Kindergarten Kindness

 Kindergarten Kindness

Did you know that the first four letters of kindergarten and kindness are identical? This is from April 10, 2013.

I have two planning periods worked into our eight period school day at Westbury Christian. My off times are fifth period, which is right after I eat lunch, and seventh which, well, you can figure out is right after sixth. Often during my seventh period, I have to go to the other side of the building so I cut through the playground area, an artificial turfed arena of all the little child drama you could ever want to witness. Often my short cut through the playground coincides with the recess/snack time of some of my favorite fellow Wildcats, our two five year old kindergarten classes. Recently, I've joined them for snacks on several occasions and they always make room for me at the picnic table under the awning. Our teachers are terrific, Gereta Semanek and the  just slightly younger Sarah Adams, one of my former students. (And may I add both are fellow Harding alums!) As I passed through today, Spring Picture Day, Mrs. Semanek told me she had a story I needed to hear. It seems that earlier in the day, her class of seven girls and three boys was returning from music and was about to re-enter her room. One of the young men, Solomon, when they reached the door, stepped back and let all the young ladies go in first. Seeing his example and following his lead, Grant and Maurice, the other two boys in the class, walked to the back of the line, entering only after the girls had walked inside. As she finished telling me the story, Mrs. Semanek had the three boys come over and we shook hands. I'm not sure they knew what it was all about but that's OK. Someday, they will.

As we talked a little bit more, Mrs. Semanek told me that she had mentioned to her class how I let the girls go first in my classes when we get supplies and how all the boys stand up when girls/ladies come into our classroom but that it had been some time since they had discussed it. But the gentlemen under her care were listening and today put it into practice and it did not escape the ever vigilant eye of their teacher. Look, I'm not saying boys need to treat girls like delicate flowers but I've never known anyone of either gender or any age who did not appreciate being treated with kindness and that's what Solomon, Maurice, and Grant did today. And people do pay attention to the way we treat others. Two years ago, there was a young man in my sophomore Gospels class named Daniel. He would not enter my classroom until every young lady had done so and when the bell rang, he would not leave until every young lady had done so. The boys did not notice- they were in a rush to leave- but rest assured that every one of the thirteen girls in that seventh period section of the Life Of Christ noticed that simple act of graciousness. It's amazing how many times Jesus treated women respectfully in situations where the elite would have shown disdain. In a modern culture where boorish behavior from my gender is tolerated and sadly sometimes even rewarded, I know three young men who could give lessons on the Golden Rule..... and they didn't have to say a word. There was a powerful sermon preached in our kindergarten today, and it did not matter that the audience was as small as the preachers.

Applicable quote of the day: "Chivalry is not just a fancy word with a neat meaning; it's a way of life."

 Vaughn Ripley

God bless,
Steve
Luke 18:1

The Man In The Jack & Jill Grocery Store

 The Man In The Jack & Jill Grocery Store

This is is about  man who helped shape my life but did not know it. It is from June 11, 2017.

Harland Epp died last week. No one called to let me know and it wasn't on the news. Like most deaths I learn of these days, I found out by reading the online obituary in my hometown newspaper, the York News-Times. I learned he was one hundred years old and that he had played the banjo and guitar. I learned the name of his wife and kids and the date of his baptism. There were things I knew about him. He was born and raised in Henderson, Nebraska in York County, the same county of my upbringing. I also knew he was in the grocery business and that's why I knew him.

For four years when I was a kid, I worked in a grocery store in my hometown. It was called Jack & Jill and it was run by a company out of Minnesota, Nash-Finch. There were Jack & Jills all over Nebraska. I think ours was bigger than most, being the second largest store in York behind IGA/Super Valu. My older brother, Dave, had worked there first and I put in my time from age sixteen through twenty. I had always worked- paper route, mowing grass, shoveling snow, detasseling corn- but this was my first real job. Truthfully, the place made me nervous and I'm not sure why. I would avoid it if it was not my day to work. I was a good employee and they kept giving me increased responsibility whether I wanted it or not which usually I didn't. Harland was the assistant manager at the store during my four year retail career but he never made me nervous. In fact, it was just the opposite. He never got angry, at me or anyone else. He was always helpful and calm. I called him Mr. Epp when I started- he was quite a bit older than my father- but soon he became Harland to me, just like he was to everyone else. Reading the obituary, I was reminded he had previously owned his own store in Henderson. One thing I didn't know was that he put all forty hours at our store in in only three days so he could work on his house. I also found out he rode a horse to school and the maiden name of his bride, Lillie, was Friesen, the same last name as one of my favorite baseball teammates, Ross. And there were several other factual references to Harland's life that made the reader feel a bit more connected to a man whose life span was a century plus seven months.

