An Inspirational Message by Shazzar Kallie

Summer is here and for a teacher that means it is time to rest (recover from the past school year) and rejuvenate one's self for the upcoming school year, which will be filled with many new people and new experiences. Teaching has become an integral part of my life, but it is not all of who I am. I know my time in the classroom is temporary, because God means for me to teach the world one day through my gifts, which is something that cannot be done while confined in a classroom. Being a teacher can often be a thankless job, but it can also be very rewarding giving one the ability to change other people's lives for the better. My greatest role model is a teacher named Jesus Christ! When I am in my classroom I strive to be like Him. It is not easy being a Christ-inspired teacher, because you are bound to be hurt, disappointed and taken for granted by the same people you are trying to help, much like Jesus Christ experienced when He walked on Earth. I had to let go and let God deal with some of the experiences I endured this past school year, because I went through trials, which I know will lead to triumph with Christ by my side.

When you dare to care about someone you also take the risk of being hurt by him or her. Caring for someone is a choice we make. It is idealistic that all teachers care about their students, but it is not always that way. There are teachers who care about each of their students as individuals and there are some who only care about their paycheck. Many of my students tell me I am the nicest teacher they have ever known. I had students that appreciated this, and likewise I had students who tried to take advantage of it. I am not like most teachers in that I look at teaching as if it is a ministry to teach students about academics and life. I had a teacher who I still communicate with who taught me for two years in high school. She was a former nun who brought out the best in me as a writer and as a speaker. I would not be who I am today if it was not for her caring. I believe she transferred her purpose in serving God as a nun into serving God as a teacher. She helped many students, but there were some who simply did not appreciate her help. When I first entered her classroom as an 11th grader she called on me every day in class to speak. Now, if you knew who I was in the 11th grade you may assume this was a traumatic experience. Initially, I thought she was picking on me and was not sympathetic to what I was going through. I realized later that she was helping me face my fears of verbal communication while bringing out the best in my writing ability as well. By the end of the 12th grade I was transformed almost into a new person, because of her support. It is no surprise this caring teacher had such a positive effect on me that I earned three degrees and a professional teaching credential in the subject she taught, and now I teach it to my students. She was a teacher who went the extra mile for her students, and cared about their personal lives as well. I know it was not always easy for her, but I also realize it was worth it. She taught for over 30 years touching more lives than she could have ever imagined coming in contact with as a nun.

Every year I teach I seem to get a few wonderful students who put smiles on my face. Never once did they cross my path without smiling and saying hello to me. It simply showed me that they cared about me as a person and respected me as their teacher. I had students who barely had eye contact with me much less actually speak to me while walking pass me as if they did not know me. I know most people have experienced the hurt of caring for someone who does not care about you reciprocally. I feel for the parent who does everything they can to save their child from a hard life while trying to give them a better life than they had only to be rewarded with rebellion. A good teacher today is much like a parent, because not every child comes from a positive home environment. Every year without fail I give every student (often over 100 students per year) a personalized Christmas card, a gift and candy. I am sure I am the only teacher at my school that does this, but it really affected me when some of my students told me not even their parents gave them what I did for Christmas. I believe in charity (agape love), and it is something I live by. It amazes me how many teachers will not spend a dollar on their students when they make their living off of them. The charity I give to my students throughout the year (including literary books, journals, and school supplies to inspire them to be excellent writers) may cost me a few hundred dollars, but it is only a fraction of my salary. I look at it as investing in their future, and it comes from the heart, because I expect absolutely nothing in return. I know some students who may have never experienced a teacher like me might wonder why I care and give like I do, but they simply should ask themselves why did Christ care and give unto the world? I do not consider myself only a teacher, but a Christian teacher. Even though I cannot teach about Christ in the classroom I strive to be Christ-like in my teaching, which positively affects my students. Every year I have students who sit in class and do nothing but fail even though I give them every opportunity to pass. This can be very discouraging, especially when you give so much of yourself in your profession. Likewise, I have students who go beyond what I ask of them, and it lets me know that it is worth teaching 100 students simply if I have the opportunity to change one of their lives for the better.

I teach at an inner-city high school, which is not far from the one I graduated from, so it is not hard for me to relate to the students I teach. One of the main ways I keep my sanity as a teacher is through constant prayer and guidance from God to do the right thing, but there is something else I do, which is putting myself in the shoes of my students. This is called compassion and it is easy to have when I remember who I was as a high school student. I am sure I let down a few teachers and coaches who tried to help me, because I thought I knew it all like most teenagers do only to discover years later I was ignorant, because of the lack of knowledge and wisdom that comes from experience. Still today I look back and regret some of the things I did as a teenager, but it was part of my learning experience, and a lot of teenagers the way they live today will have to learn about life the hard way. In high school I was never really part of a crowd. I envisioned myself as a leader and I valued my Christian morals. It discomforts me when I think about the sinful lives (premarital sex, alcohol, drugs, etc.) many high school students live today, which will only detrimentally catch up to them in their future. I know their family and friends influence many of my students, which can be a positive or negative influence. When you are part of a crowd or clique you can be influenced to think someone who is actually good is bad, because of other people's perceptions (or ignorance), and likewise, these same people who influence you can lead you to thinking someone who is actually bad is good. Many students will one day realize some of the people they thought were their enemy were actually their friend, and some of the people they thought were their true friends will turn out to be their enemies. It reminds me how a crowd 2,000 years ago in Jerusalem chose to free a murderer named Barabbas rather than an innocent man named Jesus Christ who lived a righteous life of love. To them Jesus was bad, because He symbolized a life they did not want to live, and Barabbas was someone they could relate to, because their lives were filled with sin like his was. As a teacher you can only do so much to help students, but today there are so many boundaries that teachers cannot cross, which often leaves them helpless in changing a student's life for the better. This is when you have to let go and let God handle the situation.

