RHETI results are in! Type 4

RHETI Test Results – My Type 4 Personality is – THE ROMANTIC

No surprise there … giggled as soon as I added the scores and looked up Type 4. Have looked at a couple of different sites for Type 4 information – you know, to learn about myself. This is hilarious. From … http://www.9types.com/descr/?type=4

“The Romantic (the Four)

Romantics have sensitive feelings and are warm and perceptive.

How to Get Along with Me

Give me plenty of compliments. They mean a lot to me.
Be a supportive friend or partner. Help me to learn to love and value myself.
Respect me for my special gifts of intuition and vision.
Though I don’t always want to be cheered up when I’m feeling melancholy, I sometimes like to have someone lighten me up a little.
Don’t tell me I’m too sensitive or that I’m overreacting!

What I Like About Being a Four

my ability to find meaning in life and to experience feeling at a deep level
my ability to establish warm connections with people
admiring what is noble, truthful, and beautiful in life
my creativity, intuition, and sense of humor
being unique and being seen as unique by others
having aesthetic sensibilities
being able to easily pick up the feelings of people around me

What’s Hard About Being a Four (OMG to ALL of these! Totally me!)

experiencing dark moods of emptiness and despair
feelings of self-hatred and shame; believing I don’t deserve to be loved
feeling guilty when I disappoint people
feeling hurt or attacked when someone misundertands me
expecting too much from myself and life
fearing being abandoned
obsessing over resentments
longing for what I don’t have

Fours as Children Often

have active imaginations: play creatively alone or organize playmates in original games
are very sensitive
feel that they don’t fit in
believe they are missing something that other people have
attach themselves to idealized teachers, heroes, artists, etc.
become antiauthoritarian or rebellious when criticized or not understood
feel lonely or abandoned (perhaps as a result of a death or their parents’ divorce)

Fours as Parents

help their children become who they really are
support their children’s creativity and originality
are good at helping their children get in touch with their feelings
are sometimes overly critical or overly protective
are usually very good with children if not too self-absorbed”

And from … http://calmnessinmind.com/enneagram-type-4-personality-individualist-designer … I can’t copy/paste it here, but wow.

In light of the post I wrote yesterday … THIS is hysterical and yet sobering. So true. Such the Romantic but don’t want to be. Don’t like it but love it.

Oh … how insightful it is to discover oneself … lol, that’s being a Type 4. I love working through tests that help me get a deeper grip on … ME.

Thought it was fun.

You can take it too … http://www.9types.com/rheti/index.php – The link has 36 questions. The test I took had 144. Always be as truthful as you can.

Mostly Weeds, But Sometimes Flowers

Originally posted on August 11, 2016

The following poem is the result of my 20-year old son’s frustration with the pattern and pathway of his perception of life at this juncture … this morning as he grimaced while getting prepared for his day … Mother, in all her love of writing as a means of therapy, said to him … “After work, write a poem.”

And he did.

The Gardener …. written by My Son

The sun will rise,

And it will fall.

Let the moon rise,

So that the night will follow
In an open field there are dark times,

But the dark hours are short,

In comparison to the hours that are bright.
The field is my garden.

This field is my home.

Keeping it plain, and the grass short

So I can see if I am alone.
The garden is combed daily,

to find what might have grown.

Mostly weeds, but sometimes flowers;

I try to care for them like my own.
But some have needed too much caring,

They were so high maintenance,

And most times far too wearing.

Some grew thorns and toxic fumes.

Some, just straight up died.

My garden has seemed surely doomed.
They seemed like dark times,

And, to be honest, they were;

But the dark hours are short,

In comparison to the ones that are bright.
Be thankful for all your days.

For until they have been run completely dry,

The sun will rise,

And it will fall.

Let the moon rise,

So that the night will follow

The sun will rise again

And another day borrowed.
08/11/2016

Thank you, LinkedIn and Bobby

Written on August 19, 2016 (I’m not an INFJ any longer. I test as ENFJ – Woot!)

