Sparking Faith: Week 4

Heyo amigos!
So I am currently in my second week at the High School. I survived the first day of class (9th, 10th, and 12th graders whew), and I really enjoyed getting to know the students as they opened up about what they think makes a good or bad teacher. Many of them said what I expected them to say: "I like teachers who care about us. I hate teachers who just give us worksheets." It's super incredible seeing how open the students are (mostly 9th graders) on their family lives back home. To be honest, I can't relate to them because I had a stable background while I was growing up. All I can do is motivate them to look past the obstacles, but that's so much easier said than done. One student shared about how her mom left her the week before, and her father is unsupportive of her. Another talked about how his mom's boyfriend was abusive, and they had to escape for the sake of safety. I love hearing their stories as they creatively write their experiences in the "Hero's Journey" project we're working on. Every student is so creative when you push them to think a little harder. Expecting more from these students increases their own motivation to push themselves away from what society has always expected them capable of. Of course, there are the rowdy "I don't care what you say" students, but even they try when you speak to them one-on-one, seeking to fill their needs. I love it and love it!

Canada:
This summer my family and I traveled to Vancouver, Whistler, Banff, Jasper, and Calgary in the sweet country, Canada. I love and miss it terribly. Traveling with my family is always so awesome, and I am blessed to have experienced the things I have in my lifetime with them. Every city we went to was completely different. Whistler was filled with mountain bikers and a cute village where we ate appetizers outside, Vancouver is a bustling city with the BEST view up from our hotel room, Banff and Jasper were AMAZING the beauty of the Rocky Mountains is incomparable to anything I've ever seen before, and Calgary has a huge tower with glass walls. Every city was a vacation in it of itself, and words cannot do justice to what I experienced there. UNTIL NEXT TIME, CANADA!