Tuesday, March 21

 We know that in everything, God works for good with those that love him, who are called according to his purpose.

Romans 8:28

Transformation

At the end of seventh grade, my one-room country school was closed for lack of enough students to justify the hiring of a teacher.  The five remaining students were transported to "town school," a building for Grades 1 - 12, about 3 miles away.  

In those days, the rural schools combined the upper grades (5 and 6; 7 and 8), teaching alternate texts in alternate years.  For example, the 7th and 8th graders learned 8th grade arithmetic, English, and spelling and 7th grade history, geography, and science.  The following year they would learn 7th grade arithmetic, English, and spelling, but 8th grade history, geography, and science.  To compensate for this arrangement, the town school assigned me to attend the classes I had not been taught the previous year.  This meant moving from one classroom to another to accommodate the plan.

Not only was I the new kid, but I was a "country kid," and considered an outsider among the  "town kids," a very "unpopular" category.

As it happened, the geography study that year included Australia, with unusual animals, including the "Duck-billed Platypus,"  which we considered "ugly."  Typical of children, my classmates decided that I deserved this description, and they began to call me "Platypus."  Two or three girls were kind to me and I managed to live through it, of course.  By the time I was in high school, I had made friends and lost the pain of being called Platypus.

Many years later, I was married with children and one day my husband came home from a business trip with a gift for me.  It was a furry white stuffed animal in the form of a platypus.  I could not believe that this creature had shown up in my life again!  My children had many stuffed toys and I decided to claim the platypus for myself, never telling anyone this story about it, but always cherishing the realization that a painful memory can be turned into a symbol of love and caring. Thanks be to God.

Gracious and loving God, help us to remember that though we may not understand your ways, we trust in your loving kindness, goodness, and care at all times.  Amen.

Ginnie Spurr