The Lasts (but only until August)

This time of year is always filled with "lasts"...

• The last test of the year
• the last day of school with the kids
• The last day of school with teachers
• The last time you step foot inside your classroom until August

Living internationally adds even more "lasts" sometimes:

• The last view of Prague Castle until August
• The last trip to Tesco until August
• The last ride on the trams and metro until...(well you get the picture)
• The last stroll through Old Town
• The last visit to the Harry Ghost
• The last visit to The Pind
• The last gelatto at Cream & Dream

As I experience all these lasts, it still seems surreal to me...I can't believe my first "year" in Prague is over. I have fallen in love with this city and the school I have come to serve. I feel very blessed and privileged to be used by God here! And as I experience all these "lasts", I look with anticipation toward my summer visiting supporters and family in the States. It will be wonderful to be back in Virginia again...but I also look with anticipation to August and returning to a new flat, new roommates, and a new year! So here is to enjoying the time God has given me now..and looking with hope to what comes next!

Confessions of a Bookaholic

If you know me well at all you know that I love books--a lot! I also enjoy watching movies and tv shows--like "The Gilmore Girls". So, recently, when a friend posted on facebook "The Rory Gilmore Reading Challenge" (http://bookreviews.me.uk/rory-gilmore-reading-challenge/), I couldn't help but look and see what books on the list I had read. (I'm at about 50.) One of the books on the list was War and Peace. Back in August, I had made it my goal to read War and Peace before the end of the school year, and I finished it months ago, but it did get me thinking about some of the books I have read over the past school year. So, here is the no-where-near-complete Becca Miller 2011-2012 school year reading list. (And for the record, some are rereads--yes, I do that. :D Also--they're in a random order, because I listed them as I thought of them!)

• Teaching Redemptively by Donovan L. Graham
• Philosophy annd Education: An Introduction in Christian Perspective by George R. Knight
• Foundations of Christian Education by James Braley
• War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy
• The Hobbit J.R.R. Tolkien
• The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
• Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins
• Mocking Jay by Suzanne Collins
• The Magician's Nephew by C.S. Lewis
• The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis
• Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoyevsky
• A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini
• The Girl With a Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson
• The Girl Who Played with Fire by Stieg Larsson
• The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest by Stieg Larsson
• Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by J.K. Rowling
• Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by J.K. Rowling
• Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban by J.K. Rowling
• Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire by J.K. Rowling
• Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix by J.K. Rowling
• Harry Potter and the Half-blood Prince by J.K. Rowling
• Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J.K. Rowling
• Waterfall by Lisa T. Bergren
• Cascade by Lisa T. Bergren
• Torrent by Lisa T. Bergren
• A Game of Thrones by George R.R. Martin
• Terrier by Tamora Pierce
• Bloodhound by Tamora Pierce
• Mastiff by Tamora Pierce
• Through My Eyes by Nathan Whitaker and Tim Tebow
• Choosing to See: A Journey of Struggle and Hope by Mary Beth Chapman
• A Love that Multiplies by Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar

 So, there you have it a short-and-by-no-means-complete list of books I have read since last August. :)

Fritz the Frog's Adventures in Ancient Egypt

Years before I was born (before my parents were even married), my dad used puppets a lot of the church my Grandfather pastored. Amongst all these puppets was a quartet of frogs-very cute frogs. I like frogs--I think a few of my classes are convinced they are my favorite animal. They aren't, but they're a really fun theme for my classroom! So, when I found out I was going to be teaching second and third grade here in Prague, I thought it might be fun for one of those frogs to make the move with me. Since they're my dad's puppets, I let him choose which one.
So, thus begins the adventures of Fritz the Frogs from Fritzerland (my uncle named him--not me!) in Prague, Czech Republic.
When it came time to teach a unit on Ancient Egypt, I thought it might be fun if Fritz helped me. So, with my help, Fritz wrote a couple of e-postcards to my class, met them, and then was whisked off in a time machine to Ancient Egypt. As an end of of the year-end of the unit activity, I thought it might be fun if my kiddos wrote some stories about Fritz's adventures while in Egypt. Enjoy a few of them! (And please remember 1)These are 2nd and 3rd graders and 2) Most of them are not native English speakers!)

