Jack spends his 5th week at Boy Scout Camp – and has so much to show for it. July 19, 2009
Posted by irisia in Jack leadership, jack, jack accomplishments, jack boy scouts.Tags: boy scout camp, boy scout summer camp, boy scouts, camp counselor, CIT, counselor in training, cub scouts, scout camp, scout summer camp
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I was so proud when Jack volunteered a full week at the local county Cub Scout camp in June. Then, he got ready to go on his annual Boy Scout camp summer trip to the state camp. Toward the end of the week, he let us know he was going to get to go back to C.I.T. I was really happy for him. He’s been talking about becoming a counselor at camp for about a year and this was a perfect opportunity for him to see if he would really like it. He loved it!
He was hoping to be asked back for a second week. We talk to his Troop Master who said it was very unlikely he would be invited back for a week because they only invite CIT’s back if they are completely ready to teach on their own. He didn’t mean that Jack couldn’t do it. He just knew from watching other boys invites that very few were invited back. Well, he was invited back. Then, he was invited back AGAIN! He will be on the business staff which I guess handles the money sort of stuff. I know they do snack bar and they also do the dining hall. I’m not sure what else.
The best reward was spending a couple hours with him on the way back after picking him up. He seemed like he had grown up a year. He had so much more confidence and just seemed so much more mature. He was very hoarse and said he had sung his heart out the night before leading a campfire because he was hoping to get counselor of the week but he didn’t get it. He was pretty bummed but I love the fact that he strives for things like this. Howard took him back today. I miss him but I’m so proud of him for what he’s doing.
Matthew wants to become a nurse July 18, 2009
Posted by irisia in matt.Tags: career exploration, career preparation, college resume, find career, high school resume, kids, pick career, preparing for college, preparing for future, teens, when I grow up
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I know there is no way we will be able to pay for the 3 kids to go to college.
We may be able to pay a small part of the 3 kids college tuition/expenses. But, the 3 kids are within 6 years apart so there will be at least 2 kids in college for 4 years. I know that most parents are smart and do things like space their kids apart by more than 4 years to better be able to pay for college. But, I’d rather live my life an enjoy my kids the way I’d like to enjoy the kids without planning their births around the 20-yrs hence schedule. I love having the kids close in age. I love that they play together and they’re friends.
I’ve always said my kids would need scholarships or they’ll come out of college with huge college loans. But, it dawned on me about 6 months ago that I could not just make a pipe-dream statement but I could help them start working on this at a tender age. There are so many things I can do. I can help them figure out what they want to be. I can give them opportunities to volunteer in those areas or otherwise spend time with people who do those jobs so they can really help sort out if they really like that profession. I know that I was half-way through college and still didn’t know what I really wanted my major to be. But, I think that’s because I really didn’t go to college for what I wanted. I wanted to be a nurse. My father was a guidance counselor so he was very educated about different career fields. But he simplified the job of being a nurse down to “work all night long, clean up poop, get thrown up on, and take orders from doctors.” So, like anyone who was given that description, I abandoned that plan and went to college in a generalized program.
But, I believe it is possible for the kids to make an informed guess about either what they want to do when they grow up or where they want to go to college. We can then research what it takes to get into those places and do things in advance that either help with admissions and/or hopefully to earn scholarships. I’m sure the art of finding out what scholarships exist is a big part of the battle. And, I’m guessing the ones that might be easier to get are the more specialized ones since everyone knows about the generalized ones like merit or sports scholarships.
So, I started asking Matt what he wanted to do. He hated that line of questioning. I asked him questions like “do you want to work inside or outside”? “Do you want to work with people or alone”? “Do you want to want to work on the same thing all the time or have more project-based work? We didn’t make much process on that but somehow he communicated that he wanted to work in healthcare. He had wanted to be a doctor but I told him that it just was not a good plan because of the extended time and extended financial commitment. I told him about the nursing shortage in North Carolina and the programs they had to defer tuition if the graduates worked in NC in nursing for the 2 years immediately following graduation. He LOVED that idea. And, he loved the idea of specialized nursing. He keeps researching these on the Internet and asking me questions. I had no idea there were so many types of specialized nursing.
