This Little Light of Mine, I'm Gonna Let It Shine

Finding your fire is an amazing, life changing gift, but it does come with strings attached.  In the early 1600s, St. Ignasius gave this directive, "Go forth and set the world on fire." Once you've found your fire, you then have a responsibility to use it to bring light to those who haven't.

Yesterday, we had Kindergarten Registration at our school.  All summer, I've been wondering about my students and their parents.  Who are they?  What will they be like?  What kinds of things will they be most interested in?  Finally, I was able to put faces with names and get a quick glimpse into what makes all of these precious children and their parents tick.  I learned about the hopes and dreams of my students, who are just beginning the journey that will someday lead them to Colleges and Careers.

I consoled parents as they cried over turning over their very hearts to me as their children begin their first "big school" experiences.  During these conversations, I was constantly asking myself, "How am I going to hook this child?  How can I help this child find his fire?"

The great philosopher, Socrates, had a lot to say about this.

"To find yourself, think for yourself."

Now, I think it would be highly unusual, though not impossible, for five year olds to discover their callings in life...to find their fire.  But, I know what they can discover:  a passion and a love for learning, a thirst for knowledge that remains unquenchable.  And so, this is my job as a Kindergarten teacher: to awaken the desire to KNOW in my students.  Even though they may call me "teacher," I really can't teach them anything.  I can only make them think.

"Wisdom begins in wonder."

This is the easy part of my job, because young children wonder about everything!  They ask a million questions.  God has gifted them with a natural inquisitiveness.  My job as a parent or a teacher is to nurture that curiosity rather than discourage it.   If you're an adult and you find that you don't wonder about anything anymore, I urge you to search for your inner child.  Reawaken the gift of curiosity that God placed in all of us.

"True wisdom comes to each of us when we realize how little we know about life, ourselves, and our world."

Here's when it becomes more challenging.  In my role as a Kindergarten teacher,  I must provide experiences so that students realize that the universe is huge!  Then, students need to begin to explore the ways in which they can matter in the midst of this enormity, the ways in which they can make a difference.   These are the very first steps along the journey of Finding Your Fire.  At Petal Primary, we can often be overheard saying, "The more we learn, the more we realize all that we don't know." If you or your child has that feeling, celebrate it!  Rest assured that true learning is taking place!

And, now, my favorite Socrates quote of all...

"Education is the kindling of a flame, not the filling of a vessel."

This one gives me goosebumps.  We have all been gifted with a vessel - a mind - that has infinite capacity, something that science can never measure.   (Always remember that we are made in His image!)  If I approached teaching as filling a vessel, one would never be able to tell that I had ever done anything to make a difference.  The few drops of knowledge that I might give to students are nothing when compared with this vast reservoir.  Those drops could only be shared with a few other people.  And, how would I ever decide which drops are the most important for children to have?  How could I ever consider all of the science, art, and language in our world and say to myself, "I'm only going to teach this list of words, this tiny part of nature, and these few pieces of art?"  In a million years, we still wouldn't have time to learn everything there is to know about our universe, and teachers only have a little more than a decade before we consider our children "educated." Anyway, who am I to say what should go in the vessel?  Indeed, who are any of us?Attempting to fill these vessels, these minds, is not only arrogant, it's foolish.

But...imagine what could happen if I managed to kindle a flame!  A fire begins with a tiny spark, but it's ability to multiply and touch others is enormous.  Fire can consume everything it comes into contact with.  Fire brings light to the darkness.  THIS is my job, my calling.....to create a tiny spark, to show children  how to think, how to find out what they don't know, how to discover exactly what it is they even WANT to know, how to find their fire!  If I use my fire in this way, I can place the entire universe in children's hands.  Rather than telling them WHAT they need to know, I am showing them that they CAN know...they can know anything!  I am showing them HOW to know...Anything!

This is at the very heart of empowerment.  I am blessed to work in a school where I feel empowered.  If teachers themselves aren't empowered, they can never lead children in becoming empowered.  After all, we can't teach that which we don't know.  The word, 'empower' appears in the mission statements of most school districts.....

"The mission of the ________School District is to EMPOWER students...."

 If you really think about it, anything that comes after those words is superfluous.

"There is a candle in every soul,

Some brightly burning, some dark and cold.

So, carry your candle.

Run to the darkness.

Seek out the hopeless, confused, and torn.

Take your candle,

And Go light your world!" -----Chris Rice