from on RO to another

As I prepare to write this blog, part of me wishes I was still in Romania and everyone around me is aware that my heart is still there I really just did not want to be back at work in River Oaks. But God has really encouraged me this week.
Anyone who knows me well knows that I like my job MOST of the time, but my biggest discouragement is that students will drop out suddenly. It sometimes makes me feel like it is all pointless. However, today I was blessed with two wonderful students back in my life. They were on my heart and in my prayers months after they left, and now today I once again have a chance to be a part of their lives. In a previous blog back in May, I wrote about both these students. Read there backgrounds here http://elamourie.blogspot.com/2008/05/highs-and-lows.html. The first I called Manuel. He read his first book ever in my class and we talked many days as he shared his fears about being a young father. He was kicked out of school for low attendence. He had to work so he could afford to support his son. Today I saw him for the first time since April. He was so excited to see me and told me how his son had grown so much. He still feels graduation is impossible, but he is determined to finish school so he will provide a great life for his son. I am so excited that I get to be part of his life again.
The second was Amanda. One day last May she just stoppped showing up. I knew she had just ended things for good with her "baby's daddy" and was worried where she could be. Today she came back. She could not stop talking about her son and all the time she had spent with him this summer. I know she feels like she can be open and honest with me still and I look forward to continuing to build my relationship with her.
Today also deepen a relationship. A student I had last year came to me today because she is pregnant. Let's call her Maggie. She is so scared and considering her options. She and I talked a lot about adoption but she knows her parents would never let her have that option. They will want her to keep the baby , but she has goals and plans that cannot happen being a teenage mother. They would probably kick her out among other things. We talked about Gladney Adoption Center and I shared what it felt like to be adopted. I was honest with all her questions, even the hard ones. She is thinking things through and I hope and pray I can help her make the decisions she needs to make.
Now I remember why I love to teach :)