Role Model Me

Do you have a role model?  Did you have a role model when you were a kid? Was there someone in particular that influenced you to go one way or the other with your life?  Did you reach the goals that you set as a young person?  (Let's all take a moment to prepare our answers)

OK, I'm ready: No.  No. Yes. No.

Role model?  No.  I have women I admire and learn from, but I think the women older than me never thought about being role models, of reaching out to younger women and challenging them. Sharon Wagar is probably the closest to a role model, but she's also my best friend - does that count?

Role model when I was a kid? No. When I was growing up, pretty much all the women I knew were housewives till the day they died.  They just did the basics and enjoyed themselves the rest of the time.  My mother taught a few piano lessons on and off - sometimes for survival, sometimes for spending money - but she hated teaching and couldn't wait to quit.  She was very capable - decorating, gardening, sewing, crafts, entertaining - and she was a spectacular pianist.  I learned so many skills from her because I was interested in many of the same things.  I wanted to be and do something significant in my life, but my parents thought I would never cook, never drive, and that it was a waste to educate a woman.  They felt quite strongly I should marry my high school sweetheart and teach piano in the basement.  (I have thought of this many times after I married my college sweetheart and was teaching piano in the basement).  I don't think the women of my mother's generation ever thought of being  role models.

Someone who influenced me?  Yes.  I had a teacher in Gr. 11 that I really impressed me.  I was in her Honours English class.  Every Friday we had a coffee house - no lights, candles, guitars, Leonard Cohen, poetry - it was so creative, challenging and cool.  I was teaching my first piano lessons at the time.  With my first earnings I bought a suede jacket and a guitar so I could be cool too.  When the spring musical was cast, I got on the costume crew headed up by the English teacher.  I learned to design clothes, sew masses of ruffles, use a curling iron, plan wardrobe changes etc.  The crowning achievement for me was designing and creating the bridal dress for the female lead - I was forever changed.  Later this teacher recommended me as the only student to represent my high school on the Hudson's Bay fashion council, on which I served my Gr. 12 year - that was a great experience.

Reach the goals I set as a young person?  No.  These were my goals: become a fashion designer, visit Paris, and do missions work in Africa.  I still haven't made it to Paris or Africa.  I don't really care about Paris anymore (now I want to see the gardens of England) and I will get to Africa - hopefully in the next couple of years.  Funny story about the fashion designer part.  I wanted to go to UBC but my mother wanted me to go to a Christian university so I visited Oral Roberts University and got a scholarship.  I left in September with a suitcase full of new clothes I had made myself to take fashion design at ORU.  In 2 days I learned two things:  1. ORU didn't have a fashion design program 2. if you get a music scholarship, you have to study music.  So I studied music, met the love of my life, got 3 music degrees and have enjoyed teaching hundreds of people, my own kids included.

I had a dear friend named Dorothy Williams who passed away a couple of years ago.  She was a teacher, a missionary to Africa and Taiwan, church planter, Bible college founder and president who preached all over the world and wrote books.  She also was a fantastic knitter ( like her best friend and Scrabble partner Fran Huebert) and sewed her own clothes with fabrics she collected from around the world.  Before Dorothy died, I asked her if she had met all the goals she had set for her life.  She snorted, then said she had never set any goals.  She just did whatever anyone asked her to do: one thing led to another and she ended up with an adventure-filled, satisfying, God blessed life.

That's a pretty good role model.

Just me blowing my nose again

So I'm into the 60 project thus far like this: I've changed to a less stressful job, I'm sleeping and eating well, I'm losing weight again, I'm walking fairly regularly and being nicer to my husband. I'm basically a candidate for sainthood. Did I mention that I'm taking my vitamins? I am. And calcium too.

And yet..... The ghastly head cold that leveled me in December and January IS BACK! with a VENGEANCE!

Now I'm not naming names, but I work with healthy adults and no children except for 2 little blue-eyed blondies of excellent heritage that look something like this:

You can see my problem here :).  As some old crusty Canadian said, "Life is tough and then you die".

Administrators change the world!

When I look at success in politics, institutions, families, businesses et al, I see that leadership makes all the difference.  In my world, I've seen small Christian schools with the same numbers, same stated goals, and same chances end up in opposite directions, some growing and affecting kids lives, some shrinking and sinking, some becoming powerhouses.  The obvious difference is the quality of the leader.  Duh.  But here's my epiphany: one major weapon of a great leader is working hand in glove with effective administrators. 

Administrators change the world.  I learned this studying church music history, of all things.  The first music ever written down was in the 7th century, thanks to an amazing man - Pope Gregory.  He only reigned as pope for 13 years, but in that time he not left a legacy that formed the basis of Western music, but he also evangelized Ireland, which eventually led to all of Europe being converted to Christianity, and effected great changes in the Church.  Great leader, but you know it wasn't Greg penning all that music or shipping out to Ireland.  He had administrators that did that, and did it well.