I have a confession to make. When I go to the obit part of the York newspaper, I only read them if I am somehow familiar with the name of the person who passed away. In my history teaching days, my students were required to memorize John Donne's For Whom The Bell Tolls which waxes eloquent that every death should have an impact on our lives. Theoretically and spiritually, that is true but I haven't advanced to that point yet. As I've read Harland's obituary, the remarkable thing is that to the world, and I would guess even to Harland, it was unremarkable. He lived a normal life and did normal things. He was a solid citizen and raised a solid family. He never called attention to himself and was always soft spoken. I think I met his wife once and I never once saw him outside the confines of that grocery store. And yet, he had a remarkable effect on my life. He helped me adjust to part-time life in the grocery business and he helped me overcome the nerves that appear when an introvert steps into uncharted territory. And in that Jack & Jill store, I learned about clocking in and out, dealing with the public and unreasonable customers, and working late. I found out I could help out in the produce department and run a truck sale in the parking lot on my own. I learned that not everyone in the world had been taught by their parents that there were serious obligations when a business invests time and trust in you. Harland, I'm sure, never had a goal of mentoring a sixteen year old kid but he did. The lessons I learned which have helped me in life can in at least some way be traced back to him.

Probably all of us have a Harland Epp in our past somewhere and if we hang around on earth long enough, we'll play that role to someone else. There are people who change the direction of  lives, either with one gesture or a drawn out collection of gestures. Often, it's anonymous, even in the scriptures. What was the name of the guy who loaned the colt to Jesus for His ride into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday? Who was the servant girl who pleaded with Naaman to beseech Elisha to cure his leprosy? There names are lost to history. I, at least, have the opportunity to give public credit to Harland Epp by name. I just wished I hadn't waited until he died to do so.

Applicable quote of the day:
When I was 15, I worked as a bag boy in a grocery store. I also needed to walk old ladies to their car and put their bags in the car, and they would give me two dollars. I felt like the richest man in the world. 
Adam DeVine


God bless,
Steve
Luke 18:1

The Advantage Of Taking Your Time

 

The Advantage Of Taking Your Time

Faster is not always the answer as we see in this post from 2/15/21!

This post may not make sense to everyone but I'll give it a shot. In sports, a competitor who can do a skill quickly without losing control is at an advantage. Skill takes practice and with competence comes quickness. Think of using a phone. I watch kids on their devices and I am astonished at how quickly they can text and scroll, and who knows what else. It's almost like they've been doing it all their lives which, of course, they have. I've never quite adapted to the slower pace of coaching middle scho0l kids after being a high school coach for many years. You simplify everything which limits what I teach. For example, in high school, we used to have maybe ten offensive sets and a number of defensive schemes including traps/presses/zones/man/etc. Now, we play one defense and have one offense versus man to man and one versus zones. 

That brings us to inbounding het ball, either at the defensive end of the court, on the sideline, or underneath our basket. Due to the inordinate number  of jump balls and fouls at this level, inbounds plays at our end give us numerous opportunities to score, especially since most junior high teams defend them poorly. In high school, we had a dozen but my teams now really only run two of these plays, But, we score a higher percentage of our points in these situations than we do in typical clock running action. That brings me to Kristen. I would guess she played 98-99% of the minutes this COVID year as we only had six players. Kristen is the only girl who took the ball in for us, no matter the position on the floor. I trust her implicitly in the most important role in these dead ball scenarios. You see, I call out to Kristen what we will run and she tells the other girls so they can get to their designated spots. But there is a catch. We don't break on a ball slap- we go when the referee hands the ball to our passer, in this case, Kristen. If she gets to her place too quickly, the official will set the play in motion when the other four aren't ready and the five second countdown begins. Kristen was the best of any player I've ever coached on any level at taking her time getting to her spot. Not one referee told her to hurry up or set the ball on the floor if they were not satisfied with the urgency she was demonstrating. Now, this may not seem like a big deal to you but a too enthusiastic passer causes chaos at this level. Kristen kept us grounded with her casual gait to the baseline.

