In the Role of Father
Last week was one of the best weeks of the year: Teacher Appreciation Week. And y’all, my school does this celebration exceptionally well. Our parents fed us every day we were on campus – breakfast, lunch, and snacks all day. Students brought us gifts and cards with lovely affirming messages. We got to dress down in jeans. Food, words, and comfortable clothing: so many of my love languages happening there. I love my students. Some of them I like more than others, but that’s reality with any group of people you’re with all the time, yes? I really do love each of my students very much. Here is some evidence I have noted lately of spiritual growth in myself: I am not as concerned anymore about whether my students love me . That was a problem when I was teaching right out of college: I wanted to be loved and admired by the kids I taught. It’s to my credit, I suppose, that I don’t think I let that need of mine affect the way I interacted with them (at least not too much). But it prof