...and then I taught high school for 11 years.

I loved teaching. No, not every minute of it or every aspect of it, but in general, I did love it. More than that, I loved the opportunity to invest in the lives of students. Looking back I can see that I missed plenty of opportunities, but I can also say that I made the most of some others. When it's all said and done, I am thankful to God for the privilege.

In some places where people tend to grow up and raise their own kids and die in the same town in which they were born, teachers get to see the long view. They get to see the punk kid grow up into a good man. They get to see the awkward girl develop into a dynamic force of life and goodness. In our more transient society, this has been a bit of a challenge. A near impossibility, really.

And then there was Facebook. No, it's not the same as if we all lived in small town America. But it is real. Because of the connections possible through this technology, I rejoice as i watch Peter serving as a youth pastor in Pueblo, Colorado and marvel at the fact that he still has so much energy and passion and love that he still finds great joy in life!

Were it not for Facebook, I would not know that Aimee is a great mom. She's not the only one, either. I know a bit about her mothering because she posts photos and comments about her kids and admittedly jump to conclusions. The photo of the girls to the right is from her FB page. Her daughter's birthday celebration.

Apparently part of the fun included a sleep-over. You may be wondering how that went with a pack of little girls this young. Well, someone else asked about that and Aimee replied: "Best thing ever was to get those glow bracelets. They each got 3 and i told them the first time they were noisey or out of bed i'd take 1 from each of them. If it happened 3 times they'd be left with nothing. We repeated the rules and reviewed and they all went to sleep! I had even told them they were allowed to talk quietly, but they didn't for very long! It was great!"

Facebook also lets me see the creative and absolutely stunning work that Angela is doing as a wedding florist in Indianapolis. I'm rather a fan of flowers anyhow, but Angela finds truly lovely ways use them for maximum impact.

Of course I can't keep up with everyone all the time with whom I'm connected on FB, but occasionally I "run into" someone in some way and over and over I find myself thanking God for the joy of those encounters.