Well, those of you who have been journeying with me for a while will know the pain and guilt that has accompanied my oldest child's struggles in school. I am a teacher...not just because I home school. I am a certified teacher in the state of Georgia. However, I am a teacher because that is what the Lord created me to be. How do I know? Simple...no matter what I do, the teacher in me always sneeks out. Even at VBS I seem to want the facts about things and not just silly fun stuff. So having a child who struggles with reading and hates school has been a massive battle that breaks my heart daily.
My reason for posting today...the Lord has been faithful. I know that years ago when I first sat down with Lilly when she was 3 and I began to teach her...the Lord knew the future. He knew the joy of this day would not come without many sleepless nights, tempers, fits of rage, lost hair and tears. Lilly read 31 pages of a Dr. Seuss book. Yes, she had read before but she has read baby books and then she became so comfortable with her Dick and Jane readers that I had to ban them from the house(don't worry, I never made Dick or Jane actually leave, I just got tired of hearing about their running and playing and how funny their life is). Tonight's reading was different. It was from a book that she never would pick up before. She read with confidence and of course, she struggled over many words. Yes, some words she had no idea(we have't gotten to those sounds yet) but it was miraculous!!! I know the Lord was smiling down on me saying, "Child, if you would just trust me and stop trying to speed things along, you would have less ulcers, more hair and fewer wrinkles." I understand that now....not sure how long I will retain the lesson.
So, add my child to the millions of others in this world who can read at least a first grade book. But don't keep her on that list for long. I can see now that she is gong to love the places that a book can take her. She will soon be reading college level books...which means a 7th grade reading level, thereabout.
