I went back to school today which ended my “oval” weekend. That’s the term they use here in Norway to describe a “long weekend” as we say in America. They call it “oval” because when you circle the days off on the calendar, it’s a little oblong, taking in that one extra day off. It was also the day we got someone new in the Oval Office. What a day. Kory, Kaleb, Tobias and I sat glued to our laptops watching the live news feeds over the internet from Washington DC. In a way it felt similar to two days in July of 1969 I distinctly remember when my mother made us all sit down and watch TV because history was being made that day – when man first stepped foot on the moon, and when Hank Aaron broke Mickey Mantle’s homerun record. I kept telling Kaleb that “history is being made today” and I didn’t want him to miss it. I sure hope he remembers it but he might remember this day for other reasons. Today we went together to see the principal so Kaleb could air his complaints about the “mobbing” problem at school (that’s what they call bullying and hitting).
We had to wait nearly two hours to see the principal but I think it was worth the wait as Kaleb felt very empowered afterwards. The principal was more than sympathetic to Kaleb’s plight and he seemed a bit surprised by all the different incidents Kaleb reported. He acted quite concerned by it all and he told Kaleb what a problem Morten has been for him also, as Kaleb is not the only target. I pointed out the insanity of SAYING they have zero tolerance for the situation but putting no meat behind the statement. I suggested punishments similar to what I had in school like having to stay in during recess and write 100 times “I will not kick,” stuff like that. I suggested even staying in and writing a letter of apology to the kid that got beat up if they really want to be polite, but we both made it clear that just giving kids “a talking to” does nothing. I pointed out that they can’t count on the parents to give the kid consequences because on the very day Kaleb got punched in the face four times by Morten, that night Morten was at a birthday party. I told him if it was Kaleb that had done that, he wouldn’t have left the house for a week, party or no party, he’d be grounded. So the school is passing the buck to the parents to do the disciplining and the parents are way too lenient with the kids. It felt good to vent. Even if nothing changes, Kaleb feels better and he has HOPE things might change. He isn’t ready to quit school just yet, so that’s the most important result from the meeting.
Tonight while Kaleb was at a “4th grade class party” Kory and I were invited to go to the Youth With a Mission (YWAM) base in Ålesund to “mingle” with refugees that were invited there for a meal, entertainment and a little Christian message (see photo). There were around 100 in attendance, which was way more than anyone expected to show up. Kalle, the leader of YWAM, has a real heart to reach out to these immigrants from African and Arab nations – many of them Muslims. Some people from both Agape and Filadelfia Churches were invited to come and greet the guests to make them feel welcome, so that’s why we went. Three of the four people from our Bible study last night were there and they introduced me to some others that want to attend also. They asked if we could have the Bible study every week, not every other week, as they liked it so much they don’t want to wait two more weeks for another one. That was good to hear and I’m glad I went, but it was a little uncomfortable for me to be in the room with so many Arab men. (There were only a handful of women in attendance.) Most of these guys go to my school so I see them every day in the halls and they just give me the creeps. They all seem like potential terrorists to me and I didn’t realize how prejudice I was until tonight when I saw Kalle so excited for them all to be there. It was evident he has a genuine love for them and I was ashamed of myself for my attitude toward them. God loves them too, so that is the ultimate goal - to love my neighbor. Sometimes I’m not very good at that.
During the Inauguration today Kaleb and I were whooping it up and Kory (the eternal skeptic) kept asking, “What does THAT mean?” during Obama’s inaugural address. Kory is NOT a big fan of our new president, but afterwards he squeaked out a compliment and said that he felt Obama was an eloquent speaker. I do think it was the first time he’s ever heard him speak since we don’t watch much TV. After the speech was over Kory said, “You could sum up his address to the Nation as this,” and then he quoted scripture from Jeremiah 29:11, “For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” And that promise is there not only for America’s problems in the world today, but also for Kaleb’s problems in the classroom. Hallelujah.
We had to wait nearly two hours to see the principal but I think it was worth the wait as Kaleb felt very empowered afterwards. The principal was more than sympathetic to Kaleb’s plight and he seemed a bit surprised by all the different incidents Kaleb reported. He acted quite concerned by it all and he told Kaleb what a problem Morten has been for him also, as Kaleb is not the only target. I pointed out the insanity of SAYING they have zero tolerance for the situation but putting no meat behind the statement. I suggested punishments similar to what I had in school like having to stay in during recess and write 100 times “I will not kick,” stuff like that. I suggested even staying in and writing a letter of apology to the kid that got beat up if they really want to be polite, but we both made it clear that just giving kids “a talking to” does nothing. I pointed out that they can’t count on the parents to give the kid consequences because on the very day Kaleb got punched in the face four times by Morten, that night Morten was at a birthday party. I told him if it was Kaleb that had done that, he wouldn’t have left the house for a week, party or no party, he’d be grounded. So the school is passing the buck to the parents to do the disciplining and the parents are way too lenient with the kids. It felt good to vent. Even if nothing changes, Kaleb feels better and he has HOPE things might change. He isn’t ready to quit school just yet, so that’s the most important result from the meeting.
Tonight while Kaleb was at a “4th grade class party” Kory and I were invited to go to the Youth With a Mission (YWAM) base in Ålesund to “mingle” with refugees that were invited there for a meal, entertainment and a little Christian message (see photo). There were around 100 in attendance, which was way more than anyone expected to show up. Kalle, the leader of YWAM, has a real heart to reach out to these immigrants from African and Arab nations – many of them Muslims. Some people from both Agape and Filadelfia Churches were invited to come and greet the guests to make them feel welcome, so that’s why we went. Three of the four people from our Bible study last night were there and they introduced me to some others that want to attend also. They asked if we could have the Bible study every week, not every other week, as they liked it so much they don’t want to wait two more weeks for another one. That was good to hear and I’m glad I went, but it was a little uncomfortable for me to be in the room with so many Arab men. (There were only a handful of women in attendance.) Most of these guys go to my school so I see them every day in the halls and they just give me the creeps. They all seem like potential terrorists to me and I didn’t realize how prejudice I was until tonight when I saw Kalle so excited for them all to be there. It was evident he has a genuine love for them and I was ashamed of myself for my attitude toward them. God loves them too, so that is the ultimate goal - to love my neighbor. Sometimes I’m not very good at that.
During the Inauguration today Kaleb and I were whooping it up and Kory (the eternal skeptic) kept asking, “What does THAT mean?” during Obama’s inaugural address. Kory is NOT a big fan of our new president, but afterwards he squeaked out a compliment and said that he felt Obama was an eloquent speaker. I do think it was the first time he’s ever heard him speak since we don’t watch much TV. After the speech was over Kory said, “You could sum up his address to the Nation as this,” and then he quoted scripture from Jeremiah 29:11, “For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” And that promise is there not only for America’s problems in the world today, but also for Kaleb’s problems in the classroom. Hallelujah.
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