Monday, February 18, 2008

A Lesson in Humility

I was probably 16. My father was in the Branch Presidency and our Sunday School class had just had a new teacher called to teach us. Being teenagers, I am sure it was a daunting task for anyone. Sister Clinard was likely in her 40's, but to me at that time, she seemed ancient. It was clear she was very nervous that first day she taught our Sunday School class. She had her face in the manual the entire class time, and it was evident that she thought reading the lesson straight from the manual was sufficient.

When the next week rolled around, it was clear the rest of the class was not going to cut her any slack! She was not able to remove her eyes from the manual until she gave us a personal experience about the Word of Wisdom. She divulged to the class that she had given into peer pressure at work and began drinking coffee. It seemed innocent at first, she explained, but now she was totally addicted and cautioned us NOT to make the same mistake in our lives!

I do not remember the reaction of most of the class. I am sure they were as rowdy as usual! But, my sister and I were polite and well behaved. WE could not afford to be otherwise! If our Dad ever found out that we had been rude, talkative or disrespectful in any way, we would incur his wrath! So, Stace and I never ever made any noise. By this time in my life, it was no longer disappointing my parents that kept me in line. I actually knew the gospel was true, and I hungered and thirsted for any and all information taught at church. I loved feeling the spirit and that is best done while being reverent. Stace, well, she was always as close to perfect as one can get without being translated! And, it was very, very difficult being her sister! No matter how hard I tried to behave, I could NEVER measure up to Stace's standard of good! Believe me, I had really tried! Anyway, though I showed no outward signs of disrespect, in my heart I began to judge and think less of our sweet teacher.

I began to think of a way I could influence a change in teachers. I approached my dad, since he was in the Branch Presidency and I said, "Dad, I know that in the church, the emphasis is on the youth, right? I mean, the church leaders want the youth to have the very best of experiences as they are forming their testimonies, right? He agreed! Then, I quickly added, "Dad, did you know that the Sunday School teacher that was just called to teach our class admitted she has a word of wisdom problem to us ALL? And, did you also know that she does not come to class prepared? But, she just reads the lesson straight from the lesson manual or from the Ensign? Don't you think that there should be something done about that??

I was actually very smug! I was sure I had presented a very strong case and soon we would be given a much more suitable teacher! One that I could actually respect! How little I knew! And, how very grateful I was for the wisdom my father shared with me during this major teaching moment! Dad asked me this, "Kim, do you think that the teacher is the only one responsible for making the lesson a learning experience? That threw me! What did Dad mean by that? I said, "Well, I don't know! What do you mean?"

He went on to explain that everyone in the church was at different stages of developing their own testimonies. He said that as members of a class, we should never be content to just sit back and be basically bystanders to the educational process! We had an obligation to do several things.

1. We should pray for the teacher that she or he would be able to give the lesson they desired in the way they had planned and prepared.

2. We had the obligation to participate and assist the teacher in feeling that her students were interested in what she had to say and what she had studied.

3. As students, we should never give in to the temptation to be critical or think that preparation had not been done. Everyone has a different teaching style and many are basically frightened!

So, if they buried their head in the book, it might NOT be an indication of a lack of preparation, but could in fact be fear!

We needed to make certain that we never ever gave a teacher reason to fear, and to be as supportive and kind, and yes, truly grateful for the time and effort they put in to provide instruction for us. Dad then issued me a challenge. He asked me to try for the next few weeks to look for the positive, to seek to learn one new thing from my teacher and to pray for the teacher and for myself so that both would be edified! He told me that both the teacher and the student had an obligation to make each lesson a success!

My eyes were wide open! I had NEVER even thought I had a role in the student-teacher relationship! I decided to take my father's challenge. I would like to say it was because I had an instant change of heart and outpouring of maturity! But, my memory is that I decided I would give it a try and in a few weeks, I could tell my dad I had tried, it did not work and so, could he please ask for a new teacher for us.

What happened was this: I did pray for her and for myself. I did seek to make her experience positive and to express my gratitude for her preparation. I did try to learn something new each week. Time went by, I grew to truly love and adore Sister Clinard. Gradually, she no longer read the entire lesson. She became more at ease, and the entire class embraced her. She invited the entire class over to her home for a Saturday lunch and for Snowmobile riding---an activity I have never forgotten, though it has been more than three decades ago . And, when she was finally released as our teacher, I was probably the saddest to see her go.

How grateful I am that I had a very wise father teach me a vital lesson at that point in my life. It is a lesson I have never ever forgotten and it has served me well all my life. I have loved each and every teacher, because I was given the tools to become the best student and the biggest fan of each new teacher I was blessed to have serve me!

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