Home B's Plan B

Thank you to Mr. Andrus, Computer Skills Instructor, for writing today's blog.

It’s funny how plans can change so quickly.  And for whatever reason, the world doesn’t stop to let me catch up.  Anyone else ever experienced that feeling?  The faculty of Shepherds College are going to be joining Mrs. Griffis in the fun of writing blogs for the next few months, and I’m up.  

So I have the blog all planned out.  It’s going to be amazing.  The students and I are involved, and we’re planning the event that I’m going to document.  I just have to pick up a few things, drop in the photos of the event, and boom, I’m done.  

Except…

Sometimes, things don’t go as planned.  Sometimes, you forget something.  Sometimes you lose an important item.  Sometimes the weather changes.  These unforeseen changes, that God graciously puts in our lives to teach us the subtle art of flexibility, are not always received by us with as much love as they are given.

Flexibility

So here’s plan B!  

As many of you know, not only am I the computer skills instructor, but I am the head of the res life area of Home B.  This is the area for our 2nd year men that have shown enough skill to be moved up from the dorm.  (Second year women go to Home A)  During first year, our students are getting used to not living at home.  They are learning basic skills and basic chores.  A few days a week they are on clean up or meal prep duty.  They are getting used to college and getting a taste of independence.

In 2nd year, there is a dramatic leap forward in responsibility and independence.  Our 2nd years have to now learn to meal plan, organize their kitchens, clean their bathrooms and bedrooms every day, and do their laundry in a regular non-commercial washer and dryer using their own laundry detergent.  Every single day they have to help with meal prep and clean up.  Just like in “real life”, there are no days off.  If you don’t clean up or cook, then who will do it?  Our 2nd years are currently learning that life lesson.

However, they are also learning that if you work diligently to complete the task at hand, it will be done a lot quicker than you think.  We always work on our inventory and meal planning on Monday night for our Daily Living Skills lab.  We see what ingredients we have, and then meal plan based on what items are in our cupboards and fridges.  This way we will keep tabs on expiration dates and what cans are lurking in the darkness of the back of the cupboard.  At the beginning of the year, the process of organizing our cupboards and taking inventory overwhelmed the guys.  In the middle of August they would complain, “Mr. Andrus, can we please just not do this this week.  Pleeeease!”

Well, something amazing has happened with the guys.  They have become responsible.  Every single Monday since late August, including this week, the guys have come home from school, taken their stuff to their rooms, and then immediately started inventory and meal planning on their own.  I don’t even have to mention it anymore.  Two groups of four guys working together as teams.  And, where in August it would take them almost 2 hours, this week they were done in 20 minutes. No complaining.  Just learning to work diligently together for the goal of free time.

One of the things my guys love to do with free time is make a bonfire.  We have a fire pit out back, and so far this year we have had 2 or 3 bonfires a week.

 

One of our many bonfires

That being said, this week, God had different plans about how we would be spending our free time.

This picture is from today.  They asked me if we could make a bonfire last night.  “Nope!”

I think it’s safe to say that we could use some prayer on how to fill our free time, because you aren’t going to catch me sitting on one of those logs until about mid-April.



Shepherds College - Guiding Your Transition to Appropriate Independence. Please visit us at www.shepherdscollege.edu.