Thursday, August 27, 2015

Candy Crush in my Hair

I got to stay all day at my "job" yesterday. I actually stayed longer than my allotted time. If I'd had a cot I'd have stayed all night.  Because when I'm not smiling, I'm praying and when I'm not praying I'm writing and when I'm not writing I'm crying and most times I'm doing them all at the same time.  My heart lives there now at my "job".  I can't write job any other way except in quotation marks because it just feels like the wrong word to call it.

I'm slowly beginning to make my way into being seen and known there at the school where I've been planted.  I move stealth through the halls, looking for ways to plant a seed.  Sometimes I take pictures to capture the breath and life of the place.  I copied stupendous amounts of music yesterday for one teacher and looked up as I stacked the pages neat to see "Ten Things God Wants You to Remember" on the wall where I stood.  He's everywhere, I think.  The smallest of tasks seems to take on a greater shade of Life and I warm my hands and heart in whatever I put them to.


"What kind of person do you want to become as you live out the story of redemption?"  The question hit me in my heart as I was reading.  This is what I want to challenge the kids with; "my" kids.  Already my heart had adopted them.  So, my girl made a banner and slowly, kids are coming in to sign it and I ask them their names and look them right in the eye and really see them.  Yesterday, kids came in and stayed; like on purpose to wait on their parents. And I sat on the floor while the liveliest of boys grabbed a piece of hard candy and threw it up to the ceiling and it landed on my head and filtered through my hair like shattered glass and we both laughed and I felt a pop tart burst of joy.  

Today a mom, a reader of my words, came in to meet me and fireworks went off; bing, bam, boing!  Our spirits went right to it, forgetting any pretense, and we locked hearts strong.  We're soldiers together now, ready to shore each other up with hard words and gentle prayers.  And I marveled quiet in my car as I drove away later.  Father, you amaze me.  Life is hard, really hard sometimes.  The gift of each other, rough and tumble though we be, willing to be wounded in the journey for and with each other, is one of Your good gifts to us.  Teach us to be brave enough to reach out and lock arms.



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