God's Love Through the Eyes of a Teacher

By Dr. Becky Rouse-Curry

This book is about the life and times of Dr. Becky Rouse-Curry as an educator in the Twiggs County school system. She faced many trials and tribulations; however, her faith in God brought her through all her situations. She is retired now, but she appreciates each challenge because it made her stronger in the Lord.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Christian Faith Publishing, Inc.
• Release date: Sep 21, 2023
• ISBN: 9798890432322

Book preview

cover.jpg

God's Love Through the Eyes of a Teacher

Dr. Becky Rouse-Curry

ISBN 979-8-89043-231-5 (paperback)

ISBN 979-8-89043-232-2 (digital)

Copyright © 2023 by Dr. Becky Rouse-Curry

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods without the prior written permission of the publisher. For permission requests, solicit the publisher via the address below.

Christian Faith Publishing

832 Park Avenue

Meadville, PA 16335

www.christianfaithpublishing.com

Printed in the United States of America

Table of Contents

Acknowledgment

Chapter 1

Establishing the Teacher Mentality

Chapter 2

Remembering God Throughout the First Years

Chapter 3

Don't Allow Money to Be the Root of All Evil

Chapter 4

Disciplining God's Way with Love

Chapter 5

God's Rewards Through Students

Chapter 6

Teaching Through Trials and Tribulations

Chapter 7

Making Use of All Resources

Chapter 8

Bias and Bullies Must Be Kept Out of God's School

Chapter 9

Teaching the Subject Matter

Chapter 10

The Strength to Endure

Why Stay in the Field of Education?

About the Author

Acknowledgment

I would like to dedicate this well-developed book to the people who made it possible to write: the students of the Twiggs County Public Schools. They knew how to keep a teacher on their toes through good times, bad times, heartaches, and sorrow. I do hope that this book informs them of how much they were loved and appreciated. May God continuously bless each and every one of them, and may this teacher's story inspire other teachers to continue their journey of greatness!

Chapter 1

Establishing the Teacher Mentality

Becoming a teacher is truly a calling. However, it is rare that the notion is innate. Therefore, the necessity in exploring other options is essential. Since I was a child, I thought that my calling was to become a registered nurse. I loved helping people. I would have some little fans and stick figures that I would use as my class to teach about the anatomy of the human body. Even then though, I would become bored with it and pretend that one of my students was dying and that it was up to me to bring him or her back to life. This dramatized my class and made it interesting.

The journey to become a nurse started with my grades in school. My dad always emphasized the importance of a good education, even though he only completed the eighth grade, to all of his five children. I made this a top priority in my life, mainly for my parents' approval and because I had some great teachers who saw that there was a gift inside of me just waiting to come out!

In kindergarten, there was a lady who taught me a song called I Am Going to Kentucky. She thought that I caught on extremely fast and spent what I thought was more time with me practicing it. She made me feel that I could do anything! This act of love and kindness gave me a great relationship with her until she passed away. Before she passed, she retired and asked me to speak at her retirement! I did, and I sang I Am Going to Kentucky. I figured that the love that she demonstrated to me as a child was worth the momentous song.

The primary grades were quite enjoyable! My second grade year was a lesson learned. The teacher would make us eat everything on our plate at lunchtime. Our little appetites just weren't that heavy every day. We would try things such as stuffing our milk cartons with food. She would make us take it out and eat it! We just did not understand why we needed to stuff ourselves. Lunch became a huge disappointment, not because of the taste of the food but because of the amount of food.

One day we became brave enough to ask the teacher why did she make us clean our plates every day. She told us to come in the classroom and take our seats. Then she pulled out the projector and set it up so that each one of us had a clear view of it. She dimmed the lights. It was film on Africa. The children were so little! They did not have anything to eat! We felt so bad. The only thing that they were putting to their lips was a cup of water! The teacher turned the film off after she thought that we knew her rationale for making us eat everything on our plates.

You must understand that I did not make you eat your food because I dislike you. I did it because I love you and those children too. You are blessed that you are not them and that you have plenty to eat!

We were second graders and believed that everyone was just as blessed and as privileged as were. We were quiet for some time after that. The next time that we went to lunch, we ate more. We still did not want everything on our plates, but we were grateful to have it! That was the teacher's lesson well taught.

The fourth grade year was one of the most serious years for me. The honor roll began, and trophies were going to be handed to students with high averages and citizenship awards at the end of the year. I was ready. My mom was pregnant with my little sister; therefore, she paid me less attention. So I focused more on my studies. My teacher was outstanding especially in history. History was taught in the fourth and eighth grade at this time. I had fun learning more about my state. The teacher loved us and gave us so much information. She taught like she was enjoying it just as much as we were! I looked forward to going to her classroom every day. I made the honor roll every six weeks. My father was so proud that he started giving us money for each A that we earned on our report cards! I just knew that I was going to be rich before this was over.