Keep in mind I am an INFJ. Tears come easy and I’ve wiped a few. This morning, my former boss and I exchanged recommendations on LinkedIn. It was my honor to write these words for Robert Donnell …

“If you could choose the person you’d work for a career lifetime, who would it be and why? If that question were posed to me, the answer is Robert “Bobby” Donnell. The “why” began in October 2010 when I first came under his leadership. Bobby is a strong man – emotionally, mentally, and compassionately. He leads with kindness and respect. In all of the five and a half years I referred to him as “Boss,” I did not hear one co-worker say a negative thing regarding him. He guides and encourages. He gives autonomy to employees and allows them room to grow. I bloomed under his leadership. It was in quiet talks in his office, and sometimes not so quiet because of laughter, where I gained confidence in my abilities as an instructor working in our specific – often challenging – environment. I watched him. Modeled my own behaviors after his. Lead with kindness and use a firm hand as needed. Bobby is the leader that commands respect without demanding it … and that is the greatest lesson I have learned from him … be the servant leader with a quick and ready smile. Speak with gentle words and maintain the dignity of all around. Use good judgment in working with people. Bobby is all of this. With alacrity, I’d jump at an opportunity to work for him again! He’s always got my vote!”

With all of my career-minded self, I mean these words. Bobby is a Shepherd – and it saddens me to know that more than likely in this lifetime, I will not work for him again, though now I consider him a friend, a colleague, someone I can laugh with on a personal level. It’s nice. I’m so blessed to know him – as are the people he comes across every day.

Why tears? Well … in writing those words, I found myself emotional, but then … he returned with the following and the sides of my eyes no longer acted as flood gates, but rather slip-n-slides.

“{My name} is one of the best instructors I have ever had the opportunity to manage. When a graduate from an Electrical Mechanics program comes back and tells an instructor from two years prior that he still takes 30 minutes each week to free-write because of how it makes him feel, you know that is a teacher who changes lives. This is just one of hundreds of accolades I have been witness to since 2010 when I hired her. She puts her all into her class and her students, transforming them from “trades” guys and high school drop outs to successful college students and graduates – students who come to a “Gen Ed” class not because they have to, but because they WANT to. She is a pleasure to work with and leads a team even if she doesn’t have a leadership title. Other instructors look to her for guidance and she freely gives it. She is a true asset to any organization lucky enough to have her.”

I tell my students on the regular to use LinkedIn, because it is a holding place for all resume type information and reference letters. To be able to exchange these and let them sit on the internet as testimony to character is a beautiful thing. Even more so … because of this idea I share when we discuss Interview Skills in class …

Do not just read the recommendations that are left by others for the candidate you research, but read those that the candidate has WRITTEN. Get a taste of the writing style – what language choices does the person make? What is the person willing to say? Many words? Few words? Get an idea about who this person is from their writing. Writing always gives away the author.

Love this twist.

So, the recommendations I compose … I intend them with care. Always stating truthfully the character of the person and my interaction with them as well.

Thank you, LinkedIn for this feature. Thank you for the smile and the tears brought to me today over your platform. You rock!

A Pox on Other English Teachers

Written on September 12, 2016

Each week my student’s write a journal about class – what they’ve learned, etc.

I received this today ….

“This week’s lessons were simple and helpful. I would’ve never thought that learning how to write proper sentences was something you learn in college. Most people are taught how to write proper sentences in middle school, but the way [the teacher] taught it this week was jaw-dropping. She told me that writing in passive voice is weak. “Always try to write in active voice which makes your writing stronger.” [The teacher] said in class Wednesday. I use to think that having more words will make my writing look better. It’s not about the number of words in your writing, but the quality of the words you choose from. Another thing I learned that will help me with my writing is not make announcements in my writing. An example of an announcement is, “I’m going to tell you about” or “This story was about”. Another skill I was taught was to take “you” and “I” out of the story. That’s not difficult for me if I’m writing in third person, but it can be a hassle. I was taught that when you’re writing you should always write according to your audience. You can’t write a letter to a group of Christians the same way you would write to a group of prisoners.

