends and family. And then it's about accepting the decisions of your friends who have likewise opened their eyes and made their own decisions. Just because we come to different conclusions doesn't mean anyone is wrong. Everyone is right, when they have engaged in the process of critical thinking and understanding. And this revolution doesn't necessarily mean extremist. In fact, I might caution that extremism is just another persuasive movement vying for your vote. It's simply about regaining control.
Seriously. What he was longing for was someone to give an outline for a project, with a list of expectations and a due date. He wanted a mark upon completion, a definitive reward for having worked hard and completing the task according to specifications. But the real world doesn't work like that. Not the individual, thinking, business owner world. He actually drew the parallel to his previous university job at Chrysler, which was not an assembly plant, but operated in exactly the same way.
My frustration is boiling over. I am battling my own education background. I was thankfully allowed critical thinking and some educational freedom in the enhanced learning class I attended, but I still struggle against the futile act of simply performing as instructed to receive the paltry (and meaningless) reward of an 'A' grade.
I see how easily I am manipulated. I see how easily I fall into the mainstream. But I also see how easily I am picked up by every canoe paddling upstream. Persuasive government lulls me into a state of passivity; persuasive revolutionists convince me to string along the back of their tails. What I find hard is swimming on my own - being able to listen and analyze and understand the issues and really figure out what is best for me, my family, my community, my society, my culture, my world. I'm allowed to do that, right?
I am furious at our societal model. Wake up, go to work, collect a paycheque, spend it on things, lather, rinse, repeat. We are driven by the media and I'm appalled at the control wielded by people using this vicious tool.
Consume: Why on earth do I need a new top, because I don't have one in mauve? My boots still fit fine - even if they are only a 2" heel rather than the current stylish flats. My TV projects an image, if I even dare to turn it on. The toy room can't be kept tidy for an hour because of the mountain of toys. And yet I am bombarded by the argument that I need/want/deserve more. I have the urge to abolish gift-giving. Can there possibly be anything else I need? Is there an empty nook or cranny to be found?
Entertain: How is it we can empathize with a television character when we so sorely lack empathy in the real world? Why do we know more about 6 "Friends" than our neighbours? Why are our children unable to entertain themselves without a black box? There aren't enough hours in the day already - why on earth do I give up precious time to sitting uselessly in front of the TV?
And so you have it. Work to get money, and then have other people tell you how to spend it, then mindlessly engage in a fictional world so you aren't distracted by the real issues going on around you.
I'm not giving up everything I am. Questioning doesn't mean discarding. It just means knowing why you are doing it. It means understanding what it's really about, not just what others tell you it's about. It means making a truly informed decision about the real issues and motives. It means asking harder questions, not just answering the polite questionnaire distributed in the name of "free choice". It means beating your own drum because you know it's the right way to go, in spite of politicians, experts, media, and even friends and family. And then it's about accepting the decisions of your friends who have likewise opened their eyes and made their own decisions. Just because we come to different conclusions doesn't mean anyone is wrong. Everyone is right, when they have engaged in the process of critical thinking and understanding. And this revolution doesn't necessarily mean extremist. In fact, I might caution that extremism is just another persuasive movement vying for your vote. It's simply about regaining control.
Weapons of Mass Instruction
Uh-oh. I'm reading another education book. This time I'm going to have to make sure I don't infringe on copyright with the number of fantastic passages I want to share. But I'll start with this one, from the prologue of the book "Weapons of Mass Instruction" by John Taylor Gatto:
I don't think his statement about "perfectly obvious specifications" is too harsh at all. Children spend the majority of their time in school, therefore the majority of their thinking patterns and behavioural habits would be learned there. I have some serious reservations about the current school system, but I don't think I need to delve into educations specifics to convince anyone. You can tell the tree by the fruit it bears, and it's safe to say the fruit today lacks in so many ways. Should we not be inspired to reformation simply by seeing the undesired product?
"Ellwood P. Cubberley (dean of Standford's School of Education and in charge of publishing elementary school texts) wrote in his book "Public School Administration (1922) that "Our schools are...factories in which the raw products (children) are to be shaped and fashioned...And that is the business of the school to build its pupils according to the specifications laid down."
It's perfectly obvious from our society today what those specifications were. Maturity has by now been banished from nearly every aspect of our lives. Easy divorce laws have removed the need to work at relationships; easy credit has removed the need for fiscal self-control; easy entertainment has removed the need to learn to entertain oneself; easy answers have removed the need to ask questions. We have become a nation of children, happy to surrender our judgments and our wills to political exhortations and commercial blandishments that would insult actual adults."
I don't think his statement about "perfectly obvious specifications" is too harsh at all. Children spend the majority of their time in school, therefore the majority of their thinking patterns and behavioural habits would be learned there. I have some serious reservations about the current school system, but I don't think I need to delve into educations specifics to convince anyone. You can tell the tree by the fruit it bears, and it's safe to say the fruit today lacks in so many ways. Should we not be inspired to reformation simply by seeing the undesired product?
Tuesday, 14 April 2009
A little divine nudge
These past few days I have experienced a sequence of events that has amazed me, and spurred me on in a new and unexpected direction.
Friday night I saw the film "Slumdog Millionaire." There was much in the film about the slums of India that moved me, but none more than the image of two young boys stealing shoes from tourists visiting the Taj Mahal. They had spent their childhood barefoot, and could not believe the treasure they had found when they stumbled on a room filled with piles of shoes. My first reaction was "those poor people, who will return to find their shoes missing!" And then I realized that they, like me, would be able to simply go to the nearest store and purchase another pair. I am not a shoe-aholic; but I do have multiple pairs of shoes for different functions (dress shoes, running shoes, sandals, etc).
