The Christmas Angel

*** Blogger’s Note: *** It wasn’t my intention to share too much about faith on the blog because as a public school teacher my faith is demonstrated by teaching with good character.  So, I need to tell you that this post is inspired by the words of a faith mentor who is a pastor.   

The Christmas season is my favorite!  I’m that person who listens to carols right after Thanksgiving and has the greatest collection of Christmas socks, pins, and scarves.  My Mom promises that my festiveness came from admiring my elementary school teachers.  In my collection of Christmas pins is a Christmas angel with a teacher’s apple for a heart.   This pin has special place in my jewelry box apart from the rest of the collection.   Regardless of the season, it’s the very first thing I see everyday when I open my jewelry box.  

My second grade teacher, Madame Quinn gave me the pin.    (She spoke French, so we loved calling her Madame).  We were at our class holiday party when I told her that I loved her pin.   She knelt down beside me and unpinned the angel from her sweater. She smiled saying,  “ Merry Christmas, Julie!” Then she clipped the pin to my sweater.   It was one of the most magical and unexpected gifts I’ve ever received.  The angel has traveled from New Jersey to North Carolina with me unbroken.   I wore it only once four years ago to honor the students of the Sandy Hook tragedy.  Otherwise, it sits in my jewelry box as a reminder that I have been called to teach and celebrate education. 

 My pathway to teaching has been full of detours and more often than not, it’s difficult to see and believe in that HOPE. 

 Yet, small reminders of that HOPE shine in a meaningful way when I need them most.  Last week, I listened to a sermon given by an AMAZING pastor in Charlotte.  (If I could lecture the way he preaches education would be changed forever!!) His message was titled, God’s Math.    This resonated with me in a really impactful way.   This teaching journey was complicated by learning disabilities associated with my cerebral palsy--- most of them are math related.   Dealing with my learning disabilities is one of my greatest concerns as teacher.  Pastor Mark reminded me that there isn’t a mathematical equation for overcoming obstacles of life.    Near the end of his sermon, he said something that spoke to my heart.  It’s the whole reason I wrote this post.

“Here’s How God Does Math:  He gives you a test that you can’t pass so; you’ll look to the substitute who passed it for you!”    In other words, having HOPE in something greater will always give you the ability to follow your heart--- Even if it’s not on your timetable.   The more I reflect on these words, the more true they become.

I am not a certified teacher yet but I encounter hundreds of students each week as a volunteer and a substitute teacher.  It is in these roles that I am beginning to figure out how to answer my calling to teach.    So maybe it’s fair to say that like Madame 'sChristmas angel, my pathway to teaching was an unexpected gift that will help me give  HOPE to others.