Fritz in Ancient Egypt
 
Once upon a time, there was a curious frog called Fritz. He was a very kind, brave, and curious frog. One day he was so curious about Ancient Egypt. So, he made a time machine and went inside. And in five seconds he saw a pyramid. Then, he saw a lot of frogs in the Nile. He went to play with them. He met Hannah, Peter, Silvia, Lilly, Andrew, and Michael. They played "Jump Frog" and some other games. But he was bored, so he went to the palace and became friends with King Tut. Then, King Tut taught Fritz the hieroglyphic alphabet. Soon, Fritz went outside and saw someone messing with his time machine! Then, he ran over to see what happened. And he broke it! Fritz ran back to the palace to tell King Tut. So, King Tut fixed it.

The End

Fritz Lost in a Pyramid

There once was a frog and the frog's name was Fritz. He lived in Ancient Egypt. There was a bad man. He said to Fritz, "Go with me to the big pyramid." So, Fritz said, "Ok." So they went to the pyramid, and the man took Fritz to the the big pyramid, and the man took Fritz to the top of the pyramid. Then the man said, "Wait here until I come back." So Fritz was waiting two hours, then five hours, then nine hours, but the man did not come back. So, Fritz thought the man forgot about Fritz, but he did not. He left Fritz in the pyramid. The Fritz was not waiting in the bi g pyramid but he was going to a door but the door stopped Fritz. But then Fritz heard something outside the pyramid. Fritz thought it was some guards, but it was not guards. It was a Hero. The hero's name was Miss Miller. Miss Miller was a good queen she was always helping people and animals. Miss Miller looked in the pyramid where Fritz was. Miss Miller looked and looked, and Miss Miller found Fritz. So, Fritz was save, because Miss Miller took Fritz out of the big pyramid.

The End

Fritz the Frog's Visit to Ancient Egypt 

Once upon a time Miss Miller sent Fritz the Frog to Ancient Egypt. His time machine broke, so she built her own one and went to Ancient Egypt. She got him and his time machine and came back.

The End






I must admit, it's nice being the heroine in stories! Have a wonderful summer!

Italy in the Spring

Spring Break...Semana Santa...No School...Milan Verona....

It's amazing how wonderful two words can sound, especially when it's two words like NO SCHOOL or MILAN and VERONA. Adventure Buddy and I spent a great deal of time on skyscanner.cz (one of my favorite websites EVER), looking for inexpensive tickets. We figure since we live in Europe, we might as well SEE Europe. I had found $80 tickets to Milan (and then discovered how close it was to Verona, home of Shakespeare's star-crossed couple, Romeo and Juliet).

Anyway, after buying our plane tickets, booking hostels, researching good places to eat, and finding out what we wanted to see, we set off on our grand adventure. We got to Milan pretty late at night Adventure Buddy claims it wasn't worth it because we had to get a taxi and pay for an extra night in a hostel. I say that it was, because it gave us an extra full day on the trip--totally worth it for that! (I also enjoy taking taxis every once in a while--it reminds me of Korea. Plus taxi drivers can be highly entertaining.) So, Adventure Buddy and I will just strongly disagree on whether or not getting there late a night was worth it or not. It just depends on whether you like taxis or not. I do. It was totally worth it!

So, the next morning we were off the explore Milan (and try to make our scheduled visit to see DaVinci's The Last Supper). After figuring out how to buy transportation tickets, we caught the tram...in the wrong direction. Finally, we started in the right direction and made it to the Piazza di Duomo, and we caught our first breathtaking view of Milan's splendid Duomo It's the 4th largest cathedral in Christendom and took about 6 centuries to build. And while we were busy gazing at the duomo, we were accosted by African men who grabbed out wrists and tied bracelets around them before we could even think, all the while telling us, "Free gift! Free gift!" And then they tried to get us to give them money "for Africa". Hmmm...yeah...sure...and I'm not quite sure they understood the meaning of the word "free"...

Adventure Buddy and I soon learned that we would have to spend our time in Milan dodging the men (we used "Africa" as a code word and whenever we saw on of the guys we would be like "Africa to your left! Watch out Africa is coming over"--it wasn't anything against the continent--it was just a lot shorter and easier to say than "Hey those guys who claim they have a free gift but then want your money to give to Africa are coming towards you right now!")

