What a weekend!

**Warning - this will probably be a little long**

This weekend has been a weekend of personal growth. And it came as a surprise!

Friday - I attended a Professional Development Day in Gibsons, BC. (I will admit I wasn't excited to go. I wanted to attend the conference on Fetal Alcohol Syndrome in town but didn't find out about it until I'd RSVP'd to this conference.) Landon and Collin came along since we left the house at 6 AM and didn't make it home until 6 PM. The conference was on assessment. I'm sure you can see why I might have been dragging my feet a little. When my mom found out where I was going she was like, "Ooh how boring, I mean exciting." I've attend three conferences for a total of 7 sessions on this topic in the last two years. But my whole school was attending and I thought I should go. Now I'm not good at being up on who is the new "guru" in the educational world. The speakers were Wayne Hulley and .... (drawing a blank on his name). Wayne Hulley is amazing! I thought I was listening to a stand up comedian not a man convincing me to build relationships with students. I took five pages of notes and not one of them pertained to my classroom. At the last minute he decided to talk about choices and how these choices effect our lives. And that we need to choose to enjoy our work, and our students for who they are! I could write for ever on the things that he taught me. But the most important one that I am putting into place in my life (as of Saturday) is that I am choosing not to complain about the trials in my life. What is happening in my life is because of my choices and if I don't like what's going on then I need to make better choices. And choose to be happy. The pity parties don't help. When you put negative thoughts together than all you get is negative results. There is a solution and if I want it badly enough than I need to make the choices which will make it a reality.

After lunch we had a surprise visit from Willie O'Ree. Now unless you are obsessed with Hockey you may not know who he is. I definitely didn't. He was the first black man to play in the NHL starting in 1959. He is a Canadian from Fredrickton, NB; the youngest of 13 children. And on top of it all he played his 20 year career blind in his right eye. It happened as an accident when he was in the junior leagues. He was told he would never be able to play again. When he was up on his feet again he tried and found he could do everything but make a goal.
**And this is the important part**
"I said Willie you need to stop concentrating on what you can't see and start concentrating on what you can see." WOW! And he went on to playing for 20 years in the NHL. No one ever asked him if he could see out of the eye and so he never told anyone he was blind until he finished playing. He battled, racism, bigotry and ignorance throughout his career and he said he made the decision to not fight with his fists but with his example. He is now the director over the NHL's diversity program. An incredible man.

Landon spent the day with Collin going for drives, looking at electronics at London Drugs and reading in the shade. It was a fantastic day. (The last speaker was really good but I ended up talking with a co worker about how to apply assessment principles to the new program I am making on Life Skills for the high school.)

Saturday - My mom, Steve, Collin and I headed down to Nanaimo on the first ferry with six other sisters from church to a Woman's Day conference. It was fantastic. We get there early enough for me to do some shopping. The sale at Children's Place was FANTASTIC. I bought Emily almost all of her 3T clothes at a great deal. The local talks at the conference were so inspiring. The theme of the conference was on Trust in Lord. Just what I needed after what I had learned on Friday. The part that I took away was that when I put my trust in the Lord and take that leap or step of faith into the unknown he will always be there to catch me. We had a wonderful dinner prepared by the priesthood and then back into the chapel for the broadcast from SLC. Incredible talks were given. What I took away is that the Lord loves us and he wants us to love and support each other. When we are doing service in any capacity the Lord showers us with love. I love going to this conference every year. I love meeting up with acquaintances and friends and visiting with women. We all spent the night in Courtney in two motel rooms. What a blast we had! I will post some pictures when I get them from Joanne. We got into our pjs and took pictures and ate popcorn and laughed. Its been a VERY long time when I have laughed so hard.

Sunday - We caught the first ferry home so it meant we were up and out of the motel by 6 AM. Collin and I waited at the church for Landon and Emily. It was so nice to see Emily since I hadn't seen much of her for two days. I love my children.

This weekend has shown me that the Lord knows each of us. He knows what each of us needs and when. I am excited to be able to choose happiness. This job has more stress and is much more intense and yet I feel happier than I have for years. The Lord knew that this was the job I needed. He knew the support that I would receive from co workers. I'm glad that I took the leap of faith and moved up to the high school.