I should be finishing my lesson plan right now. I will have my second observation tomorrow and I have to hit a home run because I barely made it onto the field with my first observation. I must redeem myself, so I should be practicing in the mirror right now, practicing when to pause after a passage has been read, what questions to ask and to whom, as well as what my introduction will be. I will do all of that, by the grace and favor of God it will all come together. But first…this. I have so many unfinished drafts on here as well as on my phone…that no one has been privy to. I will start a sentence, stop it, reason it is a message that can be heard later on, that it’s not a big deal, and continue on with whatever demands my attention at that particular point. But this…this I must get off my chest… The other stories will get to see the light, and they are no less riveting and thought-provoking. However, there are just some things you see that stay with you…forever… Forgive me in advance. In my rush, my commas may not all be in the right place and my subjects may not all agree with my verbs, but I must release this. This may not be as eloquent as to what I’m used to…
I got home a little while ago from church. I joined the Strip Church Ministry in January and we had a meeting tonight. We discussed business matters, assigned roles for our next event, and then we watched a documentary about girls…(in these very same five boroughs) as young as 12, prostituting! I was dismayed, to say the least. It’s one thing to hear that there are young prostitutes, but it’s another to hear about their lives in their voices. It was chilling and devastating. One girl said she wanted to be an archeologist and discover remnants of Cleopatra and King Tut in Egypt before she became a prostitute, but instead she was discovering tricks that would keep her customers coming back. Watching these girls speak of finding more solace out on the streets sleeping with multiple men than at home where hell broke loose every night with the incessant arguments was just so sad. The resounding message that I heard was that these girls stayed where they were because they were offered some semblance of a family. They were looking for something they weren’t receiving at home.
I’m currently student teaching at a middle school. There are struggles, but there are triumphs and all-in-all I love it. Whenever I am in front of the class or speaking with the students one-on-one, I can’t help but look at them and try and envision their future. Who will they become? Do they know how talented they are? How much potential they have? Do they know that the world is theirs? They will be in charge of seeing this world to its next stages and I’m not sure they know how awesome and brilliant they are. When I observe my seventh grade girls, and here the filth that comes out of their mouths and see the shirts that expose too much skin, or the hairstyles that are fit for women much older than them, I shake my head, not in judgment, but questioning. Where did the parents go wrong? Or is it jut a natural progression? A phase? Naturally my thoughts wander to my own child and the knowledge that her innocence will not last forever. There are some things in life you wish you can just preserve forever, but reality sets in, reality must set in for all of us. I got my period when I was 10, Kam will be 10 in a few short weeks and I don’t think she’s ready for that. I seriously pray that hers comes later on. I remember bawling when I got my period; I knew with that beginning of a new cycle would be the inevitable end of another…
After I watched that video, I held Kamryn a little closer and looked deep into her eyes. She thought I was listening intently to the story she was telling me, but I was looking deep in her eyes looking at all that she can become. I was looking at her thinking how truly spectacular she is. We owe it to our children as parents to do whatever need be to make sure our children turn out better than us. There are things that are just outside of our control but I strongly believe it all starts in the home.
It is essential to speak life into your children, and make them hear it to so they can start to believe and develop their own sense of worth and importance. I pray over Kamryn while she is sleeping and while we’re about to leave in the mornings. I pray at random times as well. I let her hear me tell her how phenomenal she is and what great things are in store for her. I speak life into her and let her know that greatness lives within her.
There are other things I can say but there is that top-notch lesson I have to construct. I do hope my message was conveyed somewhere and I didn’t jump around too much…but know that I jumped for a reason. My message is simple, love your kids, hug them, love them and tell them. Do not make them ever have to wonder if you do. This should never be a question. What you don’t tell them, someone else with despicable intentions is waiting in the shadows eager to tell them. We will not lose our children to the streets. The streets and the fast life will not have a hold on our children.
And now a prayer…
Father God, please give us the strength, and wisdom to continue to raise our children in a way that exceeds they way we were raised. Allow us to give them all that we had and all that we didn’t. Allow us to never lose the connection (and if we ever lose it or have lost it, allow us to get it back) we have with them. Father God please push them to come to us when they are in need. Push them to seek you. I banish all of wolves in sheep’s clothing those who seek to enter their lives. Father God, please allow our children to see that they are yours, your sons and your daughters and they shall never and can never belong to the streets. Father God let us not be passive when it comes to our children. Let us be intentional in all that we do when it comes to the beautiful beings you have entrusted us with. Allow them to fully encompass all who they are in You, Lord. in the name of Jesus, we pray…Amen!
Thanks for reading. lease spread the love, and the word!
Kaptivating Kam 