Little Will

These last few months I have been substitute teaching. Most people would consider this one of the lowest paid, lowest respected jobs, but actually I've rather enjoyed it. School finished on Friday and my subbing days are over for now. As I was thinking about some of the subbing days, Will stuck out in my mind. I had subbed in Will's class the two days before. The classes are so big and busy, that sadly, I only remembered the trouble makers! :( I noticed Will hugged me on his way out the door after that first day. This kind of surprised me since I hadn't heard a word from him all day! The next day was similar. I didn't hear a peep out of him until he came up to me half way through the day to tell me he wasn't feeling well. He went home sick. The next day I was subbing for a special ed teacher. I was assigned to go to Will's class to help another student. The student was busy with something else, so the teacher suggested I work with Will, who was behind on a project. She warned me that Will had been a bit emotional lately. Will looked excited as he gathered his things and headed into another room to work with me. We chatted for a second before we got to work. Will was way behind on a writing project. He was obviously stressed because he was behind the rest of the class. As we worked together, he was amazed at how fast he was getting things done! He looked over and said, "Uh...Miss Hornback, can I tell you something? You are a really nice teacher." I thanked him and we kept working. A little later he said, "It's kind of nice to have help in life. Thank you for helping me." I'm sure I gave him a questioning look, wondering where this philosophical comment was going. He continuted, "My sister is really sick and my mom stays with her at the hospital. My grandma came to help us. I have a lot of things going on right now like tests and this writing." The fact that he was worried about his writing when his sister is indefinitely sick in the hospital broke my heart! This kid was overwhelmed by school and by life. When I asked him his sister's name, he told me it was Faith. She's been fighting a disease that only 6 people in the whole world have been diagnosed with. When it was time for me to leave, he said, "So are you gonna be like my permanent helper?" Oh how I wish I could have been! By no fault of his own or his parents, this little boy was falling through the cracks. His sister was the one who got all the attention and nobody had time for this sweet 9 year old. Because he's "low maintanance," he's been accidentally neglected. He was so appreciative quality time. As a sub, most days I felt like I was not accomplishing much. I only got to know the kids for 1 or 2 days, not nearly long enough to make a difference. False! That day I made a difference in Will's life. Surprisingly in just two months of being a substitute, there were many more kids like Will. Here I thought I had to wait until I was a real teacher to make a difference. How awesome that God even allows substitutes to accomplish his "Will." :)