Advent Wilderness

Lighting a candle of the Advent Wreath

If we’re not careful, Christmas can come and go in a flurry of torn paper and overeating, so fast that we miss the meaning.  I’m telling our students that if John the Baptist were among us today, he would warn us of the danger of focusing too much on ourselves….what we want, and what we’re going to get.  Self-focus has a way of blinding us to the core meaning of the Season.  As I write this, we’re lighting 2 candles of the Advent Wreath in school Chapel, so the inexorable march to December 25 continues.  I’ve done about half the things on my list and the other half wants to send me into a panic.  I can succumb to the anxiety, complete the list, go beyond what is reasonable…over-achieve, over-compensate, over-do….but at what cost?  Let’s remember that Advent began with the lighting of a candle and, while it’s not too late, perhaps we can find other kinds of illumination to hold up against the backdrop of the season’s cloud of frenzy.  Here are some ideas: grab some coffee, sit, listen and reflect upon a piece of sacred music, be intentional about giving some of your time to a worthy cause, read the Christmas story to someone you love, write in a journal about what Christmas means to you and share with a trusted other, buy a gift for someone you don’t know (i.e., Toys for Tots) and pray for that person or family.  Being intentionally spiritual about Advent is not one more thing on the list….it flavors and informs all the stuff we have to do and, by the Grace of God, may lead to the sublime.

Occupy Thanksgiving

Is the glass half full or half empty?  What we see may depend on our general outlook on life.  Do you always focus on what's missing, what you wish you had, the things that could have been?  There is a danger in only dwelling on what we lack, on making a place in our hearts for feeling like life has dealt a bad hand.  The risk is that in so doing, we lose sight of the half full glass....the great gifts that we have in life.  Thanksgiving Day offers us the occasion to take stock of our blessings, to be more intentional about noticing the water in the glass.  This Thanksgiving let's not forget the people we love, our good memories, the things that interest us, the simple things that we can enjoy but never own.  Take some time each day to search your heart for gratefulness....with God's help, it may just change the way you see and allow you greater joy in life.   

Unearth Your Hidden Talents

On Sunday, November 13, the Revised Common Lectionary specifies “The Parable of the Talents” from Matthew’s Gospel (Mt 25:14-30).  The word “talent” captured my initial thoughts because it refers to a staggeringly large amount of money.  One talent was equivalent to 6,000 denarii, and each denarius was the amount a laborer would earn for a day’s work.  Hypothetically, if a worker in Jesus’ day did not have to eat and could have saved everything he earned, I suppose it would have taken almost 20 years to accumulate wealth at this level….and this is the level of the slave who only received one talent.  We are not supposed to feel badly for the slave who was entrusted with the least amount….like he was somehow receiving the “short end of the stick” from the master.  The point is that each was entrusted with a fortune!  In the Kingdom of Heaven every servant of God has bountiful blessings, and each is called to be mindful of these gifts and to put them to good use.  Do you know the “fortune” that God has invested in you?  Spending some time reflecting on what God has given us may help to bring this “wealth” to consciousness...to unearth hidden talents, so to speak.  This might mean trying new things to see how they work.  There are always risks with trying something new.... embarrassment, lost time and energy, misunderstandings... but, we can't live life to the fullest if we let fear shut us down.  Moving forward, we place our trust in God....the only way to lose is not to try.   

A Blessing

Several people have asked me for the blessing given at the end of the 10:30AM Eucharist on Sunday, October 30.  I heard this one from The Rev. Grayce O'Neill, one of the faculty members at the Episcopal CREDO conference I attended in October.  She was kind enough to send it to me, and now this blessing is a permanent resident in my Book of Common Prayer:

May the Spirit of the living God, made known to us most fully in Jesus Christ our Lord:

Go before you to show you the way

Go above you to watch over you

Go beside you to be your companion

Go behind you to push you into places you would not normally go yourself

Dwell inside you to remind you that you are loved beyond your wildest imagination

And may the blessing of God Almighty, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, be with you now and always.  AMEN.

