-
Flickr Photos
More Photos -
Archive for the ‘Observations on Life’ Category
Tugging at my heart strings
Friday, July 16th, 2010
I saw this the other evening and “awww-ed” at it the way one does when something really cute needs a friend or a hug (ie baby seals, pigeons, grad students…)
In other news, grad school is over for the summer, work is hectic, and I’m writing this from my iPhone 4g. Signal is so far…good.
More posts hopefully to come.
Posted in Fun Stuff, Observations on Life, Photography | No Comments »
Update on Life – Hello Summer
Wednesday, May 26th, 2010
We’re reading about blogs and wikis and blogging in general for one of my grad classes this summer, so I figured I’d mosey on over to my own blog to see what’s happening. Oh, yeah – that’s right; I’m the one who needs to keep this thing updated. That’s how blogging works! *shamed grin*
Since May 11th, I turned in my last grades for the Spring 2010 semester (you’re welcome, students), kissed my husband goodbye as he started a new job (we don’t work for the same institution anymore, but we’re definitely still together!), registered for 3 summer classes for grad school (I had the sudden urge to be done), found a new place for us to live (we’re moving back to Burbank), got increased hours at work, and did the dishes.
It’s going to be a busy summer.
But as I sit back in my awesome office chair (at home) and think about how life is going, I wouldn’t trade these experiences for anything. One thing I have learned recently is to treasure the seasons of life as they come and learn from all experiences, both good and bad. Sure, it sounds like I got bitten by the self-help bug recently (I blame my EDUC 268 class and all we have to read on leadership), but I’m really beginning to see how past experiences have shaped me as a person and are continuing to shape me. I hope they shape me into a better person.
On another note, I am loving my iPad and wishing I had an Evo like my coworker (grrr, people who went to Google IO). Honestly, though, a Nexus One would suffice.
iPad review to come soon. :-)
Cheers to all my classmates in all my different classes this summer. We will survive!
Posted in Observations on Life | No Comments »
The Unlikely Disciple
Tuesday, May 11th, 2010
A Sinner’s Semester at America’s Holiest University
Months and months ago, an acquaintance of mine mentioned this book. Then, another one did. And another. Then one more, and I finally reserved it at the library. From what I was told, I had some idea of what to expect, but I wasn’t prepared to be utterly encouraged by this book. Let me start out by saying that if you can’t handle honest discussions about Christian educational experiences, the book (and this blog post) are not for you.
I reserved the book about a month ago and did not pick it up until near its due date. Once I started reading, I couldn’t put it down. Kevin Roose is a talented writer, but it was what he had to write about that really drew me in.
In summary, during his sophomore-ish year, Kevin chose to leave “free-spirited, ultra-liberal” Brown University to check out what it’s like to study and live at a “conservative Baptist school” – Liberty University. Before I read this book, I had heard of both Brown and Liberty, but I had never heard of Jerry Falwell or Liberty’s political and spiritual background. (I’ll blame this ignorance on not growing up 100% in the U.S.) It was really interesting to read of Kevin’s experiences, but instead of thinking worse of him for “tricking” a Christian college into letting him “spy” on what it’s really like (some Christians feel that way), I applauded him. He gives a pretty fair evaluation of what it’s like to eat, drink, sleep, study, and breathe in a Christian educational bubble. Believe it or not, I was even encouraged.
(If you don’t know, I went to a Christian college for my undergraduate work and currently teach at the same college as well.)
Here are some things that stood out to me:
- Kevin got in to Liberty pretty easily and few people figured out that he wasn’t really a Christian. I don’t think there’s anything wrong with that on Kevin’s part – I think Christian institutions of higher education need to realize that not everyone on campus is a true believer. While most faculty, staff, and students know that truth deep down inside, so much emphasis seems to be placed on outward actions as proof of one’s spirituality. Unfortunately, a lot more emphasis seems to be placed on outward actions as it relates to school rules. “Don’t drink, don’t smoke, don’t sleep around, be back in the dorms by 11pm” turn into rubrics of one’s spirituality instead of the true fruit of a believer – love, joy, peace, patience,kindness, gentleness, self-control, etc. Now, I’m not saying there is anything wrong with an institution having rules (even if some seem strange); what I am saying is that the spiritual maturity of a person should not be measured by how many rules they did not break or how many school functions they attended. That’s naive, if not pharisaical.
