And here's the amazing thing about this past year (or rather, an amazing thing about God): It wasn't just a paycheck to tide me over until I found something else, rather the Lord used this experience to teach me and to deepen my faith. My time at Hauser was in no way wasted.
Like any classroom, some of what I needed to learn was review. I see now that some of the most important lessons from our painful departure from Haiti got reinforced.
For instance, in these last two weeks of my teaching career, I was made aware of two students who had very different experiences in my classroom:
Student A's parents came gunning for me with several critical emails which built to a demand to meet with my principal about me. (Not surprising to me, the meeting with my principal was prompted by something I did only in their imaginations. They never apologized to me.)
Student B brought me a gift and a sweet goodbye note. And Student B's parent posted on Facebook about her child's LOVE for her English teacher - a compliment I only became aware of through some mutual friends.
So why did the Lord think it useful to give me a small reminder that every person in any sort of leadership role develops both supporters and enemies?
Well, I think it inspires me to be a lot bolder in life and in ministry. I don't need to spend undue time pondering how others perceive me when I have very little control over their opinions! (And God knows this has been a lifelong battle for me!) I just need to keep my focus on serving God's kingdom.
Romans 12:18: "If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all."
It is useful to remember that living peaceably with others is not ALL dependent on me.
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