Now I’m trying to find a good primer book on deciding if nursing is right for you. The books at Amazon all seem to be expensive.
Grandpa’s hairy ears and the priviledge of cutting his hair. July 12, 2009
Posted by irisia in musings.Tags: grandfather's wisdom, wisdom of grandparents
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Vacation was incredible. GM n GP were in such good spirits and good health. They’re 87 and 89 and I couldn’t help but just watch them in awe throughout the entire week. But I must admit that while GM has always gotten all the attention, I paid a lot more attention to GP on this visit. Grandma’s and Grandpa’s relationship is very much like mine and Howard’s. GM is the effervescent, loving, hosting, hugging – basically the one who makes a lot of noise. GP is the silent leader. That’s the best way to describe it. He has just as much love, is equally as great a host, doesn’t offer hugs but loves to receive them, and just loves with a lot less noise, if you will. I guess the more I grow up, the more I appreciate the wisdom and beauty in silent leadership. Being one whose style is more like my GM’s, I do the inviting, the cooking, ask everyone 10 times if they’ve had enough food, plan the next party, etc. Howard is always there, always very present, and always very quiet.
A couple years ago, I started listening to my Dad talk about my grandfather’s silent wisdom. Dad said that if he had a problem, he would sit down to talk to GP. Grandpa’s style, though not using those questions that a counselor uses, would encourage you to just keep talking – basically until you answered your own question. The bottom line is that we’re only going to act on our problems or feel the contentment we’re seeking after we agree with whatever the solution or resolution is. In leading by listening, the best teacher helps us teach ourselves.
So this trip, I really sat back and watched Grandpa. He was attentive at literally every moment to Grandma. If she would go out in the garage and stay there for about 10 minutes, he would get up and walk toward the garage. I’d ask him where he was going and he would say to check on Grandma. If she was in the kitchen doing the dishes, he’d go in and pick up a towel. If she was cooking, he’d go in and set the table. He didn’t follow her around like a puppy dog. He just wanted to be with her and help her. They really were like two hearts beating as one. They work best as a unit.
One thing that was very interesting is I saw him dump out his entire cup of coffee. I noticed that he never orders coffee at a restaurant. He generally jumps up to take just a half a cup of coffee. When I saw him dump his entire cup of coffee out in the sink (sort of without gaining any attention), I wondered if he has really ever liked coffee at all. He knows that people generally will not make a cup of coffee just for themselves. And, grandma loves coffee. So, if he always joins her in coffee, then she won’t skip on coffee because she won’t want to make it just for her. It’s probably not true that he dislikes coffee but after watching closely for a few days, I wouldn’t be surprised.
So, he asked me to cut his hair around his ears. I was amazed because he’s not a touchy, touchy person. He never asks anyone to fix his tie or button his shirt or do anything where someone would touch him. This is really the first time I can ever remember. I was almost nervous. I didn’t want to mess this up. He wanted me to cut the hair just above his ears. But, when I started, I noticed that he had more hair growing out of his ears than around his ears. I felt such a strong urge to giggle. Then my next urge was to cut that hair. But, it was a priviledge to cut his hair so I just took care of the requested task at hand.
Michael Jackson Go Away. Little Children Want to Play July 11, 2009
Posted by irisia in lamentscha.Tags: enough michael jackson, over michael jackson, stop michael jackson
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ENOUGH! Mercy! Stop!
You know the song rain, rain go away… Well this morning I was so tired of all the Michael Jackson news that I started humming that song and I switched out rain with Michael Jackson. How fitting – the superstar – turned child molester, dies and turns back to hero. The last 100 times he was on the news before his death were because he was having young children in his bed. Just go away MJ.