This week I can make improvements to my writing off the new techniques I was taught. My teacher has made me strive to be a better writer. These new tools will help me with the book that I’m writing. Thank you [the teacher] for this week’s lessons!”

And …. another one …

“This week in class was another exciting adventure. The class watched another set of interesting videos. Our teacher is wacky and full of surprises. I had no idea she would make us start watching videos about parodies of popular songs. I was really surprised to find out that there are English parodies out there. I really hope she continues to introduce us to new styles of writing via these videos. They really connect to our kind of generation. Normally after 10 minutes of boring lecture we tend to tune out, but these wacky songs hold our attention. This week we learned about passive and active voice. I was taught this back in high school but it never hurts to go over old terms.Our teacher put examples of passive voice on the projector and had us, as a class, change the sentence to active voice. It ceases to make me laugh when I watch our teacher have to go into the settings to change the volume. On Friday we spent a good portion of the day using an app called Socrative. It truly is an amazing app. It allows everyone in the class to participate together. The teacher can design a question and allow us to answer it individually. The best part and in my personal opinion is the fact that we are able to vote on which response we think is best. All in all, I believe this week turned out to be quite successful. I look forward to what our teacher has planned for next week.”

Drop the mic.

It feels so good to help people see that WRITING is not the big bad wolf. A pox on all high school English teachers who created droves of human beings walking in zombie-like states repeating “I hate English” and “I can’t write” … EVERYONE can.

We are only into week 4. I LOVE what I do. 🙂

How to Not Feel Verklempt Whilst Writing a Cover Letter

Written 10/5/2016 (I removed my name and referenced myself as Me throughout.)

It is not necessary to feel verklempt about writing a Cover Letter. In fact, it is more than unnecessary – it is irresponsible to sit in front of the computer screen nervous about words and language and being chosen for the interview based off of those anxiety-driven word choices. Unnecessary and Irresponsible. This is my firm stance on the topic.

In mid-August, the company for which I’ve wanted to teach for years posted an opening for an English adjunct instructor late on a Saturday evening. A friend of mine who knew of my desire to work in said facility of technological learning sent me a screen shot of the ad. My fingers hit the keyboard of my computer – found the ad for myself and crafted my cover letter, attached my resume, and had my application sent in less than half an hour to Ranken Technological College. Monday morning, I received a phone call for an interview. Hired, pending all paperwork and etc., on Tuesday.

This – accomplished via something I teach to each and every group of students I have an opportunity to infect with my passion and pursuit of excellence. It is my greatest joy to turn my students into believers of their own abilities … to create them to be effective job seekers. To teach them a cover letter is not an overwhelming and fearsome task.

In January of 2011, I discovered my students lacked insight into effective job-getting skills, so I researched cover letters, resumes, anything I could get my hands on to make a difference for them. To have them write a cover letter to a specific company ad – based upon research in an argument driven class – Composition II – then became the thing. After scouring job ads across Craigslist, I came across an ad that did all that I needed it to for the betterment of my student’s understanding. It was posted on January 20, 2011 by Harster Heating and Air Conditioning there on Craigslist for two service installer personnel.

The lesson included posting the job as part of the Cover Letter and Resume PowerPoint presentation – which aligned with Causal argument in the text to my thinking. Cause – poor cover letter – Effect – no job. Cause – poor resume – Effect – no job. So … the greatest of cause and effect in Argumentation … effective skills in achieving desired results … the jobs of dreams. Careers. Callings.

Over the years, adjustments happened to the presentation, but the effect always the same – students hired for the jobs they desired.

The ad? Here it is.

The plan – I read it through once aloud, then read it through a second time for dissection, taking each portion, each sentence and digging deeper. Looking ad nauseum for all pertinent information with potential for effective attention-getting-ness on upcoming cover letters and resumes.

After four years of using this ad in the classroom, conviction told me I should contact the writer of said ad and thank him for the unbeknownst to him, numbers of students he’d assisted through the years – not only from his ad but from his website. Here is the letter I wrote to Dave Harster of Harster Heating and Air Conditioning … (in it I lay out how I use the ad in the classroom … and yes, I have a thing for dashes and ellipses).

