#17

#17- Write myself a letter to open in five years...

Clearly, this would be somewhat personal, so I am not going to include the letter in this blog. I will copy the intro and conclusion of it though, so you can understand the purpose of including it on the list...

Dear Me,
I am writing this for you to read in five years. Trying to decide the advice, the hopes, and the predictions I have for you has made me think back over the last 5 years of your life and how much you have grown. This time 5 years ago, you had not graduated college yet. You were a “Christian” but really had no idea what it meant to be one, other than you believed Jesus died for your sins and lives in your heart. Your world had revolved around one guy for so long that you really didn’t have any close friends anymore. Your new boyfriend would end up playing a huge part in your “real” salvation. You finally graduated college with TWO degrees, became a teacher and a regular church-goer, and realized you would only be happy moving back to the area you grew up in. Little did you know, the move to Lawrenceville would change your life. You became an essential part of your church through small groups, and have so many friends that continue to grow you and influence you to be the best person you can.

(insert here...hopes, dreams, regrets, and private thoughts... :-P )

Wow. I just realized as I write this, you will be 31, almost 32, when you are reading this. I have seen a few of my friends turn 30, so I hope it wasn’t too bad for you. I think about you all the time- what you will be like in 5 years, 10 years, 20… some days, I feel like I hardly know you, and others, I feel like I’m the only one that does. I really do want the best for you, and I am so proud of how far you’ve come in certain areas of your life. Of course, there are still things that need work, but everyone needs work. I hope that you have continued to grow and learn in these five years.

I love you. And that’s important. I hope I still love you in 5 years. I have a feeling I will. :)
~Jessica

#17-completed.

#99 and #65

#99- Thank someone for a compliment and mean it... #65- Further my education

If you aren't a teacher, and don't know someone that is, it's easy for you to take for granted what a teacher actually does. Everyday, I have to figure out how I will teach a skill so effectively that all 20 of my students will be able to grasp it, as well as do it in a way that will keep those 20 children entertained long enough to listen to me and actually learn the concept. It's easy to get "stuck in a rut" which is what most older teachers end up doing- they get tired of learning new and engaging ways to teach.

Right now, I am taking a class through the county that is teaching teachers how to use Reading and Writing Workshop in their classrooms. It's a lot to learn, but you wish you could just start doing everything you learn in these classes in your own classroom right away because of how great it is. I have started implementing a few things I've learned in my own classroom, and it has made SUCH a difference already in my kids' excitement about reading.

My Literacy Coach at my school came in my room last week to watch the new things I was doing, and was very complimentary of my ideas and techniques I was using. At that time, I was still unsure of how "great" all this really was... I knew good things were happening, but it was a lot of work, and still very new. So, of course, I thanked her for the compliments, but was still doubting myself. I find that I often do this... it's not that I can't take a compliment... but if I don't really feel the same thing, it's hard to.

Well, today, in my class, I shared the things I was doing and showed some examples, and the instructor came over on a break and wanted to see everything. She told me she was so impressed by what I was doing, and she was so thankful that I was actually taking what I was learning and using it in my classroom. For whatever reason, maybe because I've seen the difference in my kids so I can believe it myself, I was able to thank her for her compliment and mean it. :) I was suddenly so proud of myself for the things I was doing in my classroom because I KNOW I am making a difference in these kids' lives and the way they feel about reading. :)

#65- still going, and #99- completed. :)

Will Americans Do The Same?

Tears stream down my face as I watch the concert drive, Hope For Haiti Now... as I watch footage taken in Haiti of the devastation and the heartbreak, but also of the hope that still exists in the crumbling streets of the country. I watch young men dig through concrete with their bare hands to get to people that are trapped in the collapsed buildings... not rescue workers, but Haitians that love and care enough about their people to do it themselves. And the people that they have rescued are carried out singing and praying, and they are so faithful.

We banded together as Americans on 9/11, and I have to have faith that if something devastating like this happened in America, we would do the same thing for our own brothers and sisters, just as many Americans are reaching out to help the Haitians. But I ask, why does it take something devastating to help people in need? There are people all around us that need help, and they might not be buried under concrete rubble, but they are crying out for help and day in, day out, they go unheard. Don't let it take a tragedy to help those in need. Give to those in Haiti what you can, but don't stop there......

"If anyone has material possessions and sees his brother in need but has no pity on him, how can the love of God be in him? Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth." 1 John 3:17-18

#68

#68: Go out in public with no make-up on...

I know some of you laughed, or maybe scoffed, when you saw this on my list. I am not someone that spends a lot of time putting make-up on everyday... 10 minutes max. But, I feel weird going anywhere without even a little make-up on. It's not that I think I'm ugly, I just know that make-up can accentuate my better features. It makes me feel better about myself to have it on.

So tonight, I met Ana for dinner, and decided what better time to do this than with my accountability partner? :) Ironically, I didn't "feel" any different, and I wasn't self-conscious about it... I almost forgot I hadn't put make-up on. It may not necessarily be a new "habit" of mine, but it definitely made me feel accomplished. :)

#68-completed!

Ringin' In Twenty-Ten!

Top Nine of 2009- in no particular order...

1. Making new friendships and strengthening old ones... I am so very blessed to have the friends that I do!

2. Becoming a small group leader... what a privilege! I got to know, grow with, and learn from some amazing Godly women!

3. Jivey's List of 100 Things... thanks to a few of my friends who started this, and let me "copy them" and join in! It has been very rewarding and has helped me grow in ways I wouldn't have otherwise. Plus it was just fun.

4. Teaching 3rd grade... moving from 1st grade to 3rd grade was a big jump, and one I was beginning to wonder if I was going to enjoy, but I have loved every minute of it! Ok well maybe not EVERY minute, but every job has its moments. :-P

5. Mom getting married... She married an amazing man, and now I have a new family! This also affirmed my desire to get married on the beach. :)

6. Surprise birthday party... No one has ever thrown me a surprise party until this year! And wow... the outpouring from friends was incredible. I couldn't believe how many people came! It absolutely was a Jiveypalooza. :)

7. Driving to see Brandi in Indiana... I love taking road trips, but had never done one by myself, and never that far!

8. Being a part of my friends' weddings... I am so excited for Lindsay, Scott, Jess, and Ted! I am so thankful I got to be a part of their important days. :)

9. Taking pictures... I absolutely adore taking pictures, and I don't think I could live without my camera. And I just got a new one... woohoo!

Ten Things I'm Looking Forward to in 2010:
1. Buying my mom's house...? It's a possibility!
2. Continuing to be a small group leader.
3. Learning how to work my camera as more than just a "point-and-shoot."
4. Upcoming friends' weddings! :-)
5. Finishing my list of 100 things.
6. Growing in my relationship with God.
7. Making more friends and strengthening friendships.
8. Spring Break Cruise with 'Mandalynn!!
9. Being ready to teach whatever grade and whatever students may come my way in August.
10. The summer. Need I say more? ;-)