{"id":501,"date":"2012-10-20T20:47:16","date_gmt":"2012-10-20T17:47:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.dknolte.com\/?p=501"},"modified":"2012-10-23T07:39:26","modified_gmt":"2012-10-23T04:39:26","slug":"on-a-scale-of-one-to-ten","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.dknolte.com\/?p=501","title":{"rendered":"On a Scale of One to Ten \u2026"},"content":{"rendered":"

I<\/strong>n every life, there are people who determine who you are or what you do.\u00a0 Aside from my immediate family, there are two individuals who helped define who I am, but I need to save those for another discussion.\u00a0 But we as humans interact with others and whether we know it or not, they do lead us in certain directions in life.<\/p>\n

About 10-15 years ago, there was a short round nun, Sister Dragotta, who directed the religious education in my church.\u00a0 I myself am somewhat a loner and make a point to avoid people.\u00a0 This little nun was just the opposite.\u00a0 For some reason, she thought I was a nice guy and made it a point to sit with me when she saw me at a dinner or get together, even when I sat in the far corner of the room. \u00a0Before I knew it, a dozen people where around me, because they wanted to sit with her.\u00a0 I always welcomed her, since I found her personality energetic and effervescent.\u00a0 I start calling her Sister Livewire<\/em>, as it just seemed to fit.\u00a0 After her tour in the parish, and she returned to a Milwaukee convent, I sent her a card addressed to \u201cLivewire Dragotta\u201d.\u00a0 She replied back that she had a devil of a time explaining to the other nuns where she got that name.<\/p>\n

One day after Mass, she stopped me in the foyer and asked me, \u201cDwaine, I want to ask you something.\u00a0 I want to ask you something.\u201d\u00a0 (She said everything twice.\u00a0 She said everything twice.)\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cI want you to think about becoming one of the CCD teachers. (Sunday School).\u00a0 Just think about it, Dwaine.\u00a0 Don\u2019t answer me now.\u00a0 Don\u2019t answer now, just think about it.”<\/p>\n

That\u2019s where I went wrong.\u00a0 I thought about it.\u00a0 Twice.<\/p>\n

I ended up teaching a class of 14 & 15 year olds. (9th<\/sup> & 10th<\/sup> graders)\u00a0 They were at the age where they start to realize they know everything, and it was at the time of my life, when I realized how little I really knew.\u00a0 So, it went better than I thought.\u00a0 In doing so, I realized teaching is just a higher form of learning, for I learned a great deal from the seven years of working with them.<\/p>\n

One of the things I did every Sunday morning, was ask the kids, \u201cOn a scale of 1 to 10, how was your week?\u201d<\/p>\n

I did this for two reasons.\u00a0 One, it got the kids feeling comfortable talking in the class; and two, it got them talking about home and school, which helped me better understand their personal lives.\u00a0 I would say 90% of the kids came from good family life. (although some would have argued with me)<\/p>\n

I would tell them they could not use One or Ten.\u00a0 One is when you died and went to Hell, and Ten was when you died and went to Heaven, so everything had to between One and Ten.\u00a0 I remember one girl came to class one Sunday morning in a foul mood.\u00a0 When I asked her, \u201cScale of one to ten?\u201d she said, \u201cOne!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou can\u2019t use One.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, then 1.5!\u201d<\/p>\n

I sadly said, \u201cOh!\u00a0 Your dog died and your house burned down!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThen two!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh!\u00a0 Your house burned down!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201c2.5.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh! Your dog died?\u201d<\/p>\n

It didn\u2019t take long for her to start laughing and talking about the real cause of her foul mood, which didn\u2019t deserve a low number.\u00a0 There was one interesting young man who always gave me a complex number such as 8.233654.\u00a0 But it was always above an eight.\u00a0 We figured 7.0 to be normal.<\/p>\n

The class was interesting and I had each kid for two years, so I got to know them pretty well.\u00a0 There was one girl who was an only child with a dominant mother and effeminate father, so she herself was dominating and outspoken.\u00a0 This was a time in my life that I was somewhat separated from my first wife, and was the object of a few discussions among the parish populace.\u00a0 Didn\u2019t bother me any as life continued on, but she would make a few sly remarks about my personal life at times.\u00a0 I just ignored them and kept going.\u00a0 Yet, after the two years I had her, and she moved to the next class, she would sneak out of that class about once a month and sit back in mine.<\/p>\n