At the end of the year, I received the trophy for the highest average in the fourth grade! I hugged my teacher and asked her would she move up to the fifth grade because I was scared. It was located on the middle-school wing, and I needed her guidance. She said that the principal wanted to keep her in the fourth grade, but that if I needed her, she could always ask my teacher to allow me to go see her. I wanted to. However, she left our school, and I never saw her again!

My fifth grade was easy. However, my cousin received the trophy at the end of the year. I just was not into the lessons as I previously was. I was still in second place from then until the end of my eighth grade year, and my father was still rewarding us with money.

Discipline in the middle school was very strict. We had to be very quiet in each of our classes. If not, there could be an eraser thrown at us or a paddling. I had the eraser thrown at me once, and I had one pop on my bottom in the sixth grade. I admit that I was a talker. I learned to close my mouth in class especially when the teachers would tell the parents that we were talking, and the parents would back the teacher up and give us another punishment when we arrived at home. One of my teachers seemed to paddle one of my classmates every day because he was very curious and bothersome. He owns his own business in Atlanta, Georgia, today and told me to tell her to come to his store and pick out any furniture that she would like and that the charge was on him because she cared enough to keep him straight when others would just let him pass on through. The smile on her face when I told her that was worth millions of dollars!

By the time I reached the eighth grade, I was as quiet as a mouse. My daddy became the president of the PTA, which meant that he would be helping with projects around the school and become even more involved. I was a little nervous; however, my eighth grade teacher was the best teacher that I ever had! She pulled me out of the shyness and told me that I had leadership qualities and that I should be using it. I did. I ran for an office, and I won!

I continued my good grades, and I got involved in sports. I wasn't particular good at it, but I tried, and the exercise was good for my body, according to the coach. One day I overheard my eighth-grade teacher having a conversation with my seventh-grade teacher.

She said, I see something very special in Rouse. I think that she is one of a kind.

My seventh grade teacher replied, I see something very special in…

My teacher didn't know how special she made me feel and that I would cherish her words forever. She put me in the May Day pageant and made me learn a Henry Wadsworth Longfellow poem. I did not win Miss May Day, but I enjoyed trying. I still remember the poem and the fact that she made me. She reminded me of my fourth grade teacher, only she was Black and my fourth grade teacher was White. One day we came into the classroom, and she had a boom box. She pressed the Play button.

You dropped the bomb on me, baby, you dropped the bomb on me… sang The Gap Band.

I was thinking, What is this lady up to now?

She said, Good morning, boys and girls. Today, we will be studying poetry through music.

You know I never thought that musicians were also writers. She reviewed lyrics, word meanings and purposes, rhymes scheme, and much more, all while we were having fun listening to The Gap Band! I enjoyed her so much that when the new boy came to our class that year, I confessed to her that I had a huge crush on him! She told me that I could not talk to him because he was too short. I told her that he was smart though and that was the kind of gentlemen that I needed. She still said no. I spoke to him a couple of times on the phone and that was the end of that. I was angry at my teacher, but when I found out that he was dating two or three girls at a time, I thanked her and realized that she already knew this!

We had an eighth-grade graduation that year. It was so hard to say goodbye to this teacher who became a second mom to me. The final week of school, she came in and announced, Boys and girls, girls especially, if you graduate from high school without having a child, you need to come back and see me for a monetary reward! I didn't know the amount at the time, but I would later find out, for I returned to her plenty of times before then. And when I graduated, she gave me $20, which was big in those days. She taught me language arts and how life works. She also let me know that if you are inspirational, you may accomplish much!

The high-school years were a huge deal for me. The song came out about a teeny-bopper lady getting ready for high school and getting ready to study. It was very different. The teachers were nice, but I missed the guidance given to us during the primary and middle years. There was also more pressure from boys. My daddy was very strict, so I was very careful in whom I spoke with. I especially like my economics teacher. He laid the rules of his classroom on the first day, as did the other teachers; however, he explained that if you have an A average at the end of the six weeks, that you would not have to take his final. I said Wow! I could earn money from my father and not have to study for a final! I did get an A every six weeks in his class and earned my cash. The other classes were okay too. I thought that the teachers were very strict and sometimes too strict! My English teacher especially. I would write essays and just know that I would get a grade of a 100. When she would give them back, there were all kinds of red marks. I said to myself, She just doesn't like me. I thought that she cared a great deal for my brother because she was always laughing and talking with him. She red penned all my papers for all the classes that I took under her, which was about three. I must admit though, that it made me a stronger writer, and in college, it saved me a lot of money. Therefore, I accepted the red marks as long as my final grade was an A.

