The Light

In recent days, my heart has been pondering the ideas of darkness and light.  The Bible contains many references to both.

Psalm 56:13 says, "For You have delivered my soul from death, indeed my feet from stumbling, so that I may walk before God in the light of the living."

Then in Psalm 89:15, we read, "How blessed are the people who know the joyful sound! O Lord, they walk in the light of Your countenance."

For those who believe that Jesus, God incarnate, came into this world to reconcile those separated from God by their sin through His death on the cross, victory over the grave, and His triumphant resurrection, we know that He IS the Light of the world.  In the New Testament, John 12:46 expresses these words from Jesus: "I have come as Light into the world, so that everyone who believes in Me will not remain in darkness."

Given these and many other scriptures referring to the Light, I wonder, then, why people crave the antithesis of light when they worship - and maybe even throughout an entire church service.  I have read articles that discuss the merits of "mood" and how it can promote the movement of the Holy Spirit among the congregation. Some say that people feel more free to worship if they are in darkness.  Some say that it serves to heighten the experience of the worshippers.

I, however, believe, that we are not the ones who manipulate God or the Holy Spirit.  He does not need our mood lighting.  He does not need our concert-level speaker systems pounding out the drum beat until I feel it in my sternum.

I believe that He only needs willing people who come to Him with open hearts wanting to exalt Him with all of their souls and all of their might.  The Holy Spirit is present.  He is willing, capable, and ready to move among God's people.

Jesus is the Light.  I believe we should be willing to worship Him unashamed in light, for one day - one day when we see Him face-to-face - we shall behold Him in all of His glory, in all of the Light of His splendor emanating from Him.

The flip of a light switch won't work to pitch us into darkness.  We will be flooded with Light.

Shouldn't we practice NOW what we truly desire for eternity?

I choose Light rather than darkness.

Just a Note...from the Heart.
Blessings!
Tammi

Going Back

I am ready to go back. 
Now, if you're a fellow teacher reading this, be careful of the desire to smack me for saying that.  This summer has been too hot here in Amarillo to have much fun, I am bored, and so I am ready to get back into the classroom.  I know, I know - I stated in my last blog post that I'm tired, and I am.  HOWEVER, the cool thing about being a teacher is that every August we get to start over!  So for now, after watching too many streaming Netflix movies (Lucille Ball, Betty Grable, Bing Crosby - the oldies), reading a little more than six books on my Kindle, working out at Curves, and checking Facebook way too many times a day, I am ready to go back.

I think tomorrow I'll go see how hot my classroom is.  The administration hasn't been running the AC, so I know I'll have to take a fan, but I'm ready to arrange the desks, put posters on the walls, rearrange the book shelves, and in general reestablish my territorial rights on the room. :-)

I actually want to get in there to begin praying.  I like to think that God hand-picks every student who will occupy a desk in my room.  I like to picture the look on kids' faces if it just so happens that Jesus returns in the middle of a school day & I can gladly announce:  "OK, kids!  Forget about yesterday's homework assignment!  It really doesn't matter now anyway!"  Yeah, yeah...I know...some of them already don't think the work matters, but it's my job to make them think that it does (for now).  I know the real TRUTH, though.  God has each one in my room for reasons I may or may not ever understand.  My "real" job is to pray for them, be an example of God's love for them, and to listen to their hearts as I sometimes am called to stand in the gap for them.  It's my "Africa."  Thank God He never called me to minister from some hut in a village in Africa, but He did call me to the public school classroom.

I am ready to go back.  For now I will continue to heed the calling.  Our days are numbered; time is short.  We each have jobs to do for the Lord.  I pray today that you are right where He wants you to be - doing exactly what He's called you to do.  Be blessed today!   Tammi