I had one young man who seemed to make it his lot in life to disrupt the class.\u00a0 He was an only child also, whose parents were wealthy through an inheritance and a bit arrogant.\u00a0 They were ones who liked to churn out rumors.\u00a0 A few years later, I happened across him and he said, \u201cRemember me?\u00a0 I was probably your worst kid in class!\u201d\u00a0 I wasn\u2019t just about to give him that satisfaction, so I stated, \u201cYou?\u00a0 Worst kid in class?\u00a0 Nah. You were a piece of cake!\u201d\u00a0 I felt the hot air gush out of his balloon.<\/p>\n

There was one girl who had a perfect attendance and at the very last class I brought her a rose to show her my appreciation.\u00a0 She wasn\u2019t there, due to a late school function the previous night.<\/p>\n

I created several exercises to try teaching them something, some successful and some flopped.\u00a0 I had purchased a roll of butcher paper and drew sections for each week.\u00a0 Each section was further divided into squares to match the number of kids in class.\u00a0 Their task every Sunday morning, was to color or draw something about themselves, or school or home, or whatever they wanted in their assigned square, and then sign it.\u00a0 At the very least, they had to sign their name in pencil to show they were there.\u00a0 The very least.<\/p>\n

At the last class of the year, we would take that rolled up paper, the scroll, into the gym and roll it out.\u00a0 The kids would walk along it and see what all they did throughout the year.\u00a0 I pointed out to the class, that the empty squares showed they were not at class, and those squares would never be filled.<\/p>\n

I said, \u201cLook at some of the beautiful colors people used!\u00a0 The ideas they had at the time!\u00a0 Amazing!\u00a0 … and some have simply signed their name in pencil.\u201d<\/p>\n

One young man said, \u201cBut you said we could do that.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI said, at the very least, put your name in pencil.\u00a0 You will never have an opportunity to add to the scroll now.\u00a0 This is just like Life.\u00a0 You only get one chance each day.\u00a0 Don\u2019t let the day slip away without leaving a mark.\u201d<\/p>\n

There was another exercise that involved a weird puzzle I created of a tree with branches.\u00a0 Live and dead branches. \u00a0The idea was to show them you have to trim off the dead branches before new ones can be grown.\u00a0 The purpose of the exercise, was to make them understand, we all make mistakes and that is okay as long as you learn from them. (trimming off the dead branches)\u00a0 So, the bottom line is, learn from your mistakes, but also realize others make mistakes as well.\u00a0 Forgive them as you forgive yourself for making mistakes.\u00a0 That’s how we all learn.<\/p>\n

There was a pop test I gave them.\u00a0 It was a list of 20 people, and they had to list on a scale of 1 to 5 whether they could live with them.\u00a0 The list of people was strange.\u00a0 I had: a reformed alcoholic, reformed drug dealer, someone with AIDS, someone who got out of prison for murder, someone who was gay, someone who had a sex change, etc.\u00a0 Even listed then president, Bill Clinton.\u00a0 They had to be honest.\u00a0 Then they added up their score and compared it to a perfect score of 100.\u00a0 Afterwards I asked them, if Jesus took this test, what would his score be?<\/p>\n

One of people on the list was an ex-neo-Nazi.\u00a0 I explained to them what the word \u201cneo\u201d meant, but made the mistake expecting them to know what a Nazi was.\u00a0 When I realized there was a problem, I asked the class who could define a Nazi?\u00a0 Silence.\u00a0 Then one kid raised his hand and asked, \u201cWasn\u2019t he that, … that Hitler dude?\u201d\u00a0 I tell you Dear Reader, I almost cried.\u00a0 There is no doubt they could tell me who Michael Jackson was, or Hans Solo or any actor who played on a sit-com.\u00a0 But someone who irreversibly damaged millions of future generations?\u00a0 No.<\/p>\n

That really affected me, and when I got home I asked my daughter if she knew what a Nazi was?\u00a0 She was the same age as these kids, and she replied defiantly, \u201cWell, yes.\u201d\u00a0 I looked at her, and had to ask, \u201cWell, what is it?\u201d\u00a0 She replied, \u201cIt was the political party in Germany during World War Two.\u201d\u00a0 I stated, \u201cThat\u2019s right\u201d, without letting her know I forgot about the political party stuff.\u00a0 That young generation was redeemed by my daughter, at least to me.<\/p>\n

Okay.\u00a0 I rambled on too long.<\/p>\n

D.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In every life, there are people who determine who you are or what you do.\u00a0 Aside from my immediate family, …<\/p>\n

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