My favorite high-school teacher was my science teacher. He taught Biology I, Biology II, and chemistry! At the time, nursing was my career goal; therefore, I had to take all these courses and from him. I loved the way that he made us laugh, along with teaching us about the periodic table, incubating, dissecting cats, and a whole bunch more! The things that he said were funny, and no one took it seriously, which is what amazed me! He could have been brought before the principal plenty of times, but no one did it! I could walk in the door, and he would say, Come on in here, Becky, with your big eyes self! I do have big eyes, but why would he say that to me? I did not know until my senior year. I had to take chemistry.

After he had his laugh, I asked, Why do you call me that?

He said, Because they are big, but they are the prettiest eyes that I have ever seen!

I said, I thought so, because my father had gray eyes, and I thought that they were very pretty!

I explained to him that the lessons learned in his classroom were unforgettable and that I will cherish them for the rest of my life.

He made a comment, saying, It is good that you did not cheat on my exams like the cheaters.

My mouth flew open. I did not realize that he knew that there were students in his classroom, who were cheaters.

One day he went over to their desks and announced, These are my cheaters! He knew that they had the answers under their tests just waiting to apply them.

I was thinking, I would like a mindset like his. I just never knew that he knew, and I was not a tattletale.

In my homeroom class, there was always someone doing something funny to make life just a tad bit easier. For instance, the bell rang, and a friend of mine, who is very quiet, came in late. Instead of the teacher just marking him tardy and was done with it, she began to fuss at him. He does not say much to anyone. Therefore, everyone was shocked when he turned around and started to talking back to her. Even she had to laugh at this because it was hard to get a word out of him! She was an art teacher, and I was terrible at drawing. She would make us feel like we were artists and claimed that our finished pieces were good. Therefore, we enjoyed her class.

My math classes were the most difficult ones. It wasn't all of my teachers, just one, and I was just scared of her. We had notebooks in her class, and I had turned mine in to be checked. She had them lying on her desk one Monday morning. I did not know what her procedures were, so I just picked mine up from her desk. What did I do that for? She came in and saw it on my desk and let me have it.

You never pick up anything from my desk without my permission. I don't care if it is yours! she said in a harsh voice.

I felt so bad, and I didn't know whether to place it back on her desk or to just sit there. I chose the latter. I felt like crying, but I was in high school, and people would think that I was just a big baby. It was difficult for me to concentrate on anything else that she taught in her class after that because I was just afraid of her. My grades proved that I was not concentrating in her classroom. My mom became very concerned. I explained to her that math was not my subject. I think that my mom half believed me and half did not. I did not want to hurt my teacher's feelings. We were raised to always respect them.

My mom still questioned me, Why is that your brother does so well for the same lady and you don't?

I did not have an answer.

My brother was performing very well in this lady's class, and he hardly ever studied! My mom bought me a bunch of math games for Christmas that year and made my brother tutor me on afternoons when he wasn't working or playing ball. My grades improved with my brother's teaching. I still don't understand to this day how he did it! I did not take another class from her. I took it from another teacher because I had to have so many math credits for nursing.

The math class taught me a serious lesson. I became even more determined to reach my goal of becoming a nurse and being a success in life. My decisions in high school became very carefully planned out, even my prom date for the eleventh grade. This guy had been so nice to me since the first day that I met him! His sister and I were good friends. He had a few people that did not care much for him, but I was in charge of decisions at this time. I took a class entitled home economics. I look up, and in he walked. He chose a seat right next to mine. He made the class interesting with funny jokes. However, he had the utmost respect for me. He would even ask to carry my books after class. I would let him sometimes, and the students would stare and ask, Why is she letting him carry her books? I did not know how to sew, but he made me want to learn because he did not know how to sew either! We found out that the teacher would give you good grades based on the interest that you showed her in her class. So both of us became even more interested, and he would tell jokes that even the teacher would smile at. We made sundresses and book bags. They looked presentable. I made one for my mom and my sister and me. They liked them, but I never saw them use them. I wore mine. On the days that he did not skip class, my friend did a pretty good job on the book bag.

In February, he asked the big question: Will you go to the prom with me? I thought that he was joking because he joked about a lot of things. I didn't answer, and I don't know how he got my phone number, but he started calling me at home. My sister started to annoy me about his phone calls.

When he saw me in class again, he asked again. I looked at him and said, I have known you for quite a while, and you have been nothing but nice to me. Yes, I will go to the prom with you, and I will wear a lavender gown, and you wear a white tuxedo with a lavender cummerbund.

He almost fell out of his chair! He said, I am serious!

I said, When have you ever known me to lie? I told him that I had softball practice that afternoon and I really wish that I had some chewing because I made the pitcher status.

He went to the store after school and bought me some chewing gum back to the school.

I told him, This is why I will go to the prom with you!

On prom night, he was the perfect gentlemen. I enjoyed the dances with on the dance floor. Even though, he was wild on certain songs. He took me out to eat and was the perfect gentleman in bringing me home. When the pictures came back, we looked like movie stars. He graduated before I did. I