The End of the 30th Year

     Last week, as Randall High School graduated its 2011 senior class, I ended my 30th year in the teaching profession.  (My "anniversary" date was actually Jan. 20, since I began teaching mid-year in 1981.)  I'm not sure why, but this seemed momentous for me...this 30th year.  It might be because the number 30 seems so big; it's a long time to do anything.  Maybe it's because when I began teaching with my first 5-year teaching certificate, I told God that I would teach for 5 years only, and then I wanted to do something else.  Haha.  So here I am, still at it.  I've taught over 3000 students.  I've taught grades 6 through 12.  I've even taught one class of adults at the Ford Glass Plant in Tulsa one summer.  I've taught grammar, writing, spelling, vocabulary, drama, speech, Shakespeare (an elective), applied communications, and I've sponsored organizations like National Honor Society, competitive academic teams, competitive speech teams, and I've even taken one group of middle schoolers to Epcot during a spring break trip.  I keep telling God I am tired.  I don't think He's listening; He hasn't yet released me from this profession.  Evidently, I'm a difficult child - I want to do what the Father asks of me, for I am a pleaser, yet I think that MY plans are better (ie., quit teaching! I'm 25 years past due, after all!).  Of course, I know that HIS plans are better, for His ways are NOT my ways, and He does have a plan. 
     Last week a young lady (I'll call Kelly) came to see me at school.  Final exams were finished, and I was cleaning out my classroom, getting ready to leave the building until August.  This girl was with a young man, whom she introduced as her fiancee.  She had a big grin on her face, and her eyes had a brilliant sparkle in them that I had never seen before.  You see, Kelly had been in my class five years ago.  She was a troubled teen (to coin a phrase), involved with drugs and living in a less-than-stable home with a mother who would berate her and involve her in her own drug habit.  Kelly would get caught with drugs at school and of course would have to pay the consequences for such violations to school policy and the law.  I had taken this girl to heart that year, and had mentored her, meeting with her during lunch time, working with a counselor to provide lunches for her, and working with her to get her grades up.  During that year, we saw dramatic academic improvement in spite of the continued downward spiral of her  personal life.  I decided that year to award my Academic Achievement award to Kelly.  By the time the awards assembly day arrived, she was in a rehab/behavior management institution.  I wasn't allowed to see her, but nevertheless I took her award to her; handing it to the nurse and explaining what it was, I saw that the nurse was moved to tears.  Five years later, Kelly's clean and sober; she has finished her education, and she's getting married (and having a baby).  I'm thankful she's happy, and only God knows - I am thankful she's alive.
     So when I get tired of teaching, thinking NOW is the time to quit, I think of girls like Kelly.  She isn't the only one that I can remember whom GOD touched because I was a teacher and was in the right place at the right time...just when a student's need was great.  I pray that He will continue to use me in the profession for as long as He wants me there.  BUT I have to admit, though, that I pray, too, for continued strength emotionally and physically, for this profession is very demanding on the heart and body.  May HE be glorified.

The Grandson

Much has happened in the year-plus-some-months' time since I last put a posting on this blog page.  The most fun has been the birth - and growth - of our grandson, Kingston Ramsey Martin.  He arrived on July 21, 2009, and so he has just celebrated his first birthday.  I've posted some pictures on my Facebook page, but here are some more:

As you can tell, we were pretty excited to see and to hold him on his birth day!

He's about a month old in the pictures below.  He was very alert from the beginning, seeming to want to take in all his surroundings and the new people in his life.

By October, Kingston was really becoming a little person with some personality.  His Auntie Lori came to visit from Hawaii, and of course was enamoured with her little nephew.  (I can relate!  I've always thought my nieces & nephews were the most special kids around!)  And then there's Grandpa...It seems that Brian has, from the very beginning, had a special connection with his first grandson.

Kingston was beginning to teethe around 4 months old in November, blowing some of the baby bubbles, and smiling not only with his mouth but with his eyes.

  By December, he was ready for the holidays, having fun with Christmas decorations and eating from a spoon. As most babies do at this age, he loved to stick his fist in his mouth and begin an attachment to Tigger.

"Tell me a story, Grandpa."

"Mmmmm...fist!"

"I love my Grammie Tam!"

 "Travels with Tigger!"

So this covers about the first half of Kingston Ramsey Martin's first year.  More to come in another blog post....

