perceptions of being a kid are fascinating. this thought occurred to me whilst i was walking from my office to the coffeeshop. some of you know that we have two schools here. one is a bible college and the other is a full class academy.

why it befell me is because i remembered how i was when i was in school. my elementary years were always the same. the fifth graders are tough. don't mess with them. also, when i was the only student by a teacher, i felt so insecure, so timid, so nervous. there is no reason behind it, but i think everybody feels the same way (or at least i think so).

once i became a fifth grader, i felt unstoppable...until junior high. i think all can relate. you became a bottom feeder. great times, eh? you looked up to the eighth graders. if you could become popular with them, no one would touch you. but, alas, that didn't happen. soon though, you became what you aspired to become.

now, my highschool years i lucked out on. i went to a brand, spankin' new school. only freshman and sophomores ruled. there were no upperclass. how it worked was the sophomores became the juniors the next year and then the seniors after that. it was great. since no one knew where anything was and we were still learning our new 'roles' as teenagers, we had some breaks.

but now, as a husband and a daddy, my perceptions are different. no longer am i the timid, nervous, insecure elementary school child. my brother was h-u-g-e and i always ran to him for protection. now, my kids run to me for that protection that is needed. when i walk around the campus, i see many kids that look at me and i wonder what they are thinking. many of the highschoolers that i work with know that they are roll models, even if they don't think so themselves.

perceptions change...