Tomorrow begins the new academic year for school in my district. Part of me is excited and part of me is still physically healing, so I am concerned how I will begin this year.
A random stranger from this game app I play “words with friends”, asked what do I occupation wise, I said substitute teacher. He then asked is that by choice? I said ‘No, it’s God’s plan”. The minute I responded I realized it was really God’s plan. To be completely transparent with anyone. I never wanted to be a teacher except when I was about 10 years old, my thoughts on growing up is that I wanted to be a teacher, married and have 2 children, well here I am in my forties and only half of the three life dreams are reality. I have ONE child, NEVER married, I do have a Master’s degree in Education but not a teacher (I need to complete the teaching certification to finalize that), I don’t think I want to finalize it or mentally I can pass the test. But I don’t need a certification to educate.
I mentioned my brain damage from the coma brought on by sickle cell disease, well the testing results show’s I have cognitive damage that cannot be undo. So, putting that aside let’s see how I know this is God’s plan.
During my 3 years of obtaining my M.Ed. everyone kept saying so you want to be a teacher, I kept saying no, my undergrad is in Business management and Human Resource Management, I am good at that and I enjoy it. The Masters was only to keep me occupied in my retired age. My thoughts were to teach General Education Diploma GED or English as a Second Language (ESL). I was equipped for that journey because the weekend before I went in the coma I did a training course on working with the ESL software, and I had a volunteer job to help the Spanish speaking population volunteer center. Let’s just say that Monday came with a Sickle Cell Crisis, that led me into a full blown coma on Tuesday, September 9, 2014, and exactly 6 months of receiving my Degree on paper and in ink ready for framing.
Here I am barely a year from a coma and not even quite recovered telling my self I can take back “MY” life. (Notice the word “MY” life) I got so many doors slammed in my face trying to get a job. Frustrated and not where to turn, I didn’t understand what? where? why? where I was going. There were more road blocks than I ever could imagine. Then I began asking God, why he made me go through all this work on getting a perfect GPA, with student loans, that I cannot use. “I HAD PLANS”. you know the saying tell God you plans and he will laugh at you. Well, Heaven sure was laughing at me really loud. I had to humble myself and ask God to order my steps, where he leads I will follow not questions asked, where he sends me I will go. His plans are bigger than mine and better than mine. God prepared me for this journey, but I was to busy being stuck in my own way and my own plans.
By that time I had applied to so many jobs that I lost count, until I got a email for orientation for Substitute teaching for the county I lived in. I honestly didn’t remember applying to, I needed to show up and bring a copy of my final transcript and just like that I had a job. A total different job from what I dreamed of, in an arena that I knew nothing about, a setting I was not comfortable with. (I do not like public speaking)
There is something about my kid at heart personality that draws children to me, I have been a church children’s leader for 8 years and did a good job, so this was right up my alley. I was also still recovering from my brain damage so re-learning to read, write and converse again was more of the perfect therapy for me. This was 3 years ago, this new school year will be my 4th year, but I believe at the end of this school year I will be ready for the true purpose God has for me. I am not sure what it will be exactly but the preparation had brought me healing, patience and experience for the next chapter. I do know at the end of my life’s journey I want to know “I was the reason someone didn’t give up” I was the one who made some’s day. I was the reason someone smiled or laughed” And even though I have heard all those, I still believe I have more someone’s to cover in life. I won’t be doing much this year because once again another surgery ahead… but I will be doing as much as my body allows.
EACH ONE REACH ONE TEACH ONE
Phoenix: Live Love Laugh 