Day 153 School Spirit?

As most of my readers know, I am a middle school teacher.  If you know a middle schooler, you know that this means I almost always come home with crazy stories to tell!  Today I came home knowing that I made a difference.  This is what happend...

Today was a half day, and I was one of the teachers chaperoning during the I-SAT pep assembly in the gym(I-SAT is a big upcoming test for middle schoolers) .  One of the teachers in charge of the assembly is a close friend of mine, and as she was emceeing the event, I looked around and noticed that most of the students were bored, distracted, and totally uninspired.  Kids were talking while she was talking, throwing paper wads, hanging on bleacher bars (literally), poking each other, talking back to teachers who were trying to hush them...   It wasn't a pretty sight.  Although it was terribly disrespectful, my heart went out to them and I thought, "These kids need to be inspired!"  "People want to be inspired!"  And then I felt God plop an idea into my heart of exactly what I should say.  I knew I needed to claim the moment.  So inbetween the assemblies (we had three, one for each grade level), I asked her if I could share something during the 8th grade assembly.  She was delighted.

By the 8th grade assembly, even the teachers were getting bored and losing the fight to keep the students quiet.  The assembly droned on.  Three or four times the Assistant Principal had to go up to the microphone and tell the students to be quiet and be respectful.  Somehow, the quiet didn't last long.  At the end of the assembly, over the chattiness of the students, I heard the emcee say that I would be coming up to say a few words.  As soon as she said my name, the students quieted down.  As I walked up to get the microphone from her, the gym fell silent.  All eyes were fastened on me. 

I began to share with them how I have been with them for 6th grade, then 7th grade, and finally 8th grade (this is my 3rd year there, so they will be the first group I'm "sending off" to the high school), and how as I was watching the assembly, I was reminded of a movie:  "The Blind Side."  "Who here has seen this movie?"  Several hands went up.  I began to explain the storyline to them how he came from a difficult life like many of them.  "Do you remember how his father died, and then his mom got evicted?  ...He didn't let it cause him to give up.  He didn't quit.  He got a tutor and worked even harder, didn't he?  He wouldn't have been able to be on the football team if he didn't get good grades...  He wouldn't have reached his dream.  He wouldn't be famous today, and there wouldn't be a movie about his life."  I reminded them how he went into high school not being able to read or write very well, but that he did it, and they could too.  I brought it to a close: "You know, the week of the I-SAT tests there will be things in your life that you can't control.  Maybe something hard will happen at home or with your friends at school.  Remember how he did it?  He still gave it his best, and he chose to not let those things affect him..."  I wished them luck and walked back to my spot as they clapped.  Inside I was elated--I did it!  I seized the moment and made a difference.  There is a purpose for me here!

Lesson:  be ready to seize an opportunity for change