- Spirituality in the dorms. While living in the dorms, several of Kevin’s wingmates would come in and ask how he was doing spiritually. They were looking for some specific answers, and to Kevin’s credit, he answered as honestly as possible. “How is your Bible reading coming along?” was met with how many hours (or minutes) he had truly spent reading his Bible for the Bible classes.
- These types of interactions always bothered me when I was in college – not that I was being asked how I was doing, but who was asking me how I was doing. My mother would ask me (she’s okay), my boyfriend (now husband) would ask me (he’s okay), some of my close classmates and friends would ask me (again, okay), my advisor would ask me (she was my mentor – still is – A-okay!)…and then there were the random people on campus who I may have met once or twice who wanted to know where I was in my walk with God. Those people always made me feel a bit uncomfortable, not because I had anything to hide (believe me, I think I was too honest sometimes), but because I had no idea who they really were and then – BAM! – tell me about how you think you’re doing with the most important aspect of your life! In short, it felt more like the police interrogations I experienced in the former Soviet Union than a truly sincere person who really wanted to know about my faith.
- Kevin made a rather astute observation about all of this that really blessed my heart. Those people were not trying to be nosey (maybe some were); they wanted to be sure he was safe. With hell a real, pressing threat to Christians, they have a passion to want to make sure an individual will be saved from its terrors. It was an interesting perspective I had never really mulled over.
- Levels of sin. Sin is sin, regardless of the specifics, and yet believers seem to form arbitrary levels of sin. You lied? Sure, that’s sin, but that’s not as bad as committing adultery, etc. The consequences of our sins may be different, but that doesn’t change the fact that…sin is sin. It was interesting to read Kevin’s observations of how believers at Liberty handled sin – the different levels, and even the difference in how different genders were treated. (More on that some other time)
There is so much more I could write about, but why should I? Kevin Roose has already crafted his fine book, and I would recommend that all believers involved in Christian higher education read through it at least once.
Posted in Books, Christianity, Observations on Life | 3 Comments »
Paying students for good grades
Sunday, April 25th, 2010
Capital gains, incentives, etc.
For the past few months, my “policy discussion group” in grad school has been eating, drinking, and sleeping on the issue of the “unsatisfactory reading levels of homeless children”. Believe me when I say we have been fully immersed in this topic – our current reference list as of 7:55pm on 4/25/10 is four pages long. We have been pouring over journals, magazines, websites, and government publications, trying to learn more about 1) this issue and 2) crafting informed policy proposals. After starting with a rather broad focus, we decided to narrow our focus to homeless children in Washington State.
Our final project is to craft a policy proposal that could reasonably be submitted for implementation. We were to propose two different policy responses: one from a “constrained” view and the other from an “unconstrained” view (see Thomas Sowell’s A Conflict of Visions: Ideological Origins of Political Struggles for more on constrained/unconstrained visions of society”). I ended up working on our “constrained” proposal – paying homeless students for positive behavior and academic achievements.
Paying students for behaving or getting good grades is not a new phenomenon (albeit, it may be novel…and very appealing to students. I would love to still be paid for good grades. Oh, wait. Is that what scholarships are all about?). I remember my mother giving me $5 for every “A” I got on my report card in 4th grade. When she realized I was most likely going to be a straight-A student for the rest of my academic career (this epiphany happened at the end of 5th grade), she stopped paying me. It was a sad day, but I wasn’t the only one in my class who had parents who tried to motivate them through cash payments or plain old special activities and items. I knew this kind of motivation was going on, on a small scale, but I had no idea until now it was being considered and implemented on a district-wide scale, and had, in fact, been implemented for some time.
TIME magazine recently published an article entitled Should Kids Be Bribed to Do Well in School?, examining the different programs and experiments being conducted in different cities. One of the largest studies is being conducted in Washington DC – 14 schools in collaboration with Harvard economist and researcher Roland Fryer and Harvard’s Education Innovation Laboratory. Students in 6th, 7th, and 8th grade earn up to $100 every two weeks ($1500 per year) for various criteria: attendance, homework completion, and other achievements. Similar programs exist in New York, Chicago, Dallas, and Atlanta (similar, but not the same).
It seems to be working so far.
![image6121450[1]](http://www.cgthomas.com/blog/wp-content/image61214501.gif "image6121450[1]")
In January 2010, CBS News conducted a survey as part of the “Where America Stands” series that found that most Americans oppose paying students for good grades, behavior, etc. The poll also found that older Americans (65+) strongly oppose the practice, but parents who had children in K-12 tended to support it more. The article doesn’t really state why such opposition exists, but the biggest critique of incentive programs always seems to end up on one thing: paying students will kill their intrinsic motivation to learn for the sake of learning.