Life is a series of vignettes where we rush from one place to another. We put too little time into something at our own detriment. Last week, I had an 8th grade boy turn in a major assignment which he admittedly completed in thirty seconds. When I pulled him aside, I made the point that a number of the 8th grade girls had spent at least two hours on the same project. I gave him the option of taking a zero or redoing it. To his credit, he chose Plan B. (And he is one of my favorite kids!) There are scriptural examples of not rushing into action. Why didn't Jesus leave immediately to go to Bethany when He heard His dear friend was gravely ill? He knew that God would be glorified if He was deliberate in His movement.... which is exactly what happened. Lazarus was raised after being dead for four days and the Savior performed perhaps His greatest miracle! Sometimes, delay is the best alternative for the greater purpose. Sometimes, it's the only feasible alternative. For a 7th grader, Kristen has a pretty good grasp on that reality. At times, basketball mirrors life.

Applicable quote of the day:
"There is more to life than increasing its speed."  
Gandhi

God bless,
Steve
Luke 18:1

The Wish

 

y, February 14, 2021

The Wish

 

To watch the 2 minute clip this blog is based on, copy and paste the link below:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jacekBUPIyY

This won't make as much sense unless you watch the two minute video posted above. I begin class every day with a film clip, often using CBS On The Road with Steve Hartman. (I've mentioned before I think I could teach a legitimate Bible class only using Steve Hartman and Judge Judy episodes as outside references.) On Monday, I used a year old Hartman piece about an eleven year old Arkansas girl named Ruby. Her mom is a nurse who covers several nursing homes and Ruby often accompanies her mother. Out of curiosity, this pre-teen began asking residents what would they ask for if they were granted three wishes. To her great surprise, the elderly told her they would love Dr. Pepper/avocados/fresh fruit/Vienna sausages/a razor/cheese/etc. Ruby had expected they would play the Aladdin scenario and request money/houses/sports cars. Instead, their simple desires were within her grasp and with the help of a Go Fund Me page, she began making the life of the lonely a bit more tolerable. Her payment? Lots of love from those who have a great deal of love to give to any takers. 

On Monday, the bonus question for all my quizzes was based on Ruby's question. What three simple things would you like? I gave them my list, in no particular order:
- a haircut every week!
- someone who would take my clothes to the dry cleaner who would do it for free!
-my bed would magically get made up every morning!
I had some terrific answers from my kids. Several  would be happy with unlimited Chick-Fil-A! Best friends Jannieka and Tara, unbeknownst to each other, asked identically for 'stickers for my water bottle!' Had to be ESP- one was online and one sitting in my room! But my favorite came from one of my female students who simply listed,
a hug.
I don't think it had any romantic intent even though it was Valentine's week. My guess is she was feeling overwhelmed by life and needed some reassurance that everything was going to be all right. I'm not a hugger, like the old lady identifies herself to Ruby, but many people I love are. Do you think Jesus was a hugger? We know from Mark 10:16 that He took children in His arms and blessed them! He knew what they needed and what the parents who brought their offspring needed. I think we make kindness too complicated at times. Not always easy to know during these days of social distancing but we can find some form of human contact to show we care. Ruby showed us the way.

Applicable quote of the day:
“Sometimes the right hug from the right person at the exact right time makes all the wrong in the world disappear...”
Sarah Ockler

God bless,
Steve
Luke 18:1

Missing Doc

 Missing Doc

I miss Doc!! This is from February 27, 2017!
I was walking down our intermediate hallway this afternoon after the end of school bell. There were several sixth graders in the hallway at their lockers which, if you have never seen girls' lockers at that age, are often decorated nicer than my apartment. I made small talk as I passed and I made my way past the last young lady, she extended her hand  and I returned the favor. As I continued, I heard her make this pronouncement to her buddies:
"I should get a PhD in high fives!"
I laughed. That was the best thing I heard all day or maybe in several days. Still laughing when I entered the high school office, I borrowed paper and pen from our Upper School Administrative Assistant, Christy McDonald. Making sure I kept the memory fresh, I copied it down word for word. Wisdom from the mouths of children!!

