Ryan found me heart rocks since he was 4 years old. Since his death, so many others have blessed me with more heart rocks to add to my most treasured collection. These amazing people are so much more a treasure in my life than even the perfect heart rocks they find.
God has gifted me with a life filled with heart people who love me and who I would never want to live without. Losing Ryan has been hard, hard on all of us, because Ryan was a gatherer of more precious stones than the heart shaped ones. He gathered people's hearts with his kindness and attention to their needs. I thank God my son was that person who put others before himself and generously shared his life, although short, with us.
When Ry got off the airplane the last time I saw him, he reached in his pocket and pulled out a heart rock he had been carrying around just for me. The rock was not the gift, the gift was his caring enough to carry it around till he could give it to me.
Tomorrow, I begin a new school year. This year, like years in the past I fully intend to gather heart kids. Kids who will steal my heart and hopefully learn from me that not only are they bright and beautiful, but they are also valued for just who they are. Ry was not the easiest student starting all the way back in preschool. But there are teachers who poured their love into my son with their incredibly selfless hearts.
So test scores and best teaching practices for reading aside, I am a teacher of heart kids and I hope to teach them more than test questions. I hope to show them that they matter. Gathering heart kids for a lifetime is my biggest reward.
In Him,
Joyful
8-18-2010
God has gifted me with a life filled with heart people who love me and who I would never want to live without. Losing Ryan has been hard, hard on all of us, because Ryan was a gatherer of more precious stones than the heart shaped ones. He gathered people's hearts with his kindness and attention to their needs. I thank God my son was that person who put others before himself and generously shared his life, although short, with us.
When Ry got off the airplane the last time I saw him, he reached in his pocket and pulled out a heart rock he had been carrying around just for me. The rock was not the gift, the gift was his caring enough to carry it around till he could give it to me.
Tomorrow, I begin a new school year. This year, like years in the past I fully intend to gather heart kids. Kids who will steal my heart and hopefully learn from me that not only are they bright and beautiful, but they are also valued for just who they are. Ry was not the easiest student starting all the way back in preschool. But there are teachers who poured their love into my son with their incredibly selfless hearts.
So test scores and best teaching practices for reading aside, I am a teacher of heart kids and I hope to teach them more than test questions. I hope to show them that they matter. Gathering heart kids for a lifetime is my biggest reward.
In Him,
Joyful
8-18-2010
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