I’m not sure I agree, and I think there is a bit of hypocrisy present in telling students they should learn for learning’s sake without the possibility of tangible rewards.
Should you be working for working’s sake, and your employer not give you a paycheck?
“Well, that’s different!” I’m not so sure. We are told to aim for “A’s” in school…why? So we can get into a good college/university. We want to graduate from those universities with degrees…why? So we can get a job…a well-paying job (at least we hope. I ended up a teacher. I must have missed the memo about well-paying jobs). Every little motivator counts, and when it comes to money, the motivation increases dramatically.
And what’s so wrong about money? Why do we feel differently when the motivator isn’t money? No one questions a teacher who promises the class a special field trip if they behave all semester. Or if a professor says they will cancel a quiz if everyone performs well on a project. Or if a parent says they will start saving up as a family for a special vacation if their kids do well during the school year. But why the (almost) hostile reaction when money is involved?
Back on track…
Of course, when the money starts dwindling (you aren’t being paid enough or at least what you think you’re worth), you look for other options…or quit altogether. Sure, some students may stop working hard if the monetary incentives decrease, but here’s something I’ve noticed about students in my years (albeit few) as a teacher: students who want to learn and want to do well tend to do so regardless of the motivators placed before them. I don’t know why. Maybe their parents instilled a great work-ethic in them, maybe they already have intrinsic motivators (self satisfaction) to keep them going, but overall, I think it’s a choice. Students make a choice to do well, we make a choice to be good employees, and those choices can distinguish us from the rest regardless of the situation.
So, should students be paid for good grades? I don’t know yet. My current opinion is that it depends on the situation. I see the pros and cons, and my opinion may change in the coming months and years.
What do you think?
Related Articles and Sites:
- Baltimore Schools to Pay Students for Gains on State Graduation Test
- Capital Gains Program Promises Cash for DC Students
- City Will Stop Paying the Poor for Good Behavior
- Giving Students Cash for Grades
- Improving Academic Achievement: The Effect of Financial Incentives on Elementary Student Test Scores (PDF)
- Rewards for Students Under a Microscope
- The Education Innovation Laboratory at Harvard University
Posted in Education, In the News, Observations on Life | 1 Comment »
Is It Really Yours?
Monday, March 22nd, 2010
If you haven’t heard, the Health Care bill passed in the House yesterday. The world didn’t end, but tempers definitely flared. That’s to be expected with something so revolutionary occurring in a nation that hasn’t really had any big changes since segregation, 9/11, and…and…oh, wait. A black president being elected. Nevermind. I guess change has been happening progressively for quite some time.
All the change isn’t what surprises me. Life is never static. What surprises me are some of the responses to the changes, specifically those related to the Health Care bill.
Especially the responses of those who call themselves Christians.*
*Disclaimer: by saying “call themselves Christians, I am not questioning their salvation. I literally mean – those who call themselves Christians. Myself being one.
Most of the dissent from my Christian friends and contacts has centered around three major themes:
- Abortion in the bill
- No one is entitled to health care
- They can’t take my hard-earned money from me to support someone else
I’ll take #3 for a few minutes here, and please remember, I’m talking about Christians (not the general public).
Is your money really yours?
That’s the question I have for my fellow believers. Before your blood boils at the thought of having to pay taxes to fund someone else’s medical condition, consider:
- Do you make more than $250,000 a year? (Is 3.8% on your investment income a nightmare?)
- The fine on not having insurance (starting 2014) is $95 or 1% of income the first year, up to $695 or 2% of income subsequently.
- If you can’t find a policy for less than 8% of your income, you don’t pay the fine. Did you see that?
- Do you have a policy now?
Are you still in the category of those who will pay taxes? Even if you are…
Is your money really yours?
As a believer, is your money really yours?
What bothers me is the dichotomy believers force on certain aspects of politics and their faith (I am guilty of this, too, at times). We say that we don’t own anything in this world – anything we have is a undeserved gift from God:
- Our lives
- Our jobs
- Our ability to even work at a job
- Our material possessions
…and then when we are called upon to give of those things (missions? charity?) or, in the case of government, required to give up some of those things, we panic. We rant. We call down God’s wrath on those who would dare tred upon our rights as American citizens (government mainly – we wouldn’t dare call down God’s wrath on missionaries or charities asking us for our “hard-earned” money because that sounds bad, and besides – it’s not required. Or is it? Not by your government, but by God Himself…).
