Dancing in the Eye of the Hurricane!!!!!

LUKE 8:24   The disciples went and woke him, saying, “Master, Master, we’re going to drown!” He got up and rebuked the wind and the raging waters; the storm subsided, and all was calm.

Friends,

    I apologize for not getting the blog out earlier in the week, but this week was very challenging and I had many battles to fight.  Now, I know that it would probably be appropriate to explain what they were and how I handled them, but I am not going to address them.  I am going to take a different tact instead.
   The first thing I want to do is to thank my guest editor from the last blog.  My friend Amy is an amazing English teacher.  She helped me to elevate my writing to a higher level last week.  She writes extremely well and paints pictures with words that I can only hope to aspire to some day.  Our styles are different, but she helped me to recognize areas that helped me to paint my own word pictures better.  I only hope that I didn't give you nightmares about Zombies in the last blog.
   So, about this last week.  We have had quite a bit of turmoil at our school and in the community.  There is a situation that is beyond the comprehension of many of us that are people of faith.  I have seen good men, brought to tears because of the dishevel.  It is hard to understand people that say one thing, but do another.   As I stood in the eye of the hurricane and watched the turmoil swirl around me, I will confess I got a little too close to the edge of the storm and almost got sucked into it.  Fortunately, with the help of God I began to formulate a plan to stay away from the edge and weather the storm until it dissipates.
    People and kids are looking for a way into the eye of the storm.  So follow me and I will share with you the plan that God has brought to my mind.  Rather than focus on the one bad thing that is going on, I am going to give you a list of the fantastic events that are happening.  To get rid of darkness we must shine a bright light to wipe it away.

LPGA here we come!!!!

• It doesn't get any better than watching my daughter play in her first real competitive golf tournament on a gorgeous spring day.  -  All of you must be doing something to enjoy this awesome spring.
• I can share with you that we just received a $10,000 grant from MIT to develop a water filtration system and bring water purification systems to Yosemite High School.  -  What cool surprise have you experienced lately?
• I am being flown to Boston this summer to pick up the check, with the possibility of getting $20,000 more. - What trips are you looking forward to this summer?
• The first water purification system will be installed at Yosemite this week. - Come by and taste the pure water.
•  Our High School Decathlon and Science Fair teams are competing at the state level.  One of our students even took first place in the Science Fair. - Great work teachers and students.
• Our fledgling FBLA team competed in their first competition and every team placed.  The team made up of freshmen and a sophomore took first place in the Entrepreneur competition.  I will be heading to the state competition with them in April. -  I couldn't be more proud.  
• The EAST (Environmental And Spacial Technology) class was one of 2000 schools in the United States chosen to design the new Vans tennis shoe.  We have a wonderful young lady doing the artwork.  When she is done I will share with you.  I have seen the rough drafts and they are AWESOME!!!!!
• YOSEMITE!!!!!!!!  If you want to get close to God, then go on a warm Sunday afternoon, lay in a meadow facing the sky, close your eyes and let His love pour into your soul.  The Native Americans that lived there were right, when they called it a sacred place.

   If you haven't figured out the plan, I will spell it out for you.  I am going to focus all of my energy on shining the light of good and positive as I lead as many of you that want to follow into the eye of the storm where it is safe.  Once there, we can live in peace and eventually the storm will go away.
  I challenge you to be like Peter and trust the Lord to grab our hands and take us to safety.  Remember, he is our light that leads us out of the darkness.  I thank him for allowing me to be one of the lights that he puts in his hand to help light the way.  One friend mentioned to me that we have already won the war.  Sometimes we just need to be reminded.
   I am going to end the blog this week with a song that has always helped me to get through dark times.  I am also going to put it to a slideshow that will remind us of one of the many reasons we came to live in Oakhurst.