************************************************************

From: Me

Sent: Thursday, June 26, 2014 2:45 PM

To: dharster@att.net

Subject: Re: Ad for HVAC Service Installer dated 1/20/2011 (Yes, 2011)

Dear Dave,

This is a thank you letter concerning the ad you placed on Craigslist on January 20, 2011. Yes, it’s been a few years. That ad is imprinted in my brain (seriously, I have it memorized) because I use it to teach my students how to use a company’s ad and their website to better their own cover letters and resumes.

My name is Me and I’ve taught English Composition at ******** College in Berkeley, Missouri for nearly 4 years. This class is so much more than writing an essay, it’s training in soft skills. We spend hours working on effective cover letters, resume writing, and interview skills – things most of my students have no working knowledge of how to do well.

Since you placed that ad in 2011, and I stumbled across it while looking for a good study for my class in how to read an ad, YOU have inadvertently helped hundreds of students to achieve success.

The sentence, “We have not had to lay any off since 1988” helps me discuss reading between the lines. I teach my students to read to believe, but also read to doubt. When they first hear your sentence, they all say, “Wow!” and I say, really? Think again. What else might that mean? High turnover? (I doubt it very much! Your growth in just 3 years is phenomenal). We also discuss the word “try” when it relates to “we try to work everyone a minimum of 40 hours per week …” I ask them, do you need to understand this could be more than 40 hours at times and less than 40 at times? Absolutely. Read the ad thoroughly. It’s brilliant to discuss with the students. I use an ad from Glideaway too … but yeah, so not as good as yours. I’m not writing them a thank you note.

Again, thank you for writing an ad that was both informative and human. From a discussion on the ad, we move to your website – where I show the students how to read to adjust their cover letters and interview readiness to the company. Several things on your website are superb (all of it is, but what I use in class …)

• On the services tab – you say 24/7 service is available. I ask the students, was that mentioned in the ad. They all say, No. So, I say, well then, do you want to let Mr. Harster know on your cover letter that you’re available for 24/7 service then? To which we all agree – YES. The key being to stand out in a sea of resumes. ☺

• On the history tab, where you state your philosophy … I tell my classes that this is gold and then I read to them, “the customer is always right and to do good work and charge a fair price.” From here, I explain that in any job-getting situation, to look for and find the company’s philosophy and/or mission statement is key. Use it. State that you agree with it, that you understand it in your cover letter.

• On the FAQ page, which I tell them to never ask any of those in an interview – like do you offer worker’s comp? Because you say you do, right there. But my favorite phrase is … “Technicians paid on commission are always trying to sell you something. Our guys just do their jobs.” And I ask my class – do you see his heart here? Do you understand what this company is about? Do your job. Simple. Good stuff.

We talk about many aspects of your website – and to that, I want to say … Thank you for creating a website that is easy to read, understandable, creative, and community oriented. With it, I have been able to teach the importance of company research in the job search periods of life. So much remains to know about a company beyond an ad.

I’m so happy to have stumbled across your ad over 3 years ago and I’ve enjoyed watching your success grow as I’ve shared your website with my students. It’s been most beneficial to so many. For a while, I’ve had a nagging to thank you. So, today, I’m taking that time.

Thank you, Mr. Harster, for your pleasant website and descriptive ad. I challenge my students to look for ads like yours – that give just the right amount of information, enough that the companies can be researched. You have assisted me in teaching my classes on resume and cover letter writing … and you had no idea. ☺

For kicks and grins, I’m including the cover letter template we write to “you” that, of course, I never mail. If this lengthy letter has not pestered you, I’d love your thoughts on the template. I’d like to be able to tell my classes that I’ve communicated with you and that either yes, it’s a good template, or no … it could use this or that.

Thank you ever so much.

Sincerely,

Me (removed my name)

Enc. Cover Letter Template (Originally composed by a student, edited by myself)

************************************************************

Cover Letter Template:

Dear Dave Harster,

I am writing in response to your ad dated January 20, 2011 and posted on Craigslist for the position of Service Installer.

