There is no greater evil in the world than meetings. These 1-hour gifts from Satan seem to last forever, sucking our souls dry of all that sustains and blesses.

Image Credit: TheEffectiveEdge

There’s always the monologue, brought to you courtesy of the person desperate for an audience (Hey, start a blog, I say….). And then there’s the mandate, some new devilry handed down by the Powers That Be, adding to your already stressed load. And when enough just can’t be enough, there’s sure to be the haters, the band of clucking hens and roosters that perpetuate the great hypocrisy of all teachers – they hate students who talk out of turn, but have no problem doing it themselves (gotta admit, I’m really guilty here).

Thankfully, both Common Sense and the Common Word have some strategies we can employ to make it through. Here are 5 of them.

Read more …

Have you ever lost someone?

Two days ago, Ronnie withdrew from school. A charismatic young man who calls me “dawg”, Ronnie had the marks of a man hiding in the skin of a nervous, approval-seeking little boy. So I invested in him, patiently pursuing him with questions and challenges that might bring that man out for awhile.

But Ronnie got caught with weed on campus. Arrested. Jailed. He came back, but only for a few days.

Now he’s gone.

Read more …

Silent Night, Holy Night

It’s my favorite Christmas hymn. I usually sing it with a candle in my hand and tears on my cheeks.

But is it true? This beloved Christmas carol paints a picturesque fresco of the birth of the savior. It captures a moment when Mary, Joseph, the Shepherds, and baby Jesus himself seemed to pause and bask in the beauty of what had happened.

I imagine a tender mother, a doting father. I see a giggling baby and sleepy cattle.

What do you see?

Read more …

Two years ago, in mid-December 2010, my wife and I adopted a World Vision child.

His name is Sifiso. He lives in Swaziland, a forgotten land-locked nation in southern Africa. The country is ravaged by AIDS and poverty. He likes to play soccer and do well in school.

In the 24 months since adopting Sifiso, I have made sure that 24 monthly payments have made it to World Vision. We have opened at least 5 letters from him including pictures, adorable drawings, prayers, and hand-written notes. I’ve even set an alert on my phone for 5am - “Pray for Sifiso”.

Yet, in 24 months, I have written him nothing.

Read more …

We’re really good at laughing.

“Don’t worry - things will get better.”

Ha. LOL. ROFL.

We don’t even try to be that positive, most of the time.

“Maybe the politicians won’t screw up education this time around.”

“You think the kids will be better next year?”

Snort. Guffaw. Hardy-har har.

To survive the onslaught of disappointment, teachers build a cynical wall that laughs at hope and belief. There’s no room for such childishness in such a crushing field of work.

Or is there?

Sadly, we are missing a great opportunity for ourselves as teachers and believers. We are denying ourselves the chance to believe.

Read more …

Don’t need 17 reasons? Download it here!

1. First of all, it’s free!

2. It’s called The Public School Gospel: Encouraging the Teacher’s Broken Heart. 

3. It’s in PDF format, so you can view it on your computer, tablet, or smartphone!

4. It costs zero dollars and cents. Precisely.

5. It isn’t district or state-mandated - therefore it’s incredibly readable and applicable!

6. It isn’t about strategies, techniques, or methods - it’s about your heart.

7. It makes a great gift for a teacher that you know and love. You can print it, too, if you like - I don’t mind!

8. The cost to download is $0.00. The cost to sign up for YoMister email updates is $0.00/month. The cost to enjoy the grace of Jesus is, ironically, identical!

9. The font is sized large enough so you don’t have to constantly zoom on your phone. Yeah, that would annoy me, too.

10. The text is interactive - each chapter includes “Click-to-Tweet” links so you can share passages that speak to you. Look for tweets using the hashtag: #pubschoolgospel

11. If you are a newer reader, The Public School Gospel includes some of the best writing from the blog, complete with original diagrams and artwork, including “The Application for Accelerated Grading” - a must-have for the teacher with whiny students!

12. It is the most navigable and accessible eBook on the planet. Click or tap chapter titles in the Table of Contents to jump right to the chapter; at the bottom of each chapter, click or tap a link to zip right back to the Table of Contents.

13. To get this eBook, you need to: sign up for email offers, join an exclusive club, commit to reading the whole thing, share with 7 friends, come to church with me, simply click the download link!

14. We are constantly reminded of our failures in this profession. The Public School Gospel reminds you how Jesus became a failure for you, and how you are now free to live a joyful and hopeful life. You deserve such hope and joy! Claim it!

15. It will give you something to talk about in the break room other than politics, misbehaving students, and annoying colleagues. Who knows how those renewed conversations could change your life at school?