Why do we try to hold on so firmly to earthly possessions that we really have no right to as believers? If you truly view everything as a gift from God, it will sadden you to part with said possessions, but it should not infuriate you and cause you to run around screaming about your freedom being taken away.
No one can ever take away your salvation and freedom in Christ. Isn’t that what truly matters?
“He said to them, ‘Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s’.” – Luke 20:25
“Do not toil to acquire wealth; be discerning enough to desist. When your eyes light on it, it is gone, for suddenly, it sprouts wings, flying like an eagle toward heaven.” – Proverbs 23:4-5
“Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” – Matthew 6:19-21
Posted in Christianity, In the News, Observations on Life | 1 Comment »
Confessions of a Spoken Communication Professor
Wednesday, March 10th, 2010
It is currently 6:38 pm on Wednesday night.
That means I have 2 days and 21 hours (or 4186-ish minutes) before my presentation at the State Conference on Saturday.
Never mind. The minutes went down.
I have always told my students never to wait until the night before to prepare their speeches. Most people can work well under pressure, but when it comes to public speaking, most who prepare their presentations under time pressure generally do not do well. Why?
Because they rushed their gathering of information.
Because they did not practice.
Because they are generally thinking of their deadline instead of their topic.
Because they won’t get much sleep (less than normal, probably).
Because they won’t meet my outline submission deadline. *wink, wink*
…but mainly because they won’t be as familiar with their content as they could have been if they had started sooner. (There are some exceptions)
According to my timer, I’m down to 4183 minutes.
I’ve got two days before my presentation, and I’ve been working on my PowerPoint and content intermittently over the past few days now. But I’m not done yet.
And I’m feeling the pressure.
Even if I have a couple days left.
Because those days will be full of other responsibilities.
And then I’ll present.
I’ll get up before my audience (thanks in advance for coming!).
And I’ll present my content.
I’ll present my thoughts.
I’ll present what I’ve been eating, drinking, sleeping (metaphorically, of course) for the past few days (but truly, for several years of my life).
4178 minutes.
Confession #1 – I should have started preparing sooner.
Confession #2 – I feel pressure, too!
Confession #3 – I will be in professional dress when I present.
Confession #4 – I feel nervous, too, before presenting. (It’s a good thing!)
Confession #5 – I really want you guys to succeed when you present…but your preparation does matter. Preparing two days in advance can actually help you more than a few hours the night before.
Confession #6 – I have a really cool, new clicker that I get to use when I present, and that makes me cooler than you. Just kidding. Y’all will get to use it for your informative speeches.
(Speaking of which, how are you guys doing?)
4175 minutes.
And I’m off to finish my PowerPoint.
Wish me luck!
Cheers,
Corinne a.k.a. “Prof. Thomas”
Posted in Education, Observations on Life | No Comments »
365 Project = Fail
Monday, March 1st, 2010
At the beginning of the year, Mike and I decided to try out the 365 Project. Let’s just say that Mike is doing much better than I am, considering he actually took pictures past day 18 of the project. Lesson learned? Taking one picture every single day is pretty tough. Maybe I’ll try again later…in the year.
…or, I should take more pictures with my camera phone.
Posted in Observations on Life, Photography | No Comments »
Untitled, an Update
Sunday, February 7th, 2010
Sitting in this retro, little cafe has finally inspired me to drop my textbooks, notes, and grading and finally take some time to blog again. Retro, little cafes can affect a person that way, and while I’m at it, I highly recommend the Bourgeois Pig.
No, I’m not watching the Super Bowl today. I’m not a big football fan, but I am a fan of Super Bowl commercials. Thank God for Hulu!
It’s already February, which means a lot has already happened and a lot is about to happen again.
In summary:
Teaching – Classes have started back up at TMC, and I’m in the early throes of tormenting my new students. Just kidding. I don’t actually torment them. Being in a Public Speaking course is torment enough for some. We just finished the testimonies, and I must say – I have been impressed so far. I am very excited to watch them all improve and find themselves (as far as public speaking is concerned) as the semester progresses.