Confident that I would bring value to Harster Heating & Air Conditioning, I’d like to give you a brief overview of my skills and experience. Here’s how my qualifications meet your company’s goals and needs:

Your Needs:

• 5 years field experience

• Saint Louis City/County License

• Positive Employees with a “Customer is Always Right” Attitude

• Availability for 24/7 Service

My Qualifications:

• 7 years field experience

• Saint Louis City/County Licensed

• Positive Attitude/Neat Appearance

• Training in Soft Skills/Working With People

• Good Driving Record to Take on the Road for 24/7 Service

Thank you for your consideration. Available before 10 o’clock each morning, I look forward to hearing from you.

Sincerely,
Me

General Education Instructor * ****** College

***********************************************************

Imagine my delight when I received a response back from Dave Harster! Wowza! That response is not, with his permission, an additional part of the PowerPoint presentation on Cover Letter & Resume Writing. You will see why. Look for the golden nuggets of amazingness straight from the lips of an industry employer … who is simply just writing and not trying to impress anyone. Genuine, he is. Genuine and pointed.

Dave Harster replied …

**********************************************************

From: Harster Heating and Cooling [dharster@att.net]

Sent: Monday, June 30, 2014 8:03 AM

To: Me

Subject: RE: Ad for HVAC Service Installer dated 1/20/2011 (Yes, 2011)

Ms. Me,

Thanks for the email and all the feedback on my ad. Yes, you’re right. I had no idea I was making such an impact. I like the template you have come up with for the cover letter. Cover letters are usually all the same or very similar stating that “I would like to further my skills with a good company”. Just once though I would really like to see the statement, “I love to work, I was taught to work hard, to be productive and make a difference where I am employed”. I would interview that person even if I didn’t have a position open for them and keep their resume for the future.

Thanks for all the time you spent emailing me. That is a long email.

Dave Harster
*********************************************************

Do you see what he said and the golden nuggeted-amazingness?

“Just once though I would really like to see the statement, I love to work, I was taught to work hard, to be productive, and make a difference where I am employed. I would interview that person even if I didn’t have a position open ….”

I mean wow. Just wow. No more do we say “I would like to further my skills with a good company.” No. That is self-serving. It is mundane. It is dismally over-used.

We now recognize that the job hunting season is focused on the company’s needs and our desire to be productive and make a difference where employed. Boom. Mind blown – like that commercial where people’s stacks blow off into purple haze-tinted clouds.

I read this response to my students and pens jot notes furiously – each one eating the words like candy dropped from a pinata … like sticky-mouthed children scrambling to get it all.

Time and again, the words of Dave Harster combined with my own ever-learning researching as an instructor, get students hired. Even myself … in a position I’ve dreamt of for some time. This works.

Always? No. But it’s a great jumping point. This cover letter is company focused and this is what employers desire – employees who will be productive and make a difference. Do yourself a favor – find a way to incorporate these ideas into your own job-hunting season or rather let’s call it a career-hunting season. We are folks on a mission to a calling and or a career path! Always bearing in mind that we, as employees, are replaceable. Positions are necessary – employees in those positions – not so much.

Start well … and follow through once the acceptance letter comes through.

What a week it has been – teaching this to my students. I’ll never know to what extent the information reaches – but I know that it does. One person tells another and a thing grows … or, like I tell my students, don’t tell anyone else … keep it to yourself and let everyone else struggle to get the job while you sail on … Of course, that’s not very nice.

You know, I’ve never met Dave Harster. Thinking of inviting him to class one day. That’d be swell. I know he’d be great in front of my classroom – talking to students about professionalism, soft skills, customer service, keeping a clientele list growing. Know how I know? I’ve read his website – multiple times over almost 6 years as I show my students how to research a company for their career hunting season.

http://www.harsterheating.com/.

Need HVAC? Let me plug him to those here in St. Louis. Super Service Award Recipient from Angie’s List and a John Goodman fan. Your hometown service pro since 1950.