Piano Surgery

I'm posting some pictures of my piano - the one Grandpa Roy gave me that was Munner's. It has needed repair - some major surgery - for a long time. Many of the keys didn't play any more because plastic elbows that helped little weights go up & down & move the keys were breaking one by one. Grandpa had told me that they all needed replacing, but I just never had the money to do it, nor did I know someone I thought would care about my piano and treat it with loving care.
After saving some money, having some of it gifted to me, and Brian finding a man we thought could do the job well, I am so happy to report that the piano now sings again!
At the top of the blog, you see the pictures of the piano being disassembled. Below are pictures taken last evening when Mr. Frisbie came to reassemble it.

As you can see, Mr. Frisbie had quite a job to do! He replaced dampers, elbows, tuned the piano, and lastly "fluffed" the hammers' material which had grown hardened by hitting the strings over the years of use. It now sounds wonderful! After he finished putting the piano together again (a little Humpty Dumpty allusion there), Mr. Frisbie sat down & played a little concert for us! He loved being filmed, and I think he was a bit flattered at my enthusiastic response to his work and to the heavenly sound of the piano. I have missed its voice for so long. Keep in mind that I recorded the following on my Kodak camera, and given the acoustics in my living room and the conversion here to a digital file on the blog, well...I think this video doesn't do the lovely sound of the instrument justice. So, you'll just have to come visit, sit on the bench, and just play it yourself if you REALLY want to hear it in its full glory. Meanwhile, listen to a little bit of "Unchained Medley" performed by Mr. David Frisbie.

So...that's it for now. Come back another time when my blog will feature Katie Dog Fritz singing "When the Bone is Called Up Yonder," accompanied by me playing the harmonica. (Yes, this house is full of music of various kinds!) Until later then, you be blessed and thank God for the music!

SNOW FUN

Hello again. I'm dedicating this post to some pictures and video we took while having SNOW FUN. Ya gotta love it! Of course, Katie wanted to play ball. One main problem - if she drops the ball, it gets lost in the snow drifts! Then Katie & I went out to the fort to see if Kitty Kitty's house was full of snow. It was, so I cleaned it out for her.

Since the snow was in deep drifts, allowing for CLEAN snow scoops, and since it was so fluffy, I thought I'd try making some Snow Ice Cream. I looked online for a recipe and found many from which to choose. I'll post the one I used below:

SNOW ICE CREAM
1 c. evaporated milk
1 c. sugar
2 eggs, beaten
1 tsp. vanilla
2 1/2 - 3 qts. (10-12 c.) clean snow
Beat all ingredients together except snow; mix well. Add snow and mix well. *******

Yummy! Wish you were here to taste it!

One more fun thing below....I've uploaded a video taken yesterday when it was still snowing. Katie had so much fun!! I hope you've enjoyed my SNOW FUN blog post. Have a blessed weekend!

Spring Has Sprung...and then some!

After experiencing a winter of exceptionally dry and and warm weather, we are now seeing a record-setting late-March snow storm! Sacrificing our Good Friday holiday off from school, the school district had no recourse but to cancel classes today. As of this evening's pre-bedtime romp outside for Katie Dog, we find snow drifts about waist-high! The sky has blown snow down upon us since about 5am this morning; it hasn't stopped all day. I see drifts out my north kitchen window reaching up to the bottom of the neighbors' windows. While the weather has forced us inside, along with the dog and both cats (yes, Kitty Kitty has been granted indoor sleeping arrangements due to the extremely cold conditions outside), we are SO THANKFUL for this much-needed moisture. The howling wind and freezing temperature draw the winter nesting instinct to the surface of the heart and prompt activities like baking cookies and drinking hot chocolate.

So I finished a book today, fielded phone calls and emails that cancelled a UIL academic meet I had students competing in (or rather NOT competing in), worked on my Beth Moore "Esther" Bible study, and I watched two movies with my Honey - "Superman Returns" and "Miss Potter." Delightful!

I hope that whatever your weather has been like...whatever your me-time has found you doing, that you are BLESSED, knowing that each day is a gift, and each moment affords opportunities that can never really be recaptured any other time. So seize the day!

Born to Retrieve

I'm here to tell you - Katie Dog has come into her own. Yesterday Brian & I took her to her favorite place for a romp - the Southeast Dog Park. We've taken her there often since the park first opened, but yesterday Katie had her very own special, doggie epiphany.