After getting lost and wandering several times, Adventure Buddy and I made it to see The Last Supper. It was awesome. It was huge. Enough said.

We also climbed the roof of the Duomo di Milano. That was cool too--except the raining part. Oh--and had panzerotti (kind of like a pizza pocket only MUCH better) from Luni's Panzerotti. If you ever venture to Milan--go there! Only, please be aware they are not open Sunday. Adventure Buddy and I tried to go there on a Sunday, but they were closed. Thankfully, we had already eaten there twice, so it wasn't completely devistating. We also took the Hop On-Hop Off Bus tour, which is an awesome way to see the city. You can get on or off the bus at different stops, and while you ride the bus, you can listen to a tour guide give information about different places of interest, as well as interesting historical facts. There were several languages to choose from, so I may or may not have listened to the Spanish version for a while.

The fashionista in me (that doesn't always make an appearance, but does sometimes) was very thrilled to see the Galleria Vittorio Immanuel II, as well as to stroll through Fashion District. Seeing all the designer labels may or may not have made drool, and everyone was dressed so nicely! And I may or may not have dragged Adventure Buddy all over Milan on our last day there, so I could buy a purse...just so when someone says, "Hey, I like your purse!" I can reply, "Thanks! It's from Milan!"

 After spending two days in Milan, Adventure Buddy and I caught the train to Verona. After rainy Milan, we both fell in love with sunny Verona. Actually, after big and bustling Milan, we fell in love with the much quieter Verona. One of the first places we headed was to Juliet's House. I recognize the fact that it is a tourist trap, but I couldn't help it. I wanted to stand on her balcony and quote "Romeo, Romero, where for art thou, Romeo!" And I did!

Adventure Buddy and I discovered that there is much more to Verona than Romeo and Juliet. Verona also has many Roman Ruins. In some places, they had sections on the street excavated and fenced off so you could see the ruins beneath. In one cathedral we visited, you could see ruins of a Roman Bathhouse.

They also had a Roman Bridge, a Roman amphitheater, and  THE THIRD LARGEST ROMAN ARENA STILL IN EXISTENCE! That was cool. Today it is used as an opera house, but it was still fascinating to look out over it and wonder what it would have been like during the days of the Romans!

Verona was also home to this amazing gelato place, Gelateria Savoia. It's incredible. If you ever go to Verona, get gelato there! :D We also stumbled upon a delicious restaurant called La Griglia. It was by happenstance that we ended up choosing it. We were famished and finally decided to just go into the restaurant and eat, regardless of price. We were a bit concerned when they brought out soup without us even ordering, but it turned out to be one of of our less expensive meals--and one of our tastiest!

After spending two days exploring the beauty that is Verona, headed back for Easter Sunday in Milan (which is when we went on the "Great Purse Hunt").  And the really nice thing about Spring Break was that Easter Monday is a holiday in the Czech Republic, so after arriving home on Easter Sunday, we had the day to rest from our...rest?

Thank You

Dear Father,

Thank you! Thank you that I know that you are in control of my life!
Thank you that I know that You have a plan and I don't have to worry about the future--where I'll live, what I'll teach...anything...because it is in Your capable hands!

And as I look at my Facebook newsfeed full of pictures of babies and weddings...as I see the pins on Pinterest all about wedding ideas....thank you for the incredible blessing of singleness that I have right now.

Thank you that I had the opportunity to spend three months students teaching in South Korea...without the time I spent there, I probably would not have chosen to teach internationally.

Thank you for the three amazing years I had in Guatemala...for the absolutely wonderful children that I got to teach, the amazing men and women I worked along side, and for the amazing missionaries I had the chance to partner with--the numerous ministries I got to be a part of because I taught missionary kids! Thank you for the time I had to fall in love with the Guatemalan people! Thank you chances to snorkel in the Caribbean, to climb breath-taking volcanoes, and marvel at your might while strolling along black-sand beaches. Thank you so much that I have those memories to cherish for a lifetime.

And thank you that I finally have had the chance to come to Europe! After years of dreaming and wishing, I am here! I am teaching at a school I love! I have a class full of children who have stolen my heart! I have the chance to travel on vacations and see more of this world you created! And I get to live in one of the most beautiful cities I have ever seen!