GWU – Grad school started a week before TMC started, and we’ve hit the ground running. I thought my class on Policy would be the death of me, but so far, it’s my Quantitative Research class that has me confused. The materials are familiar enough (thanks, Dr. Ennis!), but the structure of the class has me sighing at my screen. Several of us in the class have moved over to Google Groups and Google Wave to supplement the class, and that has been an experience in and of itself. Google Wave has been an amazing tool for us. Here’s to hoping neither class will usher in sudden death.
Free Time – This is a foreign concept to me, but I have still managed to get addicted to Mass Effect 2 and ‘Splosion Man. And I’m still trying to work my way through The Wild Parrots of Telegraph Hill, a pretty good story that I’m mainly reading for the sparse pictures of the awesome birds. I should just watch the movie. That will give me more time to focus on saving the galaxy with my wicked biotic powers!
Conference – I’m speaking at a State Conference in March, and I am prepping for it slowly but surely. I am not anticipating a large attendance for my breakout session since 1) I have no name recognition, and 2) the organization’s members as a whole just doesn’t seem to place much stock in technology and its impact on education, society, etc. Actually, that’s a bit unfair, but I am still keeping my expectations low. I am going to prepare as quality a presentation as I can, and if anyone shows up (even one person), I will be as excited to share my vision with them as I would to 100+ people. Hey, no matter what people say, even one person can make a difference! (I am referring to that one, potential attendee, not myself.)
Work – We now have a plastic shotgun in our office. I would like it to be noted that I have come the closest to hitting the bulls-eye on the hand-drawn target on our whiteboard. Even the office gun expert hasn’t come close! (Yes, that was a challenge.)
…and, that’s it for an update as far as I am willing to share on the Interwebz. Haha. I have been hoping to post more substantial material, i.e. book reviews, movie reviews, thoughts on news articles, etc., but please see my comment about free time above.
Truth be told, we make time for what we think is important, right? ^_^
In parting, here’s a truncated movie review for you: Paranormal Activity was a disappointment.
Cheers,
Corinne
Posted in Observations on Life | 1 Comment »
Help for Haiti
Sunday, January 17th, 2010
Many have seen images and read news reports of the devastation caused in Haiti by last week’s 7.0 magnitude earthquake. You may have also read the warnings of earthquake fraud, of people trying to make a buck off of the catastrophe. More recently, you may have read the sad news of looting and aid being slow in coming to those who need it most.
If you’re like me (wanting to help more than my wallet will ever allow), there are ways – some are even local – to reach out to Haiti during this time:
OutWest Marketing
Wild about the West? So Are We!
Owned by a sweet couple, this “new charm” of Old Town Newhall is a “Western Boutique and Cultural Center”. I have met one of the owners, and she is a sweet lady.
This Thursday, January 21st, they are hosting Fine Art Photographer Frank Lozano and his work. Frank has connections to Haiti and has announced that he will be donating 100% of the proceeds of any of his work sold that evening to Haiti. OutWest will donate 10% of all their online and retail sales to Three Angels Children’s Relief.
For more info, check out OutWest’s website at: www.scvoutwest.com
Sport Chalet & Soles 4 Souls
Lend a hand by donating shoes today.
I heard about this opportunity at church today. Sport Chalet has teamed up with Soles 4 Soles and is currently accepting gently used shoes for Haiti. The drive is only until January 31st, so if you’d like to participate, now is the time!
For more info, check out this page: http://www.sportchalet.com/category/soles+4+souls+and+sport+chalet.do
We can definitely be praying for the Haitian people, and we should be. Reaching out in tangible ways is good, too. Both are needed.
Posted in In the News, Observations on Life | No Comments »
2010 – Post #1
Friday, January 1st, 2010
First, to all a Happy New Year! I cannot believe it is already 2010. I think I will constantly be amazed for the rest of my life each time an entire year passes. For some odd reason, I have this vivid memory of being in fourth grade in Eagle Rock, CA, and hearing from someone (I really don’t remember if it was a teacher or someone else), “You’re only in fourth grade. Time is slow. Just wait until you grow up…” Man, they were right. Time is just flying by, and soon enough, I’ll be 80 and (Lord willing) racing scooter chairs with my husband in some nursing home somewhere. That, or skydiving at 80. We’ll see how far medical technology progresses in the meantime.
