Lent... Write a vision

Mrs. Dees, my fourth grade teacher, was relentless in her expectations of us in fourth grade English. We were to learn the rules of grammar and use them in our speech and writing. Nouns, adjectives, adverbs, verbs, diagraming sentences, verb tenses... all were force fed into our resistant brains with tests every Friday to check up on our progress or lack thereof. Her red headed stubbornness stood her in good stead as we learned the rules of the road for writing. Our main writing assignment was to produce a term paper and she led us like lambs to the slaughter through the steps required to produce our literary masterpieces.
In that pre-internet computer age we were required to do library research with real books and take notes on small cards that we then filed in a small box. The gathered information was organized and we could pull specific information from our note cards as we wrote. Footnote form required author, title, date of publication and the publishing company, page numbers, etc. Our little files grew fat very quickly with some pertinent information and a plethora of extraneous material.
Twice a week we went to the school library where we were first taught how to use the card catalogue, a tall wooden chest with small drawers stuffed full of small cards organized under subject, author and the title of the books. Mrs. Dees kept a hawish eye on us trying to march us forward in our education. Our time in the library was spent perusing the Encyclopedia Britannica (the printed book form of Google) looking for sources and information, standing at the card catalogue writing down the location of interesting looking books, looking up said books, taking notes and fooling around when we could get away with it.
The vision for our term paper had to be outlined in proper form first and turned in. Our note cards were checked every two weeks to see if we had made any progress. Mrs. Dees made little marks in her brown grade book held together with rubber bands after each inspection and gave us our marching orders for the next two weeks. The term paper was due at the end of the six week grading period and if we had followed her faithfully in our work, the term paper would have been almost a painless production.
I did not follow instructions faithfully. It was the afternoon before the paper was due the next day and I flew into the office of McKey Tillman Insurance after school calling my mama’s name. Falling all over myself in word and deed, I told her of my predicament. The paper was due in the morning. It was written, sort of, but not neatly and needed to be typed to make a good impression. Mama sat up late that night bailing me out and I had a beautiful looking term paper to turn in to Mrs. Dees the next day. Mama did not edit or improve the content. That was mine alone and Mrs. Dees took me to task for not living up to my outline. I did not write my vision and the grade I received reflected that lack.
Habakkuk the prophet wrote these words from the Lord... “Write the vision; and make it plain upon the tablets, so he may run who reads it. For still the vision awaits its time; it hastens to the end-it will not lie. If it seem slow, wait for it; it will surely come, it will not delay.” Lent is time for me to create an outline, gather my material, file my note cards and write my vision for this next year in my life with God. This time I will try to keep up with the daily work while I wait for the truth telling vision to come into being. I will read my Bible. I will pray. I will seek silence. I will look and listen for the face and words of the Lord as I finish writing my vision, my life’s term paper.
Thank you, Mrs. Dees for expecting me to do my best and being honest and kind when I missed the mark. You were one of my childhood faces of God and I am grateful for all you taught me.