Thank you these blessings! Thank you that I get to serve you, that I have a life and a ministry--that You fulfill me as no one else ever could! Thank you for walks along the Vltava and for vistas from the castle! Thank you that I am right where You have placed! Thank you, Father! Thank you!

And even more than that, thank you, that in You I have a purpose for being and a reason to live! You are my everything, and for that, I thank you.

My Happily Ever After

I love chic-flicks...I love the sappy romantic guy meets girl and saves girl and they fall in love and end up happy together stories. Sometimes, I also love the guy dies saving girl stories as well. And once upon a time, these stories made me wish for that in my own life...

I wanted to be rescued. I wanted to be cherished like that. I wanted some guy to see me hurting and take away the pain, to fulfill my every need...

And then I realized, I already have that...I have the perfect guy who loves me no matter what. He saw me as a confused and broken 15 year-old struggling with an eating disorder, battling depression and suicidal thoughts. He saw me as a college freshman who felt used and worthless...and afraid to trust. He saw my longing to be love and cherished. And He loved me. And in the tradition of romantic epics, once upon a time, He died...for me. That's how much He loved and valued me. And if that is where it ended, it would be a tragedy, but see, this Guy who loves me that much--He's also all powerful and conquered the grave. :) He's still alive today--over 2,000 year later. And He still continues to love me.

And one day I realized that watching these romantic movies shouldn't make me depressed or sad or fill me with longing, because I already have it. I have Someone who died to save me. I have Someone who fulfills my every need. I find my completion in Him. He is always with me--He never leaves me and He always wants to hear from me. He's never too busy for me. He's my protector. I cannot even begin to count the number of times He has protected me. He gives me worth and value. He calls me beautiful an dearly loved. He is my provider. He healed me. He is my all in all--my everything. So, no, I don't need a boyfriend or husband to do that for me. After all, men are human. Humans fail. They get tired. They mess up and hurt each other. If I am looking for a human to fulfill my needs, to give me worth and value, and to protect me, I will live in constant disappointment. Only One man can do that--the One who is both God and man. Jesus.

So, I can safely watch those movies now, and about 95% of the time (I am still human after all--I get sidetracked sometimes) walk away comforted in knowing that I don't have to long for a love like that...I already have it. And, as stories end, one day I'll live happily ever after, worshiping in front of His throne for all eternity.

Little Conversations

I love those moments in my classroom where conversations about God and life come from the smallest little moments.

Today it happened at a time when I was rushing around trying to make sure we had everything ready for standardized testing. One of my kiddos was sitting there reading "The Beginner's Bible", and he called me over to answer a question.

He pointed to a picture of Goliath on the cover and asked, "Miss Miller, why does this have a picture of a bad guy on the cover when everyone else is a good guy?"
Which got us talking about how in truth, none of us our good guys. We're fallen human beings who live in a sinful world--we're not the good guys. Which led to a discussion on Adam an Eve.

"If I were Eve, I would have told the snake 'NO!'" He told me confidently.

"Really, so whenever you're tempted to not listen or to goof off, you always say no?"

"That's different, Miss Miller."

"Why?"

"Well, because....I don't know. Anyway, they could talk to God, so it was easier for them." Which moved the conversation on to prayer.
"Miss Miller, do you ever hear God speaking to you? Like in the 'Prince of Egypt' where His voice came down from the sky."


"Yes, God speaks to me, but not quite like that.

"Oh, yeah, He speaks to you when He makes your prayers come true." Hmm...God is not quite the same a fairy godmother, child. :)

"Honey, God doesn't always answer our prayers with a yes."

"I know, but it's only when I pray bad things, like, "Let there be no school tomorrow.'"

"Or sometimes when we pray good things, like, when my grandma was really sick and I prayed for her to get better."

"But that's good. God said yes to that one!"

"No, He didn't. Not in the way I wanted Him to."

"Oh, why not? It's a good prayer?" And that, my friend, is the million dollar question. I love those moments when I can be completely honest with my kiddos and tell them, I don't know, but I do know that God sees a bigger picture than I can understand. And I know He's in control, and I am ok with that.