Martin Luther did something similar.  This man completely revolutionized the religious, cultural and political structure of Europe and the known world by challenging the authority of the Roman Catholic church.  He cared about the people in the pew who not only didn't understand the Latin service, but were not allowed to sing - only the professionals could do that.  Martin Luther translated the Bible into German so the people could understand it and created a whole new genre of sacred music by taking songs the people were singing in everyday life, setting German words to them that were based on the Bible, and printed the first two hymnals.  Marty did not create this all that himself.  He had helpers - administrators - that got those projects done and out there.

Somehow this always reminds me of my great grandmother, Elizabeth McCann.  She was a remarkable worman with the most amazing set of adventures - I'd like to write about her someday.  The reason I know about her escapades is that she wrote and published small tracts about her life and I am lucky enough to own a couple of them now, a hundred years later. Out on a farm in the prairies with so many children, she ran a churchand had everyone stay for dinner after service, yet she found the time and gumption to get her tracts published so that she could give her story to people she met.  Now that's administration!

Now it's me playing follow the leader to Dave Shinness.  He is a good leader who sees the big picture, works well with his own leaders, and eats, sleeps and breathes Christian school.  One of his great strengths is that he identifies leadership and administrative qualities in the people he works with and gives them opportunity to try out their wings.  That's what he did with me too, after years of teaching music - he thought I could do an admin job with special needs.  It was a massive learning curve for me; more paperwork than I care to think about (which is not my strength) but I worked my way through it until I got on top of it and I like the feeling of learning something big again.  I earned myself a sideways move to development and another huge learning curve.

I may not have the effect that Pope Gregory, Martin Luther, or even Elizabeth McCann have had, but I want to finish what I start and be one of my principal's secret weapons.  It reminds me of  that other famous couple, Pinkie and the Brain:

"What are we doing tonight, Brain?  Same thing we do every night, Pinkie; try to take over the world!"

To think or not to think about work - that is the question...

I'm trying, folks.  I'm trying not to think about my job night and day.  (I have a new job as a development coordinator for our school.)  It's so tempting!  Everything I'm doing right now is so exciting, so full of potential - lots of events that happen in the next few weeks that need to be planned, things we have never done before.  There is such a warm reception for this new approach, so many good ideas, so many folks around me with great expectations, all of them possible to fulfill.  By me.

Such a typical reaction for women, isn't it.  We have to do it all.  We have to fulfill the expectations of everyone around us.  Because we can do it, we feel we have to say yes, or else we feel selfish.  Here's my personal twist:  I have more backbone than your average girl, and I don't have a problem saying no to anybody or anything.  But I know that strength can be overwhelming and intimidating to people around me, so I try to temper that effect by going the extra mile if it is within my power to do so.  And because I am strong and capable, I usually do have the power to do so and no excuse not to. 

Now I'm trying to pull back a bit because I find if I don't put that job in a box, I won't have the strength or presence of mind to be able to extend myself to Dave or my kids or grandkids.  I want to be able to extend myself to neighbours and friends more than I do now - that's going to take even more time management.

Today is my day off and I'm home.  My little grandson Xander (5) is sick and my daughter is throwing a birthday party for his big sister today so I asked if I could have him for the day.  I have a bunch of sewing to do for the school so I would normally just let him play while I worked.  But on this sunny morning, I knew I would get the sewing done somehow but I didn't want to miss an opportunity to enjoy my friendship with my little man.

Xander arrived today and had refused breakfast at home because he wanted to have dippy eggs with Grammy. I introduced all the grandkids to dippy eggs, my favourite breakfast when I was a kid: a soft boiled egg held up in a little cup with a cap cut off so you can dip a toast strip (called a soldier) into the egg yolk and eat it with your fingers.  We have special Nigella egg cups and special egg spoons that we use to scrape the egg white out to eat after the yolk is done.  Xander and I sat on the love seat in a cozy nook in the kitchen and ate at a little wicker table that he had set himself.

Next he had a bath so he could play with Grammy's bath toys and take as much time as he wanted.  Then he went outside to play while I set up the sewing.  He asked me to come out and play soccer so I thought, why not?  We played for about 30 minutes.  I could not for the life of me kick that plastic ball in a straight line, but he was so patient with me, giving me extra points, while kicking the dickens out of the ball every time.  I was distracted by the messy garden I wanted to stop and clean up, but I can do that any day - not today.

I didn't think about work even once.....

Update on the 60 Project

So the weight thing.  I joined Weight Watchers with my friend Keri so that I would have some accountability.  I want to lose the weight I gained back since the summer.  All my spring clothes will be too small if I don't do this.  It is much cheaper to lose the weight than replace the clothes.