Then, Monday morning I was doing a tidy up and realized the velcro strap on my sneakers finally broke off. I tied them up in a bag and tossed them into the garbage. As I dropped the bag in, I had the sad feeling, and a strong impression fell upon me: I wish there was some way I could get these shoes to someone in India or Africa who really needs a pair.
Half an hour later, I realized I was ten minutes late for "Focus on the Family", a radio broadcast I try to catch in the morning. I contemplated tuning in, and decided that even if I only caught the last half, I would. The guest that morning: the founder of "Samaritan's Feet" - an organization that collects people's old shoes for children in Africa. I couldn't believe the chain of events thus far. I listened intently to his story and passion for helping others.
The last five minutes of the broadcast took an interesting turn. The interview asked "some people who are listening might be inspired to do something to help. What can they do?" "Say yes to God," came the reply. "Whatever God is inspiring you to do in your life right now, whatever your heart is convicting you of, say yes."
Hmmm. Okay. I was definitely being pushed in a new direction. But it doesn't end there. I think God knows my passion for helping people, but also my weakness in actually taking the next step.
I mentioned my experiences to my mom that afternoon on the phone. That evening, she sent me an email. She had opened her latest issue of a health magazine, and lo and behold - found an article on what to do with old runners, and three more organizations listed that take shoes to people in Africa. She reiterated my feelings that I was definitely being led somewhere with this.
And if this all wasn't enough, there was one final push. This morning I tuned in on time to "Focus on the Family." Yesterday they advertised that today's program would be about a mother who had found a way to serve in a special way. But that program did not air. For some reason, today was a rebroadcast of yesterday's program. The exact interview, two days in a row. I have never known this to happen on this station, with this radio show. But I heard again, word for word, the interview with the founder of Samaritan's Feet.
On my walk this morning, I mulled over these experiences, wondering and pondering. I felt inadequate. I had no idea where to begin. I felt that I should really pass on this one, not being in a position to be the one to start anything. I thought of my young family, and that maybe this isn't the time in my life to do this. I felt inexperienced, never having worked for a charity organization.
Then I thought about the prophets of the scriptures. I thought of all the tasks they were asked to do, things they had no idea where to begin. I thought of Noah building an ark; I thought of Esther pleading for the lives of her people. I realized that many new projects and ideas come to people who have no idea where to begin. But I knew, most of all, the first step was simply to say "yes". Yes, I will do this. Somehow, I will take this journey, hand in hand with God and walking the path he has so clearly set before me.
Friday night I saw the film "Slumdog Millionaire." There was much in the film about the slums of India that moved me, but none more than the image of two young boys stealing shoes from tourists visiting the Taj Mahal. They had spent their childhood barefoot, and could not believe the treasure they had found when they stumbled on a room filled with piles of shoes. My first reaction was "those poor people, who will return to find their shoes missing!" And then I realized that they, like me, would be able to simply go to the nearest store and purchase another pair. I am not a shoe-aholic; but I do have multiple pairs of shoes for different functions (dress shoes, running shoes, sandals, etc).
Then, Monday morning I was doing a tidy up and realized the velcro strap on my sneakers finally broke off. I tied them up in a bag and tossed them into the garbage. As I dropped the bag in, I had the sad feeling, and a strong impression fell upon me: I wish there was some way I could get these shoes to someone in India or Africa who really needs a pair.
Half an hour later, I realized I was ten minutes late for "Focus on the Family", a radio broadcast I try to catch in the morning. I contemplated tuning in, and decided that even if I only caught the last half, I would. The guest that morning: the founder of "Samaritan's Feet" - an organization that collects people's old shoes for children in Africa. I couldn't believe the chain of events thus far. I listened intently to his story and passion for helping others.
The last five minutes of the broadcast took an interesting turn. The interview asked "some people who are listening might be inspired to do something to help. What can they do?" "Say yes to God," came the reply. "Whatever God is inspiring you to do in your life right now, whatever your heart is convicting you of, say yes."
Hmmm. Okay. I was definitely being pushed in a new direction. But it doesn't end there. I think God knows my passion for helping people, but also my weakness in actually taking the next step.
I mentioned my experiences to my mom that afternoon on the phone. That evening, she sent me an email. She had opened her latest issue of a health magazine, and lo and behold - found an article on what to do with old runners, and three more organizations listed that take shoes to people in Africa. She reiterated my feelings that I was definitely being led somewhere with this.
And if this all wasn't enough, there was one final push. This morning I tuned in on time to "Focus on the Family." Yesterday they advertised that today's program would be about a mother who had found a way to serve in a special way. But that program did not air. For some reason, today was a rebroadcast of yesterday's program. The exact interview, two days in a row. I have never known this to happen on this station, with this radio show. But I heard again, word for word, the interview with the founder of Samaritan's Feet.
On my walk this morning, I mulled over these experiences, wondering and pondering. I felt inadequate. I had no idea where to begin. I felt that I should really pass on this one, not being in a position to be the one to start anything. I thought of my young family, and that maybe this isn't the time in my life to do this. I felt inexperienced, never having worked for a charity organization.
Then I thought about the prophets of the scriptures. I thought of all the tasks they were asked to do, things they had no idea where to begin. I thought of Noah building an ark; I thought of Esther pleading for the lives of her people. I realized that many new projects and ideas come to people who have no idea where to begin. But I knew, most of all, the first step was simply to say "yes". Yes, I will do this. Somehow, I will take this journey, hand in hand with God and walking the path he has so clearly set before me.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)