You’re a Black Girl

Written on October 6, 2016

Best compliment ever. “Ms. D, you’re a black girl.”

One of my former students said this to me after our times together in the English course I taught at a trade school. Learning, laughing, growing. Finding that differences aren’t that different when souls connect and humanity blares its presence. We are people. Alike. Yet not. And those words from my student impacted me forever. We connected at a human level and these were the student’s words to tell me just that very thing.

So, today when I heard Rob Reiner state that Trump supporters are racist, I rolled my eyes and shook my head.

According to Rob Reiner and potentially his fearless leader, the HRC herself with her basket of deplorables comment, I am a racist.

I’m no racist, Mr. Reiner.

Somehow though deplorably in possession of my own thoughts and opinions which guide the way I live, I, as a respecter of persons, generally keep my political leanings to myself and private conversations … to you I state, I am not what you lump under a header of hate.

Major BY THE WAY ….

Still here, I will not launch into a political diatribe for one side or the other, but I will state to lump a person or groups of people into any grouping with a negative label shows short-sightedness, disregard of differences which create a world of beauty, and ignorance.

People are people are people are people.

Who wants to live in a world where we are all the same? Not this girl.

It is a beautiful thing to live in a country where the right to an opinion exists … though this is arguable in some areas of academia. Still. To choose to be a Democrat, a Republican, a Libertarian, or an Independant is a right. It is a freedom. To express opinions is a freedom and therefore good. But so also is the recognition of humanity and that to hate is unfortunate and ignorant. To conversate is good and right, true and noble. Honest. To learn what others believe and allow for differences to exist is beyond beautiful. Differences bring about the Compromises that make differences and bring about change! Finding the space to agree to disagree and make cohesive decisions … this is utopian … desired by all who understand what it is to treat others as self wants to be treated. To love others as self.

Be kind.

Be respectful.

Never do I overtly state political leanings on social media, but this season is reaching ridiculous heights of name calling and toss-the-topic off course at all costs behavior. Ignorance abounds on both sides and the issues cloud over. We jump on bandwagons without full information … becoming the Ignorant.

Thus starts the ebb and flow of name calling and prejudice.

Some of my closest friends and I have differing political views. We do not allow these to be points of contention. Rather, we have stimulating discussion. Encouraging critical thinking and respect given when it’s hard.

Come on, folks, let’s see humanity. After all … God is not a White Man. (Do yourself a favor and watch that video).

In all of this, no, I will not vote for Hillary Clinton. My conscience will not allow it. I have my reasons, my opinions, my long-considered thoughts because I listen when people talk on both sides of the aisle and I know what moves my heart. This is my right and my freedom as an American. I’m not going to shove it down throats.

All I ask is that we think before we speak. See humanity in its larger scope and embrace differences of skin color, religion, education level, gender, thought and opinion. Let the beauty of life sharpen you and stretch you to service for others … for that is where all of our answers lie.

Be beautiful.

Be LOVE.

God is Not a White Man by Gungor

God is not a man

God is not a white man
God is not a man sitting on a cloud
God cannot be bought
God will not be boxed in
God will not be owned by religion
but God is Love,
God is Love,
and He loves everyone
God is Love,
God is Love,
and He loves everyone
God is not a man
God is not an old man
and God does not belong to Republicans
God is not a flag
not even American
and God does not depend on a government
but God is good,
God is good,
and He loves everyone
God is good,
God is good,
and He loves everyone
oh, oh, duh, duh, duh, duh
athiests and charlatans,
and communists and lesbians,
and even ol’ Pat Robertson
Oh God, He loves us all
Catholic or Protestant,
terrorist or president,
everybody, everybody loved, loved, loved, oh
God is Love
God is Love
and He loves everyone
la la la la la
la la la la la
stop the hating, please just stop the hating now
’cause God is Love

oh, oh, oh

la la la la la

la la la la la
la la la

The Lies I Told – Jesus Knew

I wrote this on October 30, 2016, when I faced my demons – the adultery I hid – the struggles that no one fully knew – the lies that I lived – and the desire I had to fall into the arms of Jesus, though I didn’t believe I deserved it. If you read between the lines – my anguish is there. This took me back into it this morning.