Since it’s technically still New Years Day, I wanted to write this post mainly for myself as an artifact in time to look back on and remember. I haven’t made any new resolutions since 2006 when I found the four that pretty much sum up what I want to do for the rest of my life. I have an entry in some torn pages from an old journal (I’m terrible at journaling – I have numerous journals, all with pages torn out and lumped together since I keep starting/stopping them) that read:
1/1/2006
Burbank, CAThe first two pages of this journal were torn out for good measure. Well, not really, but in a way, it was very symbolic of giving up the old to make room for the new. Today is New Year’s Day, 2006, and I have an hour left on the clock before tomorrow arrives. I want to write down some of my goals/resolutions for this year before the day changes. I have never done this before, so this is going to be interesting. *smiley face*
- Read my Bible everyday and start each day asking for God’s blessing and guidance. May He get the glory. (Proverbs 3:5-6; Matthew 6:33; 1 Corinthians 10:31)
- Fall into permanent love with God more and trust His perfect judgment and plans. (Jeremiah 29:11-13)
- Guard my heart against anyone or anything that will pull me away from God and His will. (Proverbs 4:23)
- Have the courage and resolve to fulfill said resolutions. (1 Timothy 1:7; Romans 5:1-5)
I can honestly say that I have failed at all four of the above in various ways over the past – wow – four years since I wrote those down, and that is one of the reasons those resolutions never change. They truly encompass everything I aim to do. Thank God for mercy and grace and fresh beginnings!
Well, since this is supposed to be an artifact of sorts, here are some lessons I learned from 2009:
- God is powerful and in control; I am not. Daily, I was given opportunities to learn to submit to His blessed will and let things be. While that may sound rather un-Christian and more fatalistic than anything, it is still a fact that is true for Christians. I have the tendency to wrestle things and people if I see them doing things that harm themselves and/or others. However, I have learned and am still learning that it is not my “duty” nor my place in certain situations to do that…and more often than not, the situations are few in which I should wrestle. We will each have to answer for our actions someday, and I really need to leave everything/everyone up to God and focus on what I should be doing to follow Him more. (Note: I hope you understand that I am not advocating being apathetic and not caring about what goes on around you. There are definitely things that we should act on and be involved in without question…in my opinion, at least.)
- I am married to an amazing man. Ever since Mike and I got married, I have watched marriages start and crumble. Honestly, that has been hard to watch, and I have shed many tears over the heartbreak of others. (weird, huh?) There are very few (but not none) marriages that I see around me that I can say, “Hey, I want to be like them!” It makes me that much more grateful to be married to my best friend, my lover, my inspiration, my fiercest competitor (I still have the higher XBOX Live gamer score, however), my truest confidant, my most compassionate yet honest critic, my comforter (both emotionally and as a blanket on occasion – hey, he has warmer feet than me!), etc. Michael Thomas is my true soul mate, and should he not live to race with me in our scooter chairs when we’re 80, I will be very sad indeed. Mike, I love you.
- Learning is life-long. My curiosity gets stronger with each passing year, and it is becoming harder and harder to find the time to satiate it. Hmmm, maybe that says something about my time management skills. Anyways, 2009 was full of opportunities for formal learning and informal learning, and I pray to God I remember everything because it was all amazing.
- Teaching is hard. I have been teaching at the college level (by the grace of God and The Master’s College) since Fall 2008, and I am constantly finding ways to improve my classes. Some of my students have loved having me as a professor, others hated me, and others didn’t care either way. One thing my students may never know (well, unless they read my blog I suppose) is that I have been impacted by each and every one of them as a person. I actually prayed for every one of my students, and Mike can testify that I would have done everything in my power to help them if they had needed it. But, I have also learned that not everyone is as curious about the world or willing to listen to new views or want to work hard to improve themselves. Not everyone is as passionate about good communication, culture, nor other topics I find absolutely fascinating and essential to life. :) I learned that some people (yes, students are people, too, regardless of what some may think – lol) are extremely proud under my teaching, and I despised them – probably because I saw a lot of myself in their actions and attitudes at that age. Bad, Corinne – bad! I pray everyday that I will be a good teacher to those God sends my way not only because teachers will be judged harsher than most (James 3:1, anyone?) but because each soul that passes through my class is an opportunity for growth for themselves and for myself. Yeah, teaching is hard, but I love every minute of it.
Now that 2010 is here, I’m really excited to see what is in store. According to my fortune from the Japanese temple this morning, my examination scores will be good because “effort pays off” (haha), but other than that (jk, jk), 2010 will be an exciting year I’m sure. New places to visit, new experiences to…experience, and new people to come in contact with. I am terribly excited.
Here’s to a blessed, prosperous 2010 to us all!
Cheers,
Corinne
Posted in Observations on Life | No Comments »