As I sat down several minutes ago, I was going to make an application on doing the little things well, perfecting small gestures and acts of kindness. But then it hit me. We had a PhD in high fives. Our long-time school chaplain, Dr. Robert Farrar, was famous for giving every man, woman, and child who entered the hallowed halls of Westbury Christian School, a high five. Doc, who just celebrated his 89th birthday, was in all of our lives until last year when health issues forced his retirement. In the good times and bad times of the families of our school, Doc was a presence. He had the gift of consolation and he had the gift of encouragement. I often sought his counsel and wisdom. He always kept a bag of pretzels in his drawer for me when I got hungry. When I was too busy to visit his downstairs' office, I sent my teachers' aides in my place and it became a tradition. Megan, Minna, and Mi saw Doc as a grandfather figure and they loved him dearly. And tonight, I realized how much I miss him. 

The Lord puts people in our lives, I am convinced, for a reason. My first day and Doc's first day at WCS were the same. My father had a book profiling Church of Christ preachers and a very young Robert Farrar, complete with black hair, was pictured. I never knew that Doc but the older version, like most of us, was probably a better one. We had a going away reception for him last spring. He was in a wheel chair and all the kids hugged him goodbye. I kept thinking one day he would come back but that was wishful thinking. He's been in and out of the hospital in the past year. He's a fighter- you don't make it to eighty-nine if you aren't. We just aren't the same without him; some folks simply cannot be replaced. But, you know, I think I heard a little girl auditioning for his position this afternoon. Be well, Doc. Have no doubt that you are loved and missed.

Applicable quote of the day:
"Give people a high five for just getting out of bed because being human is hard sometimes."
Kid President

God bless,
Steve
Luke 18:1

For All To See

 For All To See

Valentine's Day! One tradition in my classroom is the Love Board which you can read about below, an entry from January 31, 2009.

Today is the last day of January which means tomorrow is February. To me, February is National Love Month even if has never been officially designated as such. Tomorrow, The Love Board makes its annual appearance in Room 258. Along with the return of The Love Board comes the return of its theme song which sounds suspiciously like the theme song from The Love Boat, the worst show from the 1970's. To complicate matters, I am the only artist who can do the theme justice, sort of my signature song if you will with my own unique styling. This brings us back to The Love Board. In the school year of 1990-91, I was teaching US History classes at Friendship Christian School in Lebanon, Tennessee. My eighth grade classes were segregated by gender. We were blessed with a particularly gifted group of young ladies. In my classroom, I had a chalkboard we never used. Some of the girls started drawing hearts on the board with their name/initials and the name/initials of their significant other enclosed. The Love Board was born. It was silly but it got to be a big thing. As with every masterpiece, we encountered a problem. What would be the protocol should there be trouble in paradise and the happy couple split? The solution was the Draob Evol which is simply Love Board spelled backwards. Half the board was designated for breakups and half for true love. True there was a nebulous word. Very few of the 'couples' really were. The girls were professing their undying devotion for the guy of their dreams, whether or not the said guy knew the girl existed or not. Very rarely would boys put their own names on The Love Board. It was not cool to publicly display any affection for a girl, even if only scribbled in erasable chalk. No matter- the girls more than adequately compensated!

Girls are so much more open about stuff. They will admit to liking people when boys will fight in denial of a perceived affection. It starts at an early age. My first fistfights came when my brother Dave would tease me unrelentingly about a girl from church. I really didn't like her but it would not have mattered if I did- I would NEVER have admitted it. I think I was ashamed at that age to have anyone even think I liked someone of the opposite gender. There is a spiritual parallel here. Jesus is blunt when he spoke about our loyalty to him. The Master said if we are ashamed of him, he will be ashamed of us. If we disown him, he will disown us. That's why I think the Lord's Supper is so important. Paul tells us in 1st Corinthians 11 that when we participate in communion, we PROCLAIM the Lord's death. We are saying we accept and believe and are proud of the relationship we have with the Savior. We acknowledge the debt we owe to him. We tell the world we are lost without the Messiah. There is no shame or reluctance in our adoration and devotion. It is who we are. That is what, in a secular sense, those thirteen year old girls were so good at. They simply proclaimed their love.