This morning I walked into Harmony Stl – truly a non-denominational community of believers though the outdoor sign says Methodist – only half knowing what to expect. I’d been informed the atmosphere was coffee-house-ish and that the worship time was meditational. Warm. Friendly. Coffee-shop like. I fell in. Finding comfort in the smiles, in the welcomes, in the community openly existent in that space. And that all before the music started.

The Invitation to Application came and I could only but accept the challenge to schedule 1 hour alone each week. To spend part of the time journaling about a weekly scripture and the other part of the hour considering a question posed regarding the scripture. These questions designed to cause me to look for God while doing this that I love – writing.

Before the last year began, blogging was a daily must for me. That time meditating on God’s word, writing about the themes that drove my life – love your neighbor as yourself and Micah 6:8 – was nurture for me. It fed me. And in the ups and the downs of my struggle with God to finally, at the age of 44, come to terms with some harsh realities about myself and still find Jesus standing there saying, “Dacia, I love you,” with his arms open – beckoning me to let go of that which I’d held onto for so long – all of my barriers, my walls, my stubbornness, my victim-hood, my false nature, my sweet facade, my goody-two-shoes little church girl-ness that I’ve worn so very well … to still find Jesus standing there … saying, “Come.” I can only but weep.

Weep and read. Weep and write. I accept the challenge and I have shut myself in the office, seen the time on the wall, and am surrendered today to this passage and this question.

I Peter 5:8-9.

“Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith,” … this is what the challenge lays out as the Scripture for the week. I add the remainder of verse 9 and verses 10 and 11 … “because you know that your brothers throughout the world are undergoing the same kind of sufferings. And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm, and steadfast To him be the power forever and ever.”

He will restore. I see those words and my heart is grateful. I’ve been an open target for the enemy. I have waved my arms at him and asked him to blind me to the truth. I wanted to be in my sin, to wallow in it, revel. Point fingers at others and make my journey away from Christ’s love seem justified due to hurts and pain “brought on by others.” I put that in quotation marks as sarcasm at myself. For so long, I’ve blamed others for my hurts, my choices, my degeneration … I see now … it’s mine own. My own restless spirit.

Today in the sermon, Nathan said, “There’s nothing but Jesus that will fulfill the restlessness of our hearts.”

Oh, my soul …. those words. Nothing but Jesus will fill my restlessness.

That’s all I have been – restless. And I am undone.

Nothing but Jesus.

Jesus. My Jesus.

God brought to mind “The More I seek You ” as I sit here writing and it now plays from my phone as I type on the computer. “I want to sit at your feet. Drink from the cup in your hand. Lay back against you and breathe. Feel your heartbeat. This love is so deep. It’s more than I can stand. I melt in your peace. It’s overwhelming. The more I seek you, the more I find you. The more I find you … the more I love you.” On its second time through now.

Jesus … please. My heart is restless. It always has been and I’m so tired of running, of blaming, of hating … I am devoured.

Save me … teach me to fall into your arms, to let it all go, to grasp onto the Word as my solace and my peace.

Question – the question for consideration in this week’s challenge … “If God is defined as life and Satan as death, in what ways can I identify their activity in my life and the world around me? Which do I give more attention and energy to: life or death? Why?”

Why? Why? Because … what I have not trusted to God, I have worked to control myself. It has been a constant pursuit of holding the negative, not releasing hurt, relishing in anger, and justification … all that which leads to depression and panic attacks, distrust, hurt, and so much more but ultimately the road to death – to the death of relationships, self, others … I see the destruction around me and I recognize where I’ve held too tightly and not given myself over to the pursuit of Christ … because I did not trust my safety and my heart to God in his gift of life.

Writing this out … hurts. Facing these things. It’s overwhelming me today, but I am pushing myself to accept this Invitation to Application in my life.

I know that Jesus loves me.

I do.

