In our first family ward calling as a newly wed couple Becky and I were called to be teachers of the CTR 5's in our ward. The calling was a sort of rite of passage for all the newly-weds in the ward but it was certainly a surprise to us. I for one haven't worked with kids in more than 8 years and have grown accustomed to the quick, efficient talk of the business world. Becky is very good w/ youngins but because she works w/ atleast one guy who requires the attention of a youngin (arguably more attention) all week long she thought that the Lord would see fit to allow her a 'day of rest' from her normal grind. Now that we've been released, we look back w/ lots of fond memories and gratefulness for the opportunity we had to teach these young and precious souls. As I mentioned before, it wasn't an easy pill for us to swallow at first. After the first few awkward encounters I finally remembered what types of things kids like and the types of questions they respond to (mostly following BB's lead) and everything began to click. Becky is a great teacher. She had a knack for coming up w/ creative activities and games that always grabbed the attention of the boys.
Contrary to the pics above, we actually had 9 boys we taught on a regular basis. Despite what logic or simple arithmetic would lead us to believe (9 boys + 2 hours of Sunday School = utter mayhem, temper tantrums and gray hair growth acceleration) it was an amazing experience. The boys were by far the most reverent group in the whole primary. And even during our class time they were attentive and excited about learning. Becky and I always left church in awe of their humility and desire to learn. There were moments, however, that would leave Becky and me shaking our heads during class...but as we reminisced those moments after church they would always give us a good chuckle. Some examples:
Scenario 1
Me: How do we show our love to our parents?
Boy1: We kill 'em.
Me (trying to ignore Boy1 and move on w/ the line of questioning): What things can we do to show our brothers and sisters we love them?
Boy1: Kill them!!
Lesson learned - fool me once, shame on you...fool me twice, shame on me.
Scenario 2
Me: What should we do if we are sad (correct answer is pray)?
Boy1: Poop!
Me (once again, trying to ignore Boy1 and move on w/ the line of questioning): What can we read to help us feel closer to our Heavenly Father (correct answer is the scriptures)?
Boy1: Poop!!!
Lesson learned - see scenario 1. Also, potty humor is hilarious! Its sad though that my use of it hasn't been refined past a five-year-olds.
There are so many other silly things that happened that have helped me to take life less seriously. This calling has helped me to smile more often, let my guard down around strangers and to question what I think is important (to enjoy the moment rather than be so focused on completing a lesson plan). And to that I'm thankful.