The Love Board has evolved over the years. We now use a white board with dry erase markers and we limit the amount of space per declaration- some were monopolizing too much territory! You can only put your own name, no helping out a shy friend or creating gag couples. Kids I no longer teach will come by for their shot at love immortality... or at least until the board is cleared for weekly assignments. Those Tennessee girls are all in their late 20's now and many are married with children. They started something silly, yet sweet, that has endured the test of time, or at least for fifteen years! So to Karie, Laura Beth, Sarah, Alice, Carey, Susan S., Colleen, Kerry, Kelly, Cindy, Karen, Amanda, Jennifer, Mary Helen, Mary Ellen, Susan K., Candace, Rebecca, Nikki, Stacey, and Jamie, the female representatives of the Friendship Christian School, Class of 1995- Happy Love Board Day!

Applicable quote of the day:
"Gravitation cannot be held responsible for people falling in love."
Albert Einstein

God bless,
Steve (Captain of the Love Board)
Luke 18:1

Cuts Like A Knife

 Cuts Like A Knife

Before the deaths of Mom and Dad, I flew into St. Louis from Houston at least four times per year, always on Southwest Airlines. You can see the frailties of the human race while standing in a security line at the airport! The following is from November 26, 2006.

I flew back to Houston Friday from St. Louis. Imagining Lambert Airport would be packed, I had my dad get me there two hours early. There was no need. I wouldn't say the airport was empty but it certainly was not running near full capacity. It only took about two minutes to check my bags in and get my boarding pass. There was a couple ahead of me as I went through the security line. Suddenly, I heard the man in front utter a profanity. Then, for emphasis I guess, he repeated. I couldn't hear what the wife/girlfriend said to him but his reply was, "Because I'm an idiot!!" He stormed out of the line with the lady right behind. The problem? As he got close to the desk where you show your boarding pass and picture ID, he reached into his front jeans pocket.....and found the knife he forgot to remove. I really think he was in a dilemma. He could not pull it out of his pocket; there might have been guns drawn by the nearby security. His check-on bags had already been removed to wherever they go before they are thrown on the plane. I would guess they had checked in the maximum number of bags so I am not sure he had any real options except get rid of the knife. I never saw the two again.

The new F.A.A. regulations have reduced what you can take onto a plane in your carry-on bags. There was advertising for the 3-1-1 rules throughout the airport. Liquids, gels, and aerosols must be in containers no larger than three ounces. They have to be packed in one clear plastic bag that cannot exceed one quart in volume. I would guess the aforementioned couple was careful to comply with the new policy so as not to be detained as they went through the screening process. However careful the gentleman might have been to adhere to the guidelines on the smallest items, he made a huge mistake. He obeyed the little rules but he inadvertently violated the biggest one- NO WEAPONS! Jesus often had disputes with the religious leaders of his day. In one of these run-ins, he accused them of tithing everything they grew in their garden, even very small herbs, while they completely ignored more important issues: mercy, justice, faithfulness, the love of God. The Savior concluded his point by stating, "You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former." (Matthew 23:23) We can't pick and choose what we will and will not obey. Jesus does not say don't do the little things but he emphasizes we must do the more important obligations. It's a daily contest to keep things in perspective, one that I routinely find myself failing. But I do feel good about one thing: I didn't walk into the airport with a knife in my pocket! Once, I was interrupted in the same security line in that same airport because I was trying to board with..... a brand new iron from Best Buy. I learned my lesson. On Friday, I just put everything in my suitcase. It's the only way to fly.

Applicable quote of the day:
"The American people must be willing to give up a degree of personal privacy in exchange for safety and security."
Louis Freeh

God bless,
Steve
Luke 18:1