On Thursday mornings, I tutor high school students who are trying to graduate after being kicked out/having dropped out of conventional high school. On Thursday afternoons, I work with an after school program for middle school students who are struggling in and out of school.
Some days I leave with the weight of the world on my shoulders.
I leave thinking about how unfair some things are for these students.
About how I wish I could take them home.
About how glad I am that I know them.
But when I leave them, I go home to my cushy house in the country with my 2 healthy kids, my husband who loves us and provides for us, physically and spiritually. I am not afraid at night. I have not lost my childhood because of someone else's decisions.
Dear Students,
I'm sorry.
I'm sorry that adults could not get their crap together. I'm sorry that you have to deal with situations that nobody should have to deal with, let alone a young child. I'm sorry that choices others made have tainted your view of what it means to be a father, or mother, or a family.
I'm sorry that the church has not been there more for you. To walk alongside you and your family in hard times. To care for you when nobody else was caring for you.
I'm sorry that, for the most part, we believers are so caught up in our own lives, our conveniences, our schedules, and our "problems" that we don't look for ways to help you.
God says that true religion is looking after widows and orphans. Many of you have been "orphaned" in one way or another. May we, the church, rise up and look after you.
1 comment:
Well said, Beth. Being a teacher in this world is harder than ever. Believe me, I hear about it everyday.
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