Confidence

I have recently returned with our 6th Grade and chaperones from several days amidst the the piney woods of Camp Allen.  Every year our students participate in the Discovery Program there, a curriculum that includes team building, outdoor living skills, environmental education, archery, rock wall climbing, and orienteering.  One of the greatest privileges for me is being able to witness confidence break out on the faces of students who successfully complete goals in these various activites.  The photo I'm featuring here shows one of these kiddos just after he's been lowered from the top of the high elements climbing wall.  It wasn't easy for him, but he persevered and made it to the top...the pride of achievement is written all over his expression!  Do you see it?  I am reminded that nothing we parents and teachers can say to these youths can make them have self-confidence.  We can encourage, cajol, comfort, pamper, and reprimand, but we can't make anyone feel good about themselves.  It is only the experience of setting goals, working hard, and achieving success that builds self-esteem.  Confidence cannot be given....there is no substitute for finding and claiming it on your own.  When we see youths who show a lack of confidence, the best thing we can do is help them find a passion by giving them different kinds of experiences.  Find a youngster who is keenly interested in something; interested enough to become fairly expert and or skilled in that area....and you will have found a youngster who knows the feeling of confidence.

The "Whole Enchilada"

My next preaching assignment at Trinity Episcopal Church (Sunday, September 18) coincides with the “Parable of the Workers in the Vineyard” found in The Gospel According to Matthew (20:1-16). Only occurring in Matthew, the parable serves as a clear reminder not to apply the rules of the marketplace to God’s love. In the story, Jesus compares the Kingdom of Heaven to a landowner who decides to pay every harvest worker the same wage, a full day’s wage…even to those who were hired near the end of the day. It doesn’t make sense….you can’t run a business that way. Those who had worked the entire day were understandably irked. But God’s family is not a business, and there is no such thing as a “salary deduction” or a “partial payment” from God. The message is as simple as it is poignant: there is no such thing as a part of God’s love. Every child in God’s family receives the “whole enchilada” as my seminary professor Charlie Price was apt to say. This divine love and our place in God’s family is nothing to which we are entitled, not something we have earned. It is pure gift; freely given….the challenge before us is to lay aside our marketplace mentality when it comes to our faith. We are called to open our hearts, simply receive God’s gift, and respond by allowing thankfulness to rule in our lives.

Yearbooks Bring Back Memories

Students Enjoying the 2011 Yearbook on August 24

I was surprised when my daughter, Charlotte (TES C' 2007), picked up a copy of the 2011 Trinity Yearbook and poured through it eagerly, thoughtfully, and with lots of smiles.  She's a graduate of Ball High beginning her freshman year at A&M, but despite the distance of years, Trinity's yearbook is still a draw for her.  Not simply a photographic record of a particular year, our yearbook displays the most important traditions of the school.  For generations, familiar annual events have marked the landscape of our calendar: Carnival, class trips, Lessons and Carols, the 5th Grade play, May Fete, Green and Gold games, and Graduation come to mind.  My daughter's smiles tell me she easily returns to the good memories of her days at Trinity.  We should not miss just how important school memories are to our graduates!  In this day and age when a plethora of school choices have risen overnight, Trinity stands out as a place of time-honored traditions.  The various activities portrayed in our yearbook together celebrate life, faith, the innocence of childhood, and the strength of a God-centered, academically-oriented community.  I'm thankful every day for what my children received at TES.

We have some extra yearbooks available at the time of this writing.  The cost is $40 per book and we would love to see them all go to our current families and alumni.

On the Eve of Starting School

At 6th Grade Orientation today, our students received their locker assignments and combination locks. The secret to getting one of these locks to work can seem daunting at first, sort of like learning to ride a bike.  You have to follow the instructions exactly...give the dial a full turn before selecting the initial number, as I recall.  Who hasn't experienced rushing against the clock to get to class only to have their locker combination fail to work on the first try?  Generations of students have mastered their combination locks and learned to think clearly under pressure at their locker.  It's like a mini lesson in character each time....you know the saying, "Whatever doesn't kill you will make you stronger." 

