The Educational Journey: My Abuelita

My Abuela and Abuelo

Growing up, I always heard about the struggles my Abuelo's (grandparents) faced when they moved from Cuba to the United States in 1961.

In Cuba, my Abuelita (grandma) received her PhD in Mathematics and was a Professor. I was always so proud to hear her accomplishments, but it wasn't until my conversation with her last night while discussing my current studies for my Master's degree that made me really appreciate all she had done and accomplished in education.

My Abuela worked 11 years to attain her PhD in Mathematics in Cuba. When she moved to the United States, her degree credits and course work did not all transfer. So in essence, her PhD was not valid for teaching in this country.

Did she give up? Absolutely not!

Instead she was one of the few that received a special scholarship offered by UCLA in the late 1960's. After all her years of studying in Cuba, she went back to school once again.

During her studies at UCLA, she was asked by a Professor to present a lecture in mathematics as she would teach a regular class. She was hesitant to do so because of the language barrier and not speaking English fluently, but with the encouragement of the Professor, did so. Upon completion of her assignment, the Professor stood amazed at her ability to reason certain theories and calculations that were beyond her peers. When asked where she received her training, she was proud to speak of her course work and studies in Cuba where she was trained in advanced mathematics.

With two small children at the time (my dad and my tia Liz), and my Abuelito working nights and taking care of the kids on Saturday to support her and to allow my Abuelita to study, their sacrifice paid off. She received not one, but two Master's degrees from UCLA in Mathematics and Physics; the only reason she didn't continue towards a second PhD was because a family was more important to her.

What's more, with her skills, experience and knowledge, she could have worked in any school yet chose instead to work in the inner city of Los Angeles in a little city called Watts, one of the most dangerous in the United States known for their gangs and riots in the 60's. Regardless, she went to work loving her students and working hard doing what she loved most: teaching. She was never mocked for her accent but was appreciated by those students for her love for them and desire for them to excel.

She retired from the public school system when I was born in 1984 to spend time with her first grandchild. Her love for family and teaching were important, but family first.

While I do not share the same passion for math and definitely not science, it was my Abuelita who taught me algebra in a way that was so simple that I actually excelled in that course in 7th grade and again in college remembering her method.

My tia Liz followed her steps in pursuing education and achieved a Master's degree. She has also been teaching and loves it with the same passion.

Now, while pursing another degree, I know where I get it from. I love my Abuelita and appreciate her love for education and knowledge. Despite the odds and circumstances, she overcame and accomplished much. She is my educational hero!

I love you Abuelita!

Hired!

WOW!!! All I can begin saying is wow! God is amazing. In the midst of this economy and downsizing and hiring freezes, I get hired! It simply captivates me how God's love and provision are so real and at times tangible.

As I recently blogged, we felt the Lord leading us back to South Florida. We're moving the first week of July back (possible end of June) and we had been looking for employment for about a month. But as many of you can testify, finding employment in one place when you're living in an entirely different state is incredibly difficult.

Nonetheless, we knew that if the Lord was calling us back there, he would open the doors and provide our for our needs. I had been looking for a teaching position, but due to the fact that I do not have certification, it became increasingly frustrating and difficult to find the right school. Then, out of curiosity, I went to my old school's website and noticed they were hiring an English teacher for the 2009-2010 school year. I couldn't believe God's sense of humor and I just laughed when I saw that because I said I'd never go back (once again...never say never).

So, I told my husband and mom that I was NOT going to apply. They both told me I should and see what the Lord would do with that. Long story short, I applied, interviewed by phone, and accepted the position this morning. I can't begin to explain how excited I am. I am anticipating what the Lord is going to do and how He is going to use me to minister to these students.

The Lord never ceases to amaze me when I ask him for anything and he supplies beyond what I can imagine. I was originally going to blog about something completely different, but I felt the need to testify about God's amazing provision!

Now we're just waiting for Lucas' job, but we know the Lord well enough to wait on Him, because he's got it all under control.

Standarized Exams

I'm currently studying for the FTCE Exam which is a subject area exam for Teaching in the State of Florida. Well...as you can tell, I've taken a break to write and I've nearly just begun.

I despise standardized exams with a great passion. I have great disdain towards schools and institutions that rate you based on your SAT, GRE, GMAT, PSAT, LSAT score or any other standardized exams.

Why do I feel so adamant about this? I am a terrible standardized exam tester. I can ace an exam in a heartbeat within the classroom, but place me for 4+ hours in a sterile room with a calculator, pencil and paper (or a computer nowadays) with a supervisor that hates that fact that he/she is there, and you've created a disaster situation for me. You never really know what to study, and you stress out regardless....not to mention it's soooooo long!

