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| I promise it’s not a factory, that’s my new school! |
Okay, okay, it’s lame. My school is not really called High School, but I don’t feel crazy comfortable putting its name on the blog…just because. Anyway, I’m going to just call it HS as I blog about it.
So, I knew when I applied for the job it would be in a low-achieving school in Houston…that’s kind of the point of this program I’m a part of…remediation. Anyway, being the researcher type, I immediately Googled everything I could find about the school, and what I found was shocking: epic fights, a stabbing, complete dearth of supplies, and one of the lowest achieving schools in the district. I also found out everything I could about the neighborhood, and what I found was again shocking: history of drive-by shootings, rampant drug deals, police-citizen clashes, and extreme poverty.
Still, I was excited and felt like it would be an incredible opportunity.
Then I arrived to Houston last week and told some Houstonians the name of the school in which I’ll be working. Reactions varied slightly, but mostly began with, “Wow, HS, huh? Okay, well that’s certainly a mission field.” And many included, “Be smart, be safe, don’t stay late and leave at the same time others leave.” I even talked to a lady (who was a little bit crazy) who said, “HS, WOW, well, okay, you can’t take weapons to school, but you know what you can do? You could take a can of hairspray and a lighter. That will protect you from anything.” WHAT?!? (Reread that if you need to: a can of hairspray and a lighter.)
Wednesday, while still waiting for my paperwork to be processed, I decided to at least make the drive down to the south side and see the neighborhood and the school. My initial reaction was that yes, it’s inner-city and a very old school building, but it’s still a high school. I prayed as I circled the school and really felt an enormous wave of peace wash over me…I know this is where I should be. As I drove through the neighborhood, though, people walking about looked at me like, “Is that white girl lost?!?”
Then I heard a few more things about HS and in all honesty, started to get a little concerned for my safety. I mean, I am a white girl from a small town in Indiana. I am also pretty naive. What business do I have thinking I can teach in an inner city school in Houston??? Who am I to think I am right for this?
That brings me to today. Although I still have to complete a couple more steps before actually beginning work, I did get to go meet and have lunch with my colleagues today. It was AH-MAZ-ING! My department chair is awesome and completely gracious about everything, the girls I share a room with are just so cool and from the Midwest (YAY!), and I could not shake the sense that I was exactly. where. God. wants. me. Does it get any better than that??
One of my colleagues informed me that while the students fight each other constantly and the police are called in pretty frequently, there were no assaults on teachers last year. Good news. She also reminded me that no matter what I’ve heard around Houston, these are still just teenagers who need LOVE. Seriously, I feel like she’s my new best friend AND we get to share a room together AND she loves coffee! Did I mention she’s from the Midwest?
Anyway, I’m sorry that I cannot assuage your fears that I’m walking into some kind of inner city war zone…because to tell you the truth, I did feel crazy uncomfortable today when I was driving through the neighborhood. I got there way too early, so I decided to take a little tour of the whole area. More than once I drove by groups of people on the sidewalks, and everyone stopped what they were doing to watch me drive by. More than once I checked to make sure my doors were locked (just being honest).
Today my heart broke in a completely new way. There is a lot of darkness in that part of town, and I KNOW that I have not even scratched the surface…I mean, I was there during the middle of the day and mostly stayed on main streets. A lot goes on out of view of passers-by. And this is where my students are coming from…yes, they need a LOT of love.
While I was uncomfortable as drove around, my mind kept going back to part of last Sunday’s sermon in which the pastor reminded us that we are not called to be comfortable. We are not even called to be safe. We are called to carry the light of Christ into the deepest, darkest places we can find and LIGHT. IT. UP.
And no, not using a can of hairspray and a lighter.
Please do pray for me as I prepare to begin work next week. Yes, you can pray for my safety because I know you all want to, but please pray for BOLDNESS to speak the words of Truth and truly be a LIGHT in the darkness. I want so desperately for God to use me powerfully to advance His kingdom in a failing school in a bad neighborhood in Houston, Texas.