Now, in recent weeks since the Amarillo Parks Department opened up a several-acre, large, fenced-in section of the family park especially so that canines could run free and play, Katie has learned to know two words that have quickly defined her sense of fun: DOG PARK. We cannot talk about going to the DOG PARK unless we are ready to crawl into the van and go there immediately. Katie knows the words, she knows the route we travel to get there, and she knows what to do when she arrives.

She can barely get into the fenced-in doggie portion of the park without stopping to sniff the ground every two inches to detect what new dogs have been there since she was last a guest at the park. It doesn't matter when she last took a "pit stop" in our back yard...she must anoint the area no less than 5 times in more than one way - if you get my meaning. After her usual sniff & anoint routine, she then darts off at a full trot towards the far end of the area where there is a sort of land bridge that takes her to the opposite side of a reed & cattail-filled stream. She has crossed that little stream a couple of times, soaking her "necklace" (doggie bandana) and causing us to have to dry her off before putting her back in the van to go home. Ah...but she LOVES the DOG PARK ~ the freedom, the acreage, the outdoor smells, the sound of the ducks in a nearby pond.

The DUCKS! Sometimes they fly into the dog area & land in the grass. Katie has found it a joy to chase them into the air on a few occasions. Yesterday was no different. She galloped towards a flock, and they flew away....while Katie continued to run like the wind after them, her head held high in the air, almost as if she could take wing & fly after them...all the way to the fence where she had no choice but to turn around and continue her park romp.

On her way to the land bridge, she flushed out a small flock of ducks that happened to be floating on the stream. She splashed into the water after them, delighted to see them all take to the air in response to her antics. All but one of them, that is....one that for some reason didn't fly away. It was at that moment Katie Dog the labrador - - that baby of mine who wears a bandana necklace every day of her life and is so well-mannered and sweet and cute and expressive with her hand shakes and big beautiful brown eyes -- that labrador who experienced her epiphany: She was BORN to retrieve.
A determined look popped into her eyes, her whole demeanor screamed "Get it!" as she pounced on that duck, flailing in the water, splashing through the reeds, until she emerged triumphant, bird in mouth, as if to say, "Yes! I AM a Retriever!"

I have never seen anyone or anything so confident of who they are....what they were born to do. In one way it was a beautiful moment, observing a level of God-given, natural instinct. On another level, I was concerned for the life of the duck and ordered Katie to drop it. :-) I didn't know if she'd killed it (in which case Brian would have to take it to the nearest dumpster or get the shovel we carry in the van out so we could have an instant duck funeral) or if it was still alive (in which case we'd need to take it to a vet or an animal shelter or the Wildcat Bluff nature center where it could be nurtured back to health & returned to the wild). While I sent Katie back towards the van, Brian and I talked about the options. Meanwhile, the duck rose like Lazarus and waddled over to a small opening under the fence & managed to squeeze himself through to safety...on his way back to the duck pond...a little worse for wear but nevertheless alive.

So the duck's alive and Katie has had her coming-of-age, doggie revelation of who she really is. Needless to say, the words DOG PARK now mean more than ever to her. It is now no longer just a place to romp & play; it is a hunting ground!

Final note: Shouldn't we all be so sure of ourselves - so sure that we're doing what we were BORN TO DO? Most days I think I am. I think, though, that I think too much. Maybe I should be more like Katie - run on the God-given instinct in my heart & just dig in with gusto & not worry so much about what others think. Hmmmm.......

Happy New Year!

January 1, 2009...another new year...another opportunity to see what the Lord has in store for another new year. For anyone reading this post, I wish you the Lord's joy and Shalom - peace - for the duration of this year. As time passes, we must surely know that EVERYTHING is about HIM - all that we do, all that we say, what happens to the nation's economy, what occurs during the administration of the new president, what consumes our days - ALL OF IT is HIS.

Rather than limiting my thankfulness to the Thanksgiving holiday, I tend to reflect and find myself thankful at the beginning of a new year. I am SO THANKFUL for my husband - My Man, as I like to call him - Brian.

