And so it has begun again. With the amount of time I have now spent in the boarding school environment, it really should not surprise me; yet still I find myself amazed at the whirlwind that life is during this start-of-term period. Yes, the term has begun—and not just that, but the new year has begun . . . has begun with gusto!
In the midst of the bustle, I think the challenge for us staff-teachers, dorm workers, and support staff alike—is to pay attention to the moments, and not to let the significance of the small things pass us by because of the urgency of the things needing to be done.
For some of us, these moments come in the classroom . . .
Perhaps the first day of lectures, with all our professionalism rallied up. We plan our lessons, rehearse our scripts, take our notes, and begin as planned—on schedule—with the intended learning of the term. But then a student walks in, sees you there, and with the surprise recognition of one who did not expect you as his teacher, greets you with a quietly proper, “Good morning Miss . . .”
And you stop, take aback by the flood of emotions that comes when you do not realize how much you’ve missed these children until you see a smiling face. The script for introductions in that class is forgotten as you stop to reply. But no matter, for you know that the things of importance have just overtaken the things of urgency . . .
We each have these reminders, suited to whatever our particular school roles may be. And we pray for the wisdom to pay attention to them, and to take them to heart as the nudges from God that they are!
That said, classes have begun! Along with them, we have already gotten fully involved in the athletics and the school. This past weekend we had our first football match here, as it was a home game. What fun it was to get to cheer on both our womens’ and our mens’ teams as they both soundly defeated the opponents from Lechwe! (Pictures here are from these matches)
In the sermon this past Sunday, our local pastor spoke of God as a “promise keeper.” He talked of how He is a faithful God, who will be there is we seek Him. Here at Amano we long to be truly seeking after our God, and encouraging the students to do the same, or lifting them up as they do. So we welcome prayers as we begin this year’s adventures, and we welcome you to join with us, and to follow the adventures alongside us!