Soul Surfer

I had borrowed my neighbor's copy of the movie Soul Surfer, but hadn't found a good time to sit down and watch it yet. I happened to have some extra time on Christmas Day, as we had finished opening gifts and were waiting to join our neighbors for dinner later in the day, so I put it in, plopped in the comfy recliner in the sunroom, and pressed the play button. I was a bit unprepared for the drama, as I figured it would only be emotional during the actual shark attack. As I sat spellbound by the movie, the tears kept creeping to the corners of my eyes as I struggled to hold back the tidal wave I knew would come if any of my family members walked into the room to ask me a question. Thankfully, they left me alone, thinking I had fallen asleep for a nap in the chair.

What is so moving about this movie is that it is SOMEONE'S STORY, and we all have one. When authors and film makers create reality on screen or in a book, we see circumstances and have feelings that we all can relate to. Maybe it also was more emotional for me because I was watching it on Christmas Day when we are all "wrapped up" in getting things for ourselves. It made me appreciate the abundance that surrounds me in this country at all times, and to not feel sorry for myself when things don't go my way.

A movie like this gives me hope in young people. That young people will use bad things that happen to them for the common good~ meaning, they are willing to share their story and make good choices. We all have to go through a time of grieving when we lose someone or something (in this case her arm) that is very valuable to us, and to see that she experienced those stages of grief, picked herself up, and moved on to accomplish great things is empowering.

One of the themes of the story is to never give up on your dreams, and along with that, use adversity as a training tool. If you haven't watched it yet, I highly recommend it. Boys and men might think it a bit sappy, but the story is great.

Pillow People

The first semester of the 2011-2012 school year ended well. Our school began a tradition a few years ago to have "end of semester ceremonies." What this means is, for the last 45 minutes of school on the day first semester ends, and on the very last day of school, everyone in the school comes to the gym for a fun assembly. Usually students are recognized who showed improvement in class (teachers award medals), and student athletes stand to be recognized, and there are some skits, games and/or singing by students and staff.

This years' organizer asked a group of teachers to dress up like Pillow People (you can google them on YouTube), and lead the kids in a couple of songs, Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree and Jingle Bell Rock. It was quite fun, and the students were guessing who was under the pillows. I'm including a picture of myself and one of the other counselors as we said good-bye to students on the way out to the buses that afternoon. It was quite fun saying hi to the kids and have them come up to us and say, "Is that you Mrs. Popenfoose?" or "Who are you?". Mrs. Jones had fun chasing the sixth graders and tried to scare a few of them.

Happy holidays and Merry Christmas everyone!