Brian & I went out last evening to the Amarillo Globe News Center's festivities. If you've never been to this Center, I'm posting its web site link in case you'd like to visit it online. It really is a magnificent building: http://www.globenewscenter.com/

Brian began our evening out by presenting me with a beautiful shawl he'd purchased from a ladies' specialty shop here in town - all on his own. It is a pretty pink of various shades - prettier than the one I had picked out & put on my Amazon gift wish list. He had gone out earlier in the afternoon to return a computer he'd fixed for someone and had then gone shopping for me. This loving gesture of choosing one thoughtful, beautiful gift, touched my heart. Brian is so thoughtful & kind; I am so thankful for him!

The Amaillo Symphony presented a concert featuring Steve Lippia, a singer whose voice is reminiscent of Frank Sinatra's. Following the concert, the Globe Center was full of food, dance music, and festivities. Since Brian & I had taken ballroom dance lessons this past year, we were practiced-up and anxious - ready to "cut a rug," "shake your booty" or whatever you'd like to call it. We had a lovely time together celebrating, laughing, smiling, and dancing. We had a blast & I am blessed to have a man who would help create a wonderful memory of New Year's Eve for me. I'm going to try to post a picture taken of us last night - including goofy head gear. :-)

One other note of interest as we begin this new year: If you follow any blogs, I would encourage you (primarily if you're female) to follow Beth Moore's LPM blog. You can find it at this link:
http://livingproofministries.blogspot.com/
She has challenged her sisters in the Lord (endearingly called "Siestas") to memorize two scriptures a month and to sign in on her blog & post them there. I have decided to accept this small accountability measure and join the leagues of women who want the Word of God to penetrate their hearts and minds so that their days will be filled with the Word and their lives with the manifestation of the fulfillment of the Word. I have my index cards ready and my heart and mind open to have the Word change me from the inside out. Let me know if you, too, would accept the challenge of scripture memory. We could be partners in His Word.

As I close this blog, I want to wish you a blessed, Happy New Year. May the Lord of All fill your heart with His love and peace.

Time for Vacation

It's the first day of my two-week vacation from school. Yea! I'm glad for the time off from daily classes and lesson planning and meetings. I do have about 10 junior AP research papers here at home that I need to grade & record online for uploading on the 30th, but that shouldn't be a problem to get finished. I finished the semester feeling certain that I need to let go of the AP junior class next year. I have worked hard to create the syllabus that the College Board required & approved, and I've applied to be a reader for AP essays in the summer - an "honor" that is difficult to acquire since there's a long list of teachers who want to do this stint in Florida for one week out of the summer for a nice stipend of about $4000. I've waited for an invitation (their word for the nod of approval from the College Board when they pick you to come do the reading/scoring) for two years. One can only be a Reader if currently teaching an AP class. So...if I quit teaching the AP class, I'll no longer be eligible. Well...maybe I'll get invited to go read this summer; invitations go out January 5th via emails. God only knows...

Anyway, I finished the semester feeling so good about once again teaching the PreAP 9th graders - having such a great time with them, their young, eager minds and pliable demeanors -- I told my administrator I want to go back to this level of teaching again next year. I have come to realize that PreAP 9th and then 10th grade are my "forte" classes. I'm a really, really good foundational teacher - giving kids the foundation they need to succeed in future classes.

I am tired of the upper level kids, their know-it-all attitudes, and the endless paper grading that comes with Advanced Placement rigor. I am just tired.

I guess I need a vacation. LOL Thank you, Lord, I have one starting today. I can sleep in a bit, enjoy time with my man, do a little baking, and go visit family in KS. I'm looking forward to the next two weeks. It's good to be a teacher with the privilege of the time off. Yea!

Welcome!

Welcome to the new & improved "Notes from the Heart." I used to publish a monthly edition of my little "Notes" newsletter when I had a WebTV. That was about 7 years ago & eons ago with technological advances. If you used to enjoy my writings, I hope that you will access this new blog spot for further musings of mine. Bear with me as I experiment and learn about blogging. Feel free to offer suggestions. Meanwhile, blessings to you who are reading!