“You can’t make this stuff up.” That was literally the comment a co-worker made yesterday as we were sharing about how my day had gone. Yesterday, like so many of my days, has a plan or a schedule that includes social skills groups and checking in on kids throughout the building. Yesterday, however, didn’t follow the schedule that was planned. Instead of the 3 skill groups I have on Wednesdays, I was able to teach only one. The rest of my day was consumed with unexpected behavioral needs and chaos.
What does that look like? Well, for starters, we had for the second day in a row an office staff person be a no-show for work. (Not a great way to start or run a day!) I went looking for a student who was supposed to be starting a second intervention with me, only to find that he was absent again. In asking the office to call his home, I learned that his mom had decided to have him live with his father, who had apparently been a safety concern before. Right after learning this piece of frustrating information, I got a text from a teacher needing help with a student who was blowing out, and not responding to her directions. I had to remove him and relocate him to an alternative break room, only to have him begin sobbing and interrupting that class. This meant that he would need to be moved again! Ugh! I ran my one group of the day and rolled directly out of that into an hour and a half counseling session with a student who I had never worked with before. She had written on one of her assignments statements about “hating her life” and “wanting to die.” Awesome. Have I mentioned that I am not a counselor? Our session ended by my sending her to lunch, and my seeking out her teacher to fill her in on what happened in our conversation.
At this point, my stomach was letting me know it was time for lunch. After taking a couple of bites of food, I began to hear what I thought was a student wailing. I stopped to try and figure out where it was coming from as my phone began to ring and another staff person was calling me needing my help with an escalated student in the cafeteria. Ignoring the wailing, I raced to the cafeteria and spent the next 20 minutes or so working on de-escalating my student who frankly shouldn’t have been at school that day because of day 3 of sickness. He finally became responsive to me and we made our way to the office, only to learn that the office was in complete crisis mode. As it turns out, the wailing I had heard earlier was a student who had tripped in his classroom and split his head open on a table. The district nurse was there. The office staff was desperately trying to reach a parent. Kids were coming in needing help. One with a huge swollen eye from bonking heads with another student. Another girl who had hit her head earlier in the day and was now feeling a bit dizzy with a headache.
I kid you not: I can’t make this stuff up. In fact, the only part of my day that somewhat went smoothly was the last 30 minutes of my day where I therapeutically continued to add parts to my spring bulletin board.
Life happens. Chaos happens. Things occur which can quickly move us into a place where we feel very little control. We feel weak. We question our abilities. We wonder if we are capable of making a difference and doing anything right. We need strength beyond our own. We need wisdom beyond what we can see.
Friend, I am so grateful that regardless of the type of day – each day I am not alone. I have a Heavenly Father who walks before me – filling each day with His presence – even in the midst of the chaos. Psalm 89:8 says, “Where is there anyone as mighty as you, O LORD? You are entirely faithful.”
I love that! God is not faithful some of the time. God is not faithful only in those times that go as we hoped or planned. God is entirely faithful. In the midst of it all! The chaos can come, but God stands firm smack dab in the middle of it! What an amazing gift we have been given! What an amazing love this Father has for us!
“The heavens are yours, and the earth is yours; everything in the world is yours – you created it all.” (Psalm 89:11) “Powerful is your arm! Strong is your hand! Your right hand is lifted high in glorious strength. Righteousness and justice are the foundations of your throne. Unfailing love and truth walk before you as attendants.” (v. 13-14) “You are their glorious strength. It pleases you to make us strong.” (v. 17)
Friend, how in the world can we ever do life without Him? What a game-changer He is! Why would we attempt to face the challenges and craziness of life without the help of a loving Father? He is there in the midst of it all. Entirely faithful. Ready to help.
Blessings!