The Importance of Being Lauren

 Teaching is one of the best decisions I have ever made. I have never had a job that makes me feel so happy and fulfilled. My students are amazing, many of them are hard workers, and they each have such vibrant personalities. They inspire me to work hard and become a better teacher. Teaching is also really difficult. It is emotionally taxing, and I am constantly feeling overwhelmed by the sheer amount of work I am expected to do. A few weeks ago I was started feeling overwhelmed by the needs of my students. How can I teach these kids how to read and write? They should have learned these skills forever ago. What can I really do to make a difference? What is going to happen to them when they leave the school next year? Are they going to be able to succeed in high school? I am coming into teaching without any real training on how to teach students with special needs and yet I am expected to write IEP's to help them. I feel like I am causing more harm than helping. I didn't talk t...

 I'm so excited to start teaching next week in New York City. I have been anxiously awaiting my school and subject assignment. Emphasis on "anxiously". You see, I have a problem with relinquishing control. I get anxious when I do not have all the information I may need, or when things do not work out the way I planned, and when I do not have a plan. My experience with Teach for America thus far is teaching me how to recognize this problem, and I am currently working on ways to get better at going with the flow.  It is interesting how lonely the big city can feel with the other 19.49 million other people bustling around me. You can walk for hours and not have a single human interaction if you want. On the other hand, you can make friends in an instant. I have had so many meaningful conversations with strangers at parks, malls, free events and yes, even public transportation.  New York City has provided its residents beautifully kept parks. The parks have become my refuge f...

I have never written down this experience before but I feel like it is time for me to accept the facts so I can move on. In 2014 I was called to serve a mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I was assigned to labor in the Nevada Las Vegas Mission for a period of 18 months. I was asked to learn Spanish in 6 weeks through an intensive training course in Mexico City. At first I thought it was funny. I had literally prayed the week before that I could go somewhere cold because I was tired of the Houston heat. When filling out the preferences with my Bishop I clearly put that I was not interested in learning a language. I had just failed college Spanish and I knew that there was no way I would be able to learn a new language. So God put me in one of the hottest states and asked me to learn a language that I thought was damn near impossible to learn. As a naturally positive person, I thought about all the people I could help and I accepted the call. I spend 6 long ...

Okay so this picture was actually taken the day AFTER I got my mission call. I got a text Saturday afternoon from my dad saying that it was in. A few minutes after my mom, and siblings started texting. Needless to say, I. Was. Excited. But I was scheduled to work until close, and I wanted to wait to share it with my family. So it was closing time, and the LDS kids who just got out of the dance ALL came in. My milkshake making hands were killing me, and I really wanted to get home and hold my call. But if there is one thing that I learned these past couple months is that patience is everything. All the things that happen, are done in the Lord's time, and I just need to be prepared! I opened my call 7:00pm on Sunday. My boss Kassie, her son Sterling, Loren (from work), my Hawaiian grandma Sister Johnson, my grandma and uncle, my bestie Janice, and then my dad's family all came!! Oh! And my friend Alexis (Panama City) was on the phone!! I loved having the people that ...

The two boys who were interviewed the same night as me, already have received their mission calls!!! I've never been more excited about anything in my life!! I seriously cannot wait to get mine. Last night I had extremely vivid dreams about getting my mission call. In both dreams, I was called to the Arizona, Tempe mission. I don't even know if that is a legit mission! How crazy is that!? Anyway... I am literally counting the seconds before it comes!! Ahhh! I can barely sleep I am so excited!!

Okay. So the title makes me sound more fancy than I actually am....  I am officially done with my associates degree!! I have been blessed with amazing experiences as I have spent most of my teenage years in college classes. I love most of my professors, and still keep in contact with some of them. I also have made awesome friends who are inspirations to me! I have learned so much from them! Also I thankful for my parents who have listened to my whining, complaining, stressing, procrastinating, and helped me through all the other generally unpleasant things that arise in college.  I. Am. Freeeeee. (Ya know, until it is time to get a degree for my career...)(The pink blob says "grad info")  **if you find weird grammatical and spelling errors, please don't judge me. I write all my blog posts from my phone, and my autocorrect is pretty much the bane of my existence! :)