I have had the pleasure of teaching a book study unit to a small group of home educated kindergarteners over the last six weeks. My daughter, the Vice Principal of the BCS@home online program asked me to teach an in-class group that meets on Wednesday afternoons in a large church building. Hundreds of students participate in a variety of enrichment classes for students in kindergarten through senior high each week in a “hybrid” learning environment. At home, online, and in-person learning is increasingly popular now, especially after Covid. I was particularly delighted to be in a classroom again especially since she had “volunteered” my thirteen year old grandson, Jaxon to be my helper in my kindergarten class!

This past Wednesday, the last day of the unit study, I was walking my kindergarteners to meet their parents for afterschool pick up. Six weeks is such a short time together, but I prayed I had made a good connection with each of those little ones, and I wanted to tell each parent that their child had worked hard over the six weeks and they had been a delight to have in class. As I walked down the hall with my students, there was this sense of excitement mingled with pensiveness. After each of my teaching experiences, I always wonder where the Lord will take my students in the weeks, months and years ahead? I’ve been a teacher close to fifty years. I’ve taught students of all ages in public and private school settings. Teaching three year old preschoolers and all age groups through to senior high, I have enjoyed a very versatile career. Many of my students have pursued post-secondary careers and seminary degrees. Some are married and are raising their own families. I am blessed that I still have close ties to many of my former students.

I suppose I was semi-immersed in my own thoughts when I suddenly felt my right knee give way. I managed to grab a door frame, to steady me, but I knew immediately something was terribly wrong.

My kindergarteners did not notice I was no longer following them as they ran to their parents and showed the craft they had made in class. Then they excitedly thrust their participation certificates into their mom’s hands. I had spent time the night before personalizing each certificate knowing some parents like to save them in scrapbooks.

I waved from my spot, trying to look nonchalant, but my face betrayed my discomfort. I called to my daughter who was cleaning up her own classroom, and she instantly recognized my distress. “My knee has blown up!” I said as calmly as I could without parents hearing me.

There is good reason she is VP. She took charge immediately with level-headed authority. With Jaxon on one side of me and her on the other, they managed to guide me to the elevator. My eleven year old granddaughter, Kharis (Jaxon’s sister) who had just come out of her drama class, appeared with my box of teaching materials. In my pain, I hadn’t noticed that my daughter had directed them to clean up my classroom post haste.

I would have liked to avoid directing any attention to myself, but soon parents and students alike could see that Mrs. Dove was “in trouble”. As my daughter and grandson helped me hobble out to her SUV, to drive me to urgent care, my little kindergarteners came up to me one by one to “assist”. Then a tiny voice said, “You’ll be okay, Mrs. Dove. I will pray for you to get better.”

I have learned over the last few days, that parents and children have indeed been praying for me. I likely won’t be returning to the classroom until I am fully recovered, but I am so thankful for a community of Christian parents and educators who diligently pray. As I recover from a torn meniscus, prayer sustains me.