My professor showed a short video during class on Thursday night that was phenomenal.  It was about the creation of an imaginative after school tutoring center by community members who wanted to support the education of the children in their neighborhood.  It was truly inspiring to see how these people partnered with schools to give kids the gift of time. 

I found myself dreaming about attempting something similar in our area.  Too many times, people leave the entire burden of responsibility in education on the shoulders of classroom teachers.  True...it's our job to teach, and most of us do a pretty good job of it.  But one person cannot provide the one-on-one attention that every child needs and deserves.  The curriculum demands that are placed on teachers and students grow every year, and at the same time the money the government provides decreases.  I believe that community members are an untapped resource of support.  I don't know of many people who would not be willing to support learning by working one-on-one with a child....if only they were given the tools to do so. 

Of course, the doubts set in pretty quickly.  The "it would never work here" thinking takes over whenever I start dreaming, and I find myself pretty discouraged by the fact that it seems like we're never going to get this education thing "right".  But then I can't help but wonder if the people who actually attempt to turn dreams into reality haven't felt the same way.  What makes my dream (and the dreams of like-minded colleagues) any less attainable than the next person's?  I have to believe that the only difference between the inspiring dream-come-true stories and the ideas that anyone else has had is in the risk-taking...in the close-your-eyes-and-swallow-your-fear leap from thinking about it to doing it.           

We are enjoying a beautiful week up at the cottage...great weather, great friends and great fun!  Here are a few highlights...


Andrew and his girls


Sophie, Cheryl and Jane on the boat


Andrew's piloting debut


Abbey loving the jet ski


Ron and Jason braving the ferocious animal that made its home on the boat

 
Above mentioned "ferocious animal" leaving its hiding place


Sophie and Andrew playing Rock Band


Creating characters for our Friday night role-playing game (Yes...we are nerds.) 

Last night as I was tucking Abbey into bed, she posed the question, "How do we know that God is the only God?"  She told me that she knew that some people worship other gods, like Buddha, and she wondered how we knew that our God was the "real" one and not the gods of other religions.  Hmmm....not exactly a quick-answer kind of question, especially at 9:00 p.m.  Knowing that she wouldn't be satisfied with the short answer of "Because we just know", I explained to her that there is a lot of proof that the Bible is an accurate, historical document even among people who aren't Christians.  So, if the Bible is accurate about historical events, then it must also be accurate about our faith in God's existence as the one, true God.  That answer satisfied her for the time being, but knowing the way that her mind is always questioning, I'm not sure that the discussion is closed. 

So....how would you answer the question?