Category Archives: Thankfulness

Newlywed Love (#66)

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June 3, 1970

Toby #2As Nate and I got ready for this special day, we were both excited about welcoming someone new into our relationship. I was anticipating Nate’s happy expression when he met our new puppy, and Nate was pleased to know we would soon have our very own doggie.

Since it was the last week of school for me, and Nate’s classes had already ended, he came to Danville with me. My students were thrilled to meet “Mr. Nyman,” and he brought new energy to every part of our school day… especially on the playground as he pushed swings and spun the merry-go-round.

Burger and fries.The two of us went out to lunch together, a very special treat. And as we munched on burgers and fries, we talked about a name for our puppy.

“I think he just has to be Toby,” I said, “since he’s a twin to Toby #1.”

“Not necessarily,” Nate said. “He might want his own special name.”

“Like what?”

“Something powerful… like King or Duke.”

“But he’ll only be a medium-sized dog. Aren’t those names for big dogs?”

“I suppose. But we could scale it down and call him Prince or Baron.”

“Maybe,” I said. “But I bet when you see him, you’ll see a Toby #2.”

Puppies...The afternoon passed quickly, and soon we were kneeling in front of a box of squirming 6-week-old puppies, each making an effort to get to us.

“There he is!” I said, pointing to our little guy.

When Nate reached in and lifted him up, his broad grin told me I’d picked the right one. “He’s so soft,” he said, stroking his back.

While he and “Toby” cuddled, I gave the other pups a little attention. My student’s mom watched us, probably grateful to find a home for at least one of their 8 dogs.

“Will our puppy suffer,” I said, “being taken away from his mother and siblings?”

“Oh no,” she said. “He’s ready to go. In a day or two he’ll forget all about them.”

“They’re so adorable,” I said. “I wish we could take them all.”

Nate’s head made a quick turn toward me when he heard that, and he said, “OK, let’s not get crazy now.” Then he paused. “But maybe we could take just one more?”

I couldn’t believe it! “Really? A second puppy?”

“It might be easier for them to adjust if they have a buddy.”

This was astounding… and the best idea ever!

Puppies drinking milkIt didn’t take long to choose a friend for our little guy, another black and white male. And as we drove back to Champaign, thrilled with our new babies, Nate summed it all up well. “Now we have Toby #2 and… the Baron!”

“For everything there is a season… a time to love.” (Ecclesiastes 3:1&8)

Newlywed Love (#64)

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May 26, 1970

With only 7 days of the school year left for me and even fewer for Nate, we were anxious to leap into summer. I would be student teaching and attending summer school. Nate would be working full time (we hoped), though we didn’t know at what.

SchoolroomAs I began emptying my classroom a little each day, thoughts of teaching kindergarten in the fall were front-and-center in my mind. I was confident I could teach them well and, thanks to my 1st grade year, now had a thorough knowledge of what we were shooting for.

My mind filled with happy scenes of marching around the room in a rhythm band and singing songs at the start of each day.

Linda and Judy, my carpool buddies, wouldn’t be commuting to Danville anymore, so the long drive would be a solitary one for me, come fall. But I could play music and sing along, a different kind of enjoyment.

As I cleaned out my classroom desk, I also thought of Principal Scarce having lost 3 of his 7 teachers simultaneously. He didn’t seem to hold any ill will toward us and invited us all to his home for a bar-b-q on the last day of school, June 5th.

As for Nate, he was burrowing in on the books for another round of grueling finals, hoping to find a summer job that might let his brain rest a little. He had his eye on construction work, maybe holding a stop-and-go sign or sweeping up debris.

An ad in the local paper sounded promising. Young men would show up to a local parking lot early each morning to sign up for road construction crews. When their names were called, they’d be assigned to a specific project and then trained at the site. The pay was good, and the work was physical. And I thought of another advantage: a nice sun tan.

As we planned our summer we were excited about something else, too – getting a dog! One of my students had a mama-dog who’d given birth to 8 puppies about a month earlier. She had begged me to come to her house to see them, and I had, taking Linda and Judy along on our way back to Champaign.

The old Toby.In 10 seconds I’d fallen in love with a puppy who was a dead-ringer for Toby, our family’s dog as we were growing up (left).

The minute I saw this miniature look-alike I was committed to him and couldn’t wait to introduce him to Nate.

“Not till after finals,” he said, though he did share my enthusiasm. “It’ll be perfect timing to train him, too, with summer weather and all.” We hadn’t discussed who would be making those frequent potty-trips outside, up and down to the 3rd floor, but we knew having a new Toby was going to be great fun.

The new TobyOur little guy would be ready to come home with us the week school ended, when he’d be 6 weeks old – and there would be no charge. This was going to be the best summer ever, as we became a family of three.

“You care for people and animals alike, O Lord.” (Psalm 36:6)

Newlywed Love (#63)

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May 22, 1970

 

These days Nate and I were so worn out that after school we often found ourselves sprawled on the living room floor or the couch — hoping to catch 40 winks before dinner.

Tired.

One late afternoon I was so tired I slept straight through till morning.

Tired

The cause of all this fatigue was our frequent late nights with friends. Often we’d share dinners that began at 10:00 PM and continued into the wee hours. But the exhaustion was probably a result of tension, too, as we worried about the big shifts coming when summer arrived — followed by more unknowns in the fall.

One day when I got home from work, Nate met me at the door with a long white envelope that had just arrived. “From the Board of Ed,” he said. “I think your wait is over.” I was wide awake in an instant and tore it open.

“I hope it’s good news,” he said.

The envelope contained several pages and presented a good-news-bad-news scenario. The good news was very good: I’d been hired to teach kindergarten at the school on the other side of Danville. We were both relieved and thrilled!

The bad news was that there were conditions attached.

First, I’d have to attend summer school in a continuing effort toward teacher certification. This would be afternoon classes and seminars, 5 days a week for 8 weeks.

My student teacher in ChicagoSecond, I’d have to do 8 weeks of student teaching, also in the summer, since I’d never done it. This seemed silly, since I’d actually had a student teacher under me when I taught in Chicago. (right)

The student teaching would be done in a Danville 2nd grade, another curriculum learning curve for me, each morning of summer school.

As all of this sunk in, Nate and I thought of a third and fourth negative. I wouldn’t be able to get a summer job. And rather than me earning money, we’d have to pay out for tuition.

The letter was clear, though. If I wanted a teaching job in Danville, any teaching job, those were the terms. Apparently I’d slipped under the radar in being hired to teach the 1st grade class I was just finishing up. No one had mentioned summer school, student teaching, or classes back then.

“So…” Nate said. “What do you think?”

I thought about my Chicago friends with provisional teaching status who’d told me they were all being let go now. Had I stayed there, I’d be out of a job. That seemed to elevate Danville’s offer, and once again I realized that teaching without certification was a privilege.

“I think I’ll take it,” I said. “Besides, teaching kindergarten kids again sounds really great.”

And so God had answered our prayers. The wait was over, I had been given what I’d asked for, and we were exceedingly grateful. We even felt some of that exhaustion slipping away.

“Better is the end of a thing than its beginning.” (Ecclesiastes 7:8)