polish pioneers

winter fresh

Last week was pretty rough. The weather was cold, and winter had lost its beauty. I could be tough about the cold when pretty, fresh, glistening snow covered everything. That light faded though and so did my enthusiasm for the season. Only sandy slush and black ice remained - not really exciting to look at and even less fun to walk through. Thankfully, we received a fresh coat of the white stuff earlier this week so things are brighter.

Many of my students were also in a funk last week. Either they couldn't explain it or didn't want to explain it to me. I think that it was more the former reason, but I still feel sometimes that I'm not as connected to them as I would like to be. Maybe it's the contrast between "my former life" and my present one that creates part of the problem. As a school counselor, students were encouraged to talk with me about their problems, and I think they wanted to do that. Here, despite efforts to be open and friendly, I am still an outsider. If I'm honest with myself, I can understand why without taking it personally. I mean, would I want to share my problems in a different language with a teacher who has only been around and short time and might not stay around that much longer, or would I prefer to talk to a same-language friend, parent, or teacher? Probably the latter. Still, if counseling is one of the gifts that God has given me to use (which I still wonder about at times) how can I use that gift in this setting?

Anyway, the good news is that spirits seem to be higher this week. That doesn't necessarily negate the problem listed above, but it does give me more cheerful students with whom to continue building relationships. Please pray that God shows me how I can serve them.

posted by Polish Pioneers @ 4:42 PM