52 Weeks of Gratitude

Inspiration - another aha moment

Halfway through the semester, I decided my students needed a reality check.  I passed out note cards, instructed my students to write a note to someone in their lives that made a difference, address and seal the card, and then return the notes to me to mail. I affixed the postage and dropped 40 notes in the mail.  Unknown to my students, this was an exercise in appreciating the chance they have to attend college.  Unknown to me, was the realization that the feedback my students shared would reduce me to tears and give me the gift of a teacher’s most treasured moment, “The aha moment.”

I teach communication. I teach my students how to develop the skills they have, how to think broader and deeper.  I hope that in the end I have inspired my students to communicate with greater meaning, clarity, empathy, and compassion.   I’m new to this and learn more every day I enter the classroom.  After three years you would figure I am experienced, however, I still consider the classroom part of my education.  I believe we learn from everything around us; our experiences, our work, our family, and friends.  There is no bottom to this well.

What happened in the classroom that day?  I had my first aha moment a couple of years ago and never expected to have the gift of another.   My mentor, teacher, and inspiration Dr. D., told me it was just the first of many.  I could never imagine that we had more or that they got better.  The first left me in awe for many days, this one, well, seeing the joy on the faces of my students is something I am glad I had the chance to experience.

You see, the students received calls from tearful parents who expressed how much the note meant to them.  They talked to their fathers, their mothers, their grandparents and for however short or long, these students had a connection with parents they left behind when they came to college.  But, it wasn’t just the parents response that evoked the emotions and aha moment in my life.  It was the expressions on the face of my students.  Unprovoked, the students were excited to share their story and couldn’t wait to tell everyone about it.   They knew the impact that these notes had on their loved ones and it made them feel good.  It was giving a piece of self that they did not know they could. 

Before I started the assignment I asked them how many had written or received a hand written note over the past year.  I believe the count was 2-3.  I teach communication, how individuals can better communicate, express self, and understand the messages others send.   On day one, I tell them that each and every day of our life, each and every word we speak, impacts and make a difference in the lives of others.  How do you want to impact the life of someone you know or someone you don’t know? 

I did thank Dr. D. this summer.  She shared something with me that I try to emulate every day.  It is important to teach, but what about inspiration?  And those are words that echo every time I stand in front of my class.  While I hope to inspire my students, I believe it is my students that inspire me.

New beginnings

 

 

Lately I have been thinking about how each day offers us the chance for new beginnings. And I have decided it is time.  It is time to move out of my comfort zone and stop denying the world and myself the opportunity to be involved.  The world needs my hands, and I need to contribute my hands to make the work of the world lighter.  I need to give back.  So for the next year, I have added a new dimension to my life.  Last year I committed to the gratitude notes and this year, I will continue to write gratitude notes  and I will commit to attend a church service, lecture,  community event or volunteer at least once a week.  

 

Today I attended services at Immanuel Lutheran Church in North Attleboro, Mass.  I wanted to start in a place I was familiar with, yet explore a new community.  Well, I must say that the chance to be a part of this service is one that I will carry with me for a long time.  After sitting down, Nancy came up to me, introduced herself and made me feel at ease.  As I sat listening to Pastor Sandy’s sermon about a new lease on life, I knew there was a reason the universe sent me to this place.   And then, Pastor Sandy asked one of the members to share an experience from the recent Synod Assembly.  And he started, “nonetheless” and a story about the Holocaust and the Jewish men who denounced God.  What he said next, stirred something in me that I have contemplated for several years.  He said, “I question my faith.  I question God and it is okay.”  Did he know that I questioned my faith, my beliefs, and understanding of God, and this caused me to spend the last few years exploring and deepening my own spirituality away from the confines of the religious walls?  Did he know that I felt like a heretic because my understanding of who God is changed?  Did he know that those words brought renewal to my faith in the church walls?

 

This person does not know how he changed my life. He has no idea how I drove home thinking about what happened and how I felt.  He does not know how good it felt to have Susan join me for communion so I did not have to go alone.  But most of all, he does not know, that I wished I had taken the time to stop after church and join him at coffee hour to say thanks.    

 

It is about new beginnings, new leases on life and “nonetheless.” Thank you Immanuel Lutheran Church.  Your commitment to building a community of openness, faith and acceptance within and outside of the walls of the church is one that is illuminated by the members and work you do.  The church exemplifies a Reconciling Congregation in all that it does.  A reconciling congregation is more than just accepting all people.  A reconciling congregation accepts all people even those who are unsure about their feelings and relationship with God.

 

If you are ever in Attleboro, take the time to visit, or check them out at www.immanuellc.org.  I can guarantee you will feel like you have come home.