I have my share of disappointments throughout my teaching career, but this year provided one of my most heartbreaking. I realized I had to let go and let God deal with it, because one should never live in the past with hurt, and should never regret the act of kindness. "I know that I have not yet reached that goal, but there is one thing I do. Forgetting the past and straining toward what is ahead, I keep trying to reach the goal and get the prize for which God called me through Christ to the life above." Philippians 3:13-14. Being a high school teacher is a unique experience because you get the opportunity to deal with students who are between adolescence and adulthood. I believe at the grade level I teach I have an opportunity to change their lives for the better, but what is sad about it is many of the students are too immature to appreciate my efforts. It made me wonder myself why I cared so much about my students when it seemed like only a few truly appreciated my endeavors. I then had to stop having a pity party for myself and focus on the life of Jesus Christ. What I went through could not even compare to the hurt Christ felt upon the cross. He was crucified by the very same people He tried to help, but He forgave them, because as He said: "Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing." Luke 23:34. We are all people who are worthy of grace and mercy. I believe there is no person upon this earth who has not made the mistake of hurting someone who tried to help them. I do not regret my kindness, because I know it was an act of charity, and perhaps some of the seeds of positivity I tried to plant will take root and grow by God's grace. It also made me further value the students who did appreciate my help.

Throughout my life I have often saw myself as a self-sacrificing saint trying to bring out the good in people, but I realize that one should not have to beg someone to accept a blessing. Often when people do not appreciate the good we do unto them it is because they are not worthy (or deserving) of it. I am reminded of Matthew 7:6: "Do not give dogs what is sacred; do not throw your pearls to pigs. If you do, they may trample them under their feet, and then turn and tear you to pieces." I think we all should step out on faith and help those in need, but only to the point where it is not detrimental with the person you are trying to help trying to hurt you in return, because your good can easily be evil spoken of. I have become a much wiser teacher with each year I teach, because my students often help teach me lessons about life. There is one passage from the Bible I read daily and that is 1 Corinthians 13:13. It is actually the scripture my mother told me God gave her about me when I was in her womb: "And now these three remain: faith, hope and charity, but the greatest of these is charity (love). I will continue to be a teacher of charity, because I know like Christ that even though I may not be appreciated in the present time that my positive effect upon people will be felt for ages. I will never become one of those teachers who stopped caring, because then I will have no place in the classroom. I know when living a righteous life that I will not be adored by the masses, but God will still bless me to be loved by the faithful few, so I will not change. I will only grow in wisdom from the experiences I have endured. "Do not change yourselves to be like the people of this world, but be changed within by a new way of thinking. Then you will be able to decide what God wants for you; you will know what is good and pleasing to Him and what is perfect." Romans 12:2.

Letting go and letting God deal with the situation or the person is the correct way a Christian should live. The past cannot be relived or changed, so there is no need to keep living in it reminding yourself of the hurt when Jesus offers the healing of peace. Never regret an act of kindness because when you show love to a person you become Christ-like, because God is Love! When you forgive you become free from the shackles of sin called bitterness and resentment, which only destroy the bearer. Jesus Christ stated: "Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you." Luke 6:27-28. When you give charity (love) you can change the circumstances of people's lives with the humblest gesture. I believe we are all evolving into who God wants us to be when we strive to live righteously. We all deserve grace and mercy because no one is without sin, and there is hope for us all. Remember one of the greatest Christians of all-time who spread Christianity throughout the world was a man named Paul. He was also known as Saul the Christian killer before Jesus changed his life. My greatest hope as a teacher is that I can influence my students to become the best people they can be in life. The whole world is ahead of them and hopefully they will grow into who God means for them to be. I know I am nowhere near who God wants me to be, because He is by no means through with me. I plan on achieving "greatness" in life and the only way that can be accomplished is if I let go and let God! I can do all things through Jesus Christ because He strengthens me! Remember God will never allow more of a burden upon you than you can bear, so let your struggles make you stronger! I want to leave you with my latest poem, which was inspired by my experience this past school year.


Let Go and Let God
A quad-tanka poem by Shazzar Kallie

Let go and let God
reveal the way to follow
the path of His will
out of the bondage of hurt
into the healing of peace.

Regret bears burdens
of bitterness submerging
the soul in sorrow.
Love is the lighthouse that leads
to the shores of salvation.

Charity changes
the circumstances of life.
The giving of grace
will reciprocate mercy
that mutually mends all hearts.

Wisdom is endowed
aptly through experience.
Place the past behind
and focus on the future.
Forgiveness begets freedom.

© 2007

God is Love!!!