A Privileged Life...

I live a privileged life.

I have spent the majority of my life, in some sort of capacity, with children. Gratefully.

For me, yesterday was just another Saturday in just another gymnasium, spent enjoying young basketball players immersed in a passion for sport. As it has been over the years, I observed parents enjoying that their children have this opportunity for camaraderie mixed with competition. Some parents see their children as little selves and want desperately for those little beings to be the best and to entertain them, while others just let everything go and let their children experience. I am not saying that one way is right or wrong, but that it just is.

And then, like it is every so often, I get to notice grace. I was privileged to be on the outskirts of a dialogue between a father coach and a child player, whereby the father made certain that the child was playing her game for herself, and that it was just that. Her game, not his, and that she could take this game with her team anyway that she chose. He wanted to be sure in a very quick few seconds that she was not playing to please him. A lovely moment in time.

I live a privileged life.

~ Ellyn

The Little School That Does!

Even though my teens are in high school and no longer attend our local community school, my heart is there.

I grew up in a city, graduated with 398 others and never dreamed that I would send my children to a small rural school. Following University and a few years of teaching in large school systems, I accepted a teaching position in a little country school and ended up falling in love with rural education. I saw how efficient, successful and honouring it is for a school to operate like a family. This past weekend demonstrated this to the rest of the province as well. A week ago, our local girls’ basketball team won the championship for their area and this past weekend headed off to CWAJHAA, Provincials, where they worked hard to bring home the silver. They had seven girls on their bench compared to teams who had two or three lines. Other teams, who had heard that our little school had forty students, assumed that we had forty students in Junior High, only to find out that forty students was the entire school student body from grades 1-9.

I want these kids to be proud of this achievement because it is indeed an accomplishment worthy of just that. Bravo Girls, Bravo!

~ Ellyn

A Sparky Teammate!

The Little School That Does!

Living Alongside of My Children...

As parents we live for moments when we hear things come out of our babies’ mouths like, “I’m having the best day ever!” Especially when we are raising teenagers in this North American society with the pressures that seem to exist for teens. Yesterday was one such day when my girly saw a glimpse of what joy and satisfaction really feel like.

She is in love with the sport of basketball and although the team they met last night was not nearly as well matched with the skills for the game as our girls are, causing them to win with a final score of 54-24, my girly got 27 of those points. She is dedicated and devoted to playing hard and well and she is only in grade 10. It is an aggressive and fast game and there are times when I wish she didn’t love it so much because I struggle with liking it. But, she does and so be it.

She also just started a new semester with one of her classes being Math. She loves how math works and I marvel at, not only her understanding of mathematics, but of how well she is able to convey that to someone else. She has stepped into the mode of tutoring and feels a sense of satisfaction when another student responds with understanding and thankfulness for her help. This takes me back to a time when she was much younger and she walked in after school with a great sigh and announced that if the teacher would just let her work a little bit longer with Jimmy, he would get it! I doubt that Jillian will choose teaching for a career, but for now she has answered the call to be one. When we honour a call, we are gifted with a deep sense of satisfaction. Through Jillian's simple act, I get to be enraptured by this life that I live, alongside her…

~ Ellyn