There is a kind of comfort in seeing a new crop of students going through the routines....a sense that all is well and as it should be.  I captured this photo earlier today of a Trinity 8th grader "initiating" his younger brother in the mysteries of the combination lock.

New Faculty at Trinity Episcopal School

Earlier in the week I had the pleasure of leading Trinity Episcopal School's New Teacher Orientation.  Our new teachers are pictured from left to right: Theresa Pistone, Geney Heaton, and Susan Spurlock. 


Theresa comes to us from GISD where most recently she has held administrative positions including that of Technology Coordinator for the district.  She now takes the reigns of Computer Teacher/Technology Coordinator at TES.  A Magna Cum Laude graduate of The University of Houston Clear Lake, she describes herself as "a highly organized, curious and motivated teacher who strives to meet the individual needs of every student."  I look forward to the innovations she will certainly bring to our computer curriculum.


Geney comes to us from Klein ISD where she built a well-respected career teaching Kindergarten.  A fellow Indianan and friend of Trinity teacher Diane Humphrey, Geney was introduced to Galveston some years ago and has now moved to the Island with her husband, Kevin.  She earned the Bachelor of Arts in Elementary Education for Hanover College, Hanover, Indiana.  I am impressed by her energy, her experience using technology in the classroom, as well as her background in both Music and Spanish.  Geney will teach our Kindergarten class.


Susan has already served as one of our favorite substitute teachers; she is a Galveston BOI, Ball High graduate, and a retired teacher from GISD.  She is proud to be the parent of a Trinity graduate, Amber, who has served until recently as a captain and attorney in the United States Air Force (JAG).  She states, "sending my daughter to Trinity is one of the best things I ever did for her. Trinity teachers helped her develop study skills to such a high level that she was an excellent student throughout high school and college."  Susan will take a section of 4th Grade alongside her friend and fellow master teacher, Debbie Kelemen.  Her own education includes a Bachelor of Arts from Sam Houston State and a Master of Science from The University of Houston Clear Lake.


Although she is not a new teacher to Trinity, I do want to mention Arden Cragar.  Arden is a current Trinity parent of George (8th), Charlie (6th), and Maggie (2nd) and a former Trinity teacher and director of our Beginning School.  She now returns to the Trinity classroom teaching our PK 4-year-olds.  "Hook 'Em Horns," I've rehired a University of Texas graduate with a B.S. in Applied Learning and Development!


This group rounds out an excellent teaching staff.  We can expect that they will do their part to help Trinity maintain the strong academic culture that has been a fixture in Galveston almost 60 years!

Trinity Middle School to Introduce E-Reader Technology

Nook Simple Touch by Barnes & Noble

Thanks to unprecedented giving during the 2010-2011 school year,  our middle school teachers will have a new technology available this fall to support the use of literature across the curriculum.  Trinity is acquiring a classroom set of "Simple Touch" e-readers from Barnes and Noble.  This device, shown at right,  was just named the "Editor's Choice" for e-readers by PC Magazine (July, 2011).

I recently tried one of the school's "Simple Touch" devices by reading Murder on the Orient Express by Agatha Christie, a title from the 8th Grade's summer reading list. I was surprised at how thin, light, and easy to hold this e-reader is!  The Pearl E-Ink display is easy on the eyes, and the infrared powered touchscreen is very responsive. But what pleases me most for our middle school literature program are the reading tools available at the touch of a finger. Press and hold a word on the page, and a menu appears allowing the reader to highlight text, enter a note with an on-screen keyboard, and best of all, to look up the word in the built-in Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary. Being able to check a word quickly and seamlessly allows the reader to hold concentration and stay in the reading "zone."  The search feature facilitates individual and classroom study by recalling every place in the book where a word or phrase occurs.


This technology, that helps students remain engaged in a book, fits well with our English Language Arts goal to instill a life-long love of reading. 
Trinity Episcopal School might well be the first school on the Island to use this e-reader to deliver part of a middle school curriculum. Our program will by necessity be a hybrid program in the beginning; some great literature for these young readers has not yet become available in electronic format. But make no mistake, this way of reading is the way of the future.