I spent a good part of Wednesday preparing for school. I had my lesson plans all ready because I knew we would be going back on Thursday. The snow was melting outside. It was going to happen. Then we got the phone call. "Now listen closely because this is going to be a different kind of message," Mr. Meraz started with. We were indeed going back to school, but with a delayed start time of 10:20 instead of 8:20. That has never happened. All of the other schools continued to be out because of the side roads. The highways are clear, but it's the neighborhood bus routes that are the issue now.
Then we got the email from Mrs. Hitt with the schedule for the delayed start time:
10:20-10:30 first hour
10:30-10:35 transition
10:35-10:45 second hour
10:45-10:50 transition
10:50-11:00 third hour
11:00 lunch and then the rest of the day normal schedule
What?? I was incredibly frustrated. What was I supposed to do with a ten-minute class?? That would mean my second-hour math class would not be with the rest of my math classes. Ugh. I texted with the other math teacher and she said she was just going to have a first/second hour math class because she only lost one student at first hour. That wouldn't work for me very well because I gain three students for my second-hour math. I started to text my questions to the whole fifth grade group chat trying to get answers. Then, the Holy Spirit got hold of me. I was trying to word the text by claiming I wasn't complaining and just wanted answers to the questions of why we were doing ten-minute classes. But wasn't I still complaining? Wasn't I questioning the authority that God had put in place? Wasn't I doing exactly what I had just read about the Israelites questioning Moses and murmuring against him? Complaining that we should have just stayed home/in Egypt instead of coming out and doing all of this crazy stuff that I didn't understand? So I deleted my text and asked forgiveness. And it all worked out for good. The second that my three (actually two as one was absent) other students walked in, I started doing the slide show. We finished up right on time. They got out of homework, but still got the lesson. All was good.
Then...around 4:30, we got the same phone call for the next day. Delayed start time. Same schedule. I was frustrated again, but did a slightly better job with my complaining. I just asked the other math and reading teachers what they were going to do. Once again, I modified my plan. With Reading, I canceled the spelling test and modified the vocab test to ten definition-only questions. When the students got to school and were sitting in front of their lockers, I told them to study. I asked our assistant principal to do a shortened hallway announcements and we were in the classroom by 10:15. We knocked out our test. Then I did a ten-minute math lesson with some white-board practice, and they got out of homework. I then heated my lunch and headed to lunch duty! Whew. But it all worked out for good yet again.
Every time we trust God, it helps us to trust a little more the next time. If we ever have a delayed opening again, I know I can do it. I won't even question it. We got to have two days of school instead of losing yet more inclement weather days. As a result, we only lost one day. We have to go to school May 8 now. Other schools (even Lawton) stayed closed the entire week. Now, if I can just remember to trust God the first time without questioning. Sanctification. <sigh> It's a long process.
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