16. Some parts of it are hilarious. Teachers quickly forget how to laugh. Remind yourself.

17. IT’S FREE!!! To download, you can either navigate to the book’s page here to learn more, or click the link below.

Get your copy of the eBook for FREE here: The Public School Gospel - PDF

As always, thank you so much for reading!

The 2nd Row

The roar of a standing ovation hits the back of my ears like a tsunami of praise. I’ve been standing for ten seconds already, my hands burning from my own applause.

It’s beautiful.

In a militant line, the cast of Buddies takes the stage to receive their post-show adjudication. One by one, each judge critiques - it feels more like group therapy. We’re all blown away. What a performance.

Could we do it again? Could my drama troupe take “Best in Show” at Districts, winning the World Series of local theater?

Last Row

The director and sponsor, Jeff, greets me with a massive hug. He wrote the show in honor of a special-needs boy he’d known years ago. Our actor who portrayed this young man delivered one of the finest performances I will ever see. He’s going to be a star.

As Jeff and I collide for a bro-embrace, I congratulate him.

“Thanks. We got DQed.”

The complete joy from moments ago drips onto the floor. Disqualified? How?

“Sidney left a prop on the stage. That’s a DQ.”

But he didn’t care. His show was perfect and we still got glowing praise. My heart, however, hurt for Sidney.

Workshop

Sidney is already there. The rest of the cast and crew are still in the dressing room, staining their costumes and mascara with tears.

Sidney is in self-imposed exile.

“I took everything from them!” she cries as crew members from other troupes busily move equipment.

She is our best technical director. She is always on top of her game. And strangely enough she’s a gifted performer - it’s rare to have such a diversely talented leader in a high school drama troupe.

And she blew it. The one who had to remind the underclassmen about props, sight-lines, safety - she had been the one to leave something behind.

Automatic DQ. No trip to State. No “Best in Show”.

“They deserve it and they can’t get it - because of me!”

My cheeks are hot - I want to encourage her and remind her that she has taken nothing from them. Nothing she did could eliminate the four standing ovations, the glowing adjudication, the individual accolades that we can still earn.

It’s going to be a long night for Sidney.

Cast and crew of “Murder at the Shootin’ Show!” - written by YoMister himself.

The Next Morning

It’s 7am.

The auditorium slowly fills with sleepy, cried-out teenagers ready for another day of plays and drama. I’m sitting in the front row of our own theater, a thick stack of papers in my hand.

Rough Draft #2.

While it’s only November, The Last Lafaye opens on February 28th. Our annual murder-mystery dinner theater, not yesterday’s emotional kiddie coaster, is on my mind.

Because I haven’t written it yet.

My dream is to be a full-time writer, fun-time teacher. In other words, my writing pays me while my teaching thrills me - not the other way around. Perhaps it’s greener grass that will yellow when I get there.

The Last Lafaye is currently 60 pages long, about 50 fewer than it needs to be. This original piece, set in New Orleans, is a delightful-yet-exhausting bit to write. So many characters! So much back-story! Dramatic death scenes!

Oh my!

When I pause to watch a scene for some kids (Individual Events start this morning), I place the draft in my bag - next to another partial draft of my book.

Writing a book for teachers is incredibly hard when you’re teaching. Two weekends ago, however, I found the right voice for it. More on that soon - plus, there’s a new title.

Who am I, Prince in the classroom!? Enough with the title-changes!

Last Row - That Night

The show was asterisked. For all 7 deadly sins - as we call it.

An asterisk denotes offensive content. If a show makes a sex joke, it is asterisked with “S”. Language is “L”, violence is “V”.

And so on.

The concluding show of the festival, I knew ahead of time, dealt with mature themes. Domestic violence. Abduction. Murder.

But when the curtain rose, my stomach twisted. It was graphic. Torturous. Pointless. As one of our students said, “Violence for the sake of violence.”

Many kids left early - others endured it, only to fight the urge to vomit later on.

I’m reminded what my job is as a Teacher and a Theater Co-Sponsor. I’m reminded of it when I write a murder-mystery and when I direct shows like 12 Angry Men.

I’m a shepherd.

Not an artist. Not an activist.

I shepherd sheep. Their parents depend on me to do it. They trust me to do it well.

As teachers, it’s our job to shepherd students through difficult courses and subjects. It our duty to shepherd them through the confusing pastures of childhood and adolescence, through the muck of the loss of their innocence.

It’s our responsibility to shepherd them when they succeed, and when they fail.

When they’re exposed to good, and to evil.

So while my stomach is still churning - and while our hearts are still stung by the disqualification - it’s a striking reminder of my identity and my calling in Christ.

Shepherd the lost, protect the weak.

Didn’t Christ do so much for me?