Couple of cool things about WW: 1. they now have a cool app for my iphone to track my eating and exercise.  2. I get points credit for exercise, so I have begun walking again, even in the rain.

So the too busy thing.  I have been orthodoxly religious about taking my days off and enjoying them.  Like right now I'm sitting by the fire IN THE MIDDLE OF THE AFTERNOON ON A WEEKDAY writing on my blog.  This is an example of me turning over a new leaf in the life balance arena.

I promised to be even nicer to my husband this year.  We started a new marriage course with a group of other married people.  It's called Laugh Your Way to a Better Marriage.  I was immediately challenged.  Wonder if I can break out of my comfort zone here.....

And finally, I am blogging!  I had major computer headaches.  For my new job we decided to use my personal laptop and make it do for both personal and professional needs.  After it was finished being reprogrammed, I couldn't get it to work properly anywhere.  Now I'm up and running again.

That's the update - I'll keep you posted.

The Next Big Adventure

On January 9 I teased everyone that I was rolling out my Next Big Adventure that week.  Which I did.  Just not to you, my lovely readers.  I've been livin' the dream since then and now I want to tell you about it.

I am now the Development Coordinator for Highroad Academy.  For the next 6 months I have three goals:

1. increase the profile of Highroad Academy in our community
2. make sure our parents and church members know more about Highroad.
3. work to increase enrollment in Highroad by 25 students for the 2011-2012 school year.

That looks quite boring to me, actually.  This is such a huge departure from anything I have ever done before, I actually have no idea if I can carry this off or not.  But so far, I am definitely NOT bored.

When we were newlyweds we returned to ORU so that Dave could finish his degree, as he only needed one year.  It did not go well.  Me getting stopped by a delusional border guard while crossing into the states was our first clue.  We had a tough time making ends meet.  Dave's department head was bound and determined that Dave was pursuing the wrong degree and did everything in his power to prevent his graduation.  At Christmas, Dave and I sat down at the rickety table in our $85 a month garage apartment and he proclaimed "we're going back to Vancouver, and we're going to THAT church!".

THAT church was Glad Tidings Temple, where my family were attending.  They were crazy people, standing and worshipping for 60-70 minutes at a time with their hands in the air, long prayer meetings, double tithing to the church and  world missions etc.  Dave always left there with a massive headache, but if we didn't go my mother would phone and lambast us for forsaking the gathering of ourselves together.

So we packed up the VW van in Tulsa OK and got back to Canada at midnight on Christmas Eve.  We found an upstairs apartment with Conrad Maines, Dave got a job driving a truck, and we went to THAT church.  3 weeks later, the pastor invited us to a meeting to discuss the possibility of starting a church school with Accelerated Christian Education.  Coincidentally, I had seen one of the first ACE schools in Tulsa and had come home to tell Dave what an interesting concept I had seen.  Hearing the pastor propose the very same thing in Vancouver BC I knew we had been set up by the Almighty.

That was the beginning of our life's work in Christian education almost 40 years ago. Dave taught for 8 years at Temple Academy (which later became Pacific Academy in Surrey BC), we pastored in Gibsons BC for 3 years while founding an ACE school, we both taught in Cornerstone Christian School in Abbotsford while Dave finished his teaching degree, then moved to Portland Oregon where Dave was both Music Pastor and vice principal of Temple Christian school (later City Christian School) for 13 years before returning to Canada for Dave to be the Principal of Highroad Academy, now in his tenth year.

In all of our experiences with Christian schools, Highroad Academy is far and away the best school.  Every school says it has a great staff, but this staff is amazing: the collegiality, compassion, creativity - I've never experienced anything like it before.  The input from the church leadership is steady and supportive, the academic level is the highest in our area, exceeding all expectations especially when the education and income levels of the participating families are considered. Our school is not a spectacular structure, but it is well built, well maintained and paid for.  The financials are solid as a rock and enrollment grew by 10-13% per year until the recession.  We have provincial winning sports teams and an extra emphasis on worship in our music program.  Everyday I show up, the office staff makes me want to be an educator all over again. Most of the kids in our church attend Highroad which makes up 30-35% of our enrollment.  The rest of the students are from 40 different local churches with no bickering or quibbling about it.  It's all that and so much more.

However, we are not good at tooting our own horn.  We don't advertise, we don't have parent meetings, we haven't had a proper street sign for years (a new one is on the way!), we don't require the parents volunteer or give large sums of money: we just show up each day, love the kids and do our best.

I want this to quit being Chilliwack's best kept secret.  I want to shout it from the housetops.  I know there are families looking for us - they just don't know who or where we are.  This is the school I wished I could have raised my own children in.  This is the school every community needs to have on every corner.  Schools like these raise leaders that change the world.  We are that school.

Now can you see why I'm so excited about this, my Next Big Adventure?  I think I have time in my working life for one more big thing that takes years to pull off.  Is this it?  I think so....