I think a student should be "graded" by your GPA score. Why? Because that shows longevity and consistency over a period of time. It shows that there was a lot of time and energy put into making it as high as possible. But standardized exams?!?!? I know people who are brilliant, but lazy in the classroom and never do any homework. They have low grades and an even lower GPA, but when they take a standardized exam, they get high scores! That's so frustrating.

On a different note, I really hope I pass this the first time so I don't have to take this 4 hour and 20 minute exam again. Just thought I could vent at the same time =p

In Spite of Me

My mind has been on overdrive for the past two weeks. So much to think about that I hadn't even worried about the week before. All of this happened during and after my trip to South Florida.

Thoughts of moving, relocating, career changes, and basically a new life have completely enveloped my mind.

I've always struggled with trying not to worry and take control of my life. I know in my heart I want to trust the Lord with everything, but that doesn't always translate to my mind and actions. I want to know who, what, when, where, and how anytime I make a big decision, especially moving. Moving to Tennessee was like that. I knew where we would love, what we would do, and had a pretty good idea of our life.

But of course, as it always happens in my life, now that I'm comfortable and have a scheduled life that is planned out and the way I like it - change is looming nearby.

Now, if we do move, I have no clue what to expect, where to go, what to do. I think God likes it like that because I have to really rely solely on him. I hate when He does that to me....but at the same time, I always feel my faith stretching and growing.

So, as much as I dislike the unknown, I know that as the daughter of the King of Kings, I'm in good hands and He's got it all under control, in spite of me.

Don't want to "Click" through life

I've been raised by entrepreneurs my whole life, which led me to want to own a company and be my own boss. After all, I loved their freedom to do what they wanted and make money without a supervisor tearing them down, managing them or fearing they'd lose their job.

In college, I wanted a major that would help me do just that. Nothing like nursing or teaching, where you have to work for someone else. It doesn't it make it any less important, it's the nature of the career. I was so sure and determined to do my own thing and never work for anyone except myself.

When I got married, my husband was raised the complete opposite. Security for him was having a stable job where you do work for someone. His life's motto is "I don't live to work, I work to live." I agreed, but I loved to work. I was born a workaholic (if possible). I know it has to do with my temperament (Choleric/Melancholy), but I love to analyze and do the detailed work that others hate. I work overtime if I haven't completed a task. I can't go home until it's finished. My husband, on the other hand, will clock out as soon as it's 5pm without a care in the world and drag me along with him.

After two years of seeing my husband's point of view, I've relented and gone along with him. I still care about work, but have not allowed it to consume me...well, he wouldn't let me, and I thank him for that. Then, I started to look around at those that influenced my career choices.

I've noticed that all the people in my life that are entrepreneurs, have worked much more than played. I've even noticed several of them have had health problems due to stress, lack of nutrition (from poor eating habits or eating fast b/c they don't make time for it) and lack of sleep (b/c their brains can't stop running through the agenda for the next day - I'm guilty of this too).

Then, one of these significant people in my life took a 7-day vacation that was loooooong overdue. He called every single day about 3-5 times to check up on the office. Everything was going smoothly, but because he wasn't here he stressed...on his vacation!!! He said the biggest mistake about this vacation was the fact that it was 7 days and not 3. He hated that it was so long and said he'd never do it again.

When I discussed this with my husband, I told him I NEVER wanted to think 7 days was too long of a vacation. I'm even tempted sometimes to move to Europe where vacation time is over a month! I don't ever want to be so focused on work, that I can't enjoy the only [consistent] time I'd have with family during the year.

So, to top it off, the other day I watched the move "Click" starring Adam Sandler with my husband. That movie always makes me cry at the end. It's such a great movie to put life back into perspective. Life is not ALL about work or getting ahead. If it is, you look back and realize it was meaningless and a waste of life. Solomon said it thousands of years ago. I think he, the wisest man to ever live, knew what he was talking about.

I recommend that movie to everyone. If you've never seen it, Adam Sandler is trying to make partner at his architectural firm. Meanwhile, it starts to interupt his personal life because of the time he has to put into the projects. Then he finds this universal remote that allows him to forward through life through the parts that he just wants over. Before he realizes it, he choose work over family every time and his life slipped away from him, destroying his marriage, family life and ultimately his health. (it ends good, don't worry)

Bringing it back to life, I recently made a decision to go back to school for a Master's in Education. I know, completely opposite with the beginning of this blog, but it's something I love and would be absolutely satisfied in doing. The time off isn't too shaby either =). I had actually seriously contemplated it during my freshman year, but felt the influences around me would've disapproved. So I switched to Business and Communications.

Now, I'm excited and motivated, even though I'd be working under someone that's not related to me. I'm excited to see what the Lord is going to do in my life. I'm excited to spend quality time raising my children when that time comes. I'm excited to focus on building my marriage. I love to work, but it will not consume me nor time with my loved ones.

One day I might own my own company, but I know what I'm not going to do.

There's only one life the good Lord has given us to live, and I'm making it a priority to live it fully!