1/13/2019 – It is 2 years later now. I left church this morning encouraged to continuing pressing on. Life has changed. So much. And God still loves me. I am grateful to have found this piece and to share it again. God is bigger than we are. That I can say. And I press on. Continuing to pursue my journey with Him.

“If you wouldn’t be on your phone so much …” What the Tow Truck Driver Said to My Daughter

This event occurred on and was written on November 7, 2016

The phone call from my daughter wasn’t for me, though she called my phone. It was her father whom she wanted to inform that her tire went pop while she was driving, and that she was stuck on the Rock Road, that she’d gotten the car as far as she could.

Thinking it merely a popped tire, over the phone, he sent me to get her and take her on to school, leaving the car there in the parking lot of the Cig-Liq while he went on to the dentist. As I approached down Wright Avenue and saw her car from across the street – I wondered why that the child had the car sticking half into the road. Why had she not had someone help her push it into the actual lot? Half of it sat 4-5′ into the Rock Road.I’m not sure the light there has ever quite taken as long as it did as I sat in horror watching vehicle after vehicle move to go around it, honking as they went, and my daughter standing off to the side waiting for me.

Once I parked and got out, I said, “We can’t leave it like that!” and to this, she pointed out it was not a popped tire after all … I looked. No, not a popped tire – something worse. Something I did not have the vocabulary to describe while calling her father. In a panic because the car stuck so far out into the road and was unmovable, I tried to explain to her father the situation – he was already in the dentist’s chair. Frustrated.

Call a tow truck. Okay. Call a tow truck.

Around these parts, that means call Doc’s Towing. Located at 2810 Walton Rd, St. Louis, MO 63114. I called.

With limited vehicular vocabulary and already upset as I did not know how to explain, and irritated at the continued non-good Samaritans who continued to honk at the vehicle, whose blinkers were flashing, instead of stopping perhaps to assist. The man who answered spoke to me as if I were a child once my words began. Yes, I had a limited vocabulary. I was ineffective at describing the why of the situation, just that it could not be moved and was sticking out onto St. Charles Rock Road. Could they please send someone to have it towed to our house. With disdain, because I know how to recognize disdain, the man said, “It will cost you $75” as if I would not have the means to pay. I said, “That’s fine.”

I even looked at the phone funny after hanging up, like what was that about … And then, we waited.

Within 15 minutes, the truck arrived. At this point, my daughter was texting her instructors, letting them be aware of the situation and that she might not be in class. She sat on the front bumper of my vehicle while I stood, trying to keep warm, pacing in the parking lot. When the truck driver stepped down from his cab and walked back towards my daughter’s vehicle, I walked toward him. No greeting or smile did he extend, only the word “Keys.”

Taken aback by his abruptness, I said, “He needs your keys,” to my daughter. She stood, still with the phone in hand and reached her keys toward him. He went to take them from her as I stood there between them. Still no other words exchanged by this man or us. The keys fell to the ground. With a huff, he bent to pick them up, then straightened and moved to go to the front of her car. With a look back toward us, he said, in a nasty tone to my daughter ….

“If you wouldn’t be on your phone so much, these kinds of things wouldn’t happen.”

What the what? I felt the words spread with rapidity through my brain and then roll toward and out of my mouth in the form of these loud and enraged words ….

“First of all, she was not on her phone, and second of all, the damn car is broken – there’s something dragging the ground!”

With that, the man, now standing with the driver’s door of my daughter’s car open, closed her car door and without another word at us, walked back to his truck in a huff, leaving us. He climbed inside his truck and, we assumed, with her keys. Where was he going? Maybe he was going to turn around? I had nothing to go on. Then he got onto St. Charles Rock Road. I raised my hands at him, saying, “Where are her keys?”

To which he responded by looking like a child throwing a hissy fit – cursing back at me with arms raised in the air … WHILE HE WAS DRIVING away.

I had no idea what had just taken place and where were her keys. Dumbfounded. Shaking. What had just happened? Just barked at my child like that was even a thing? What the hell! I mean … are you kidding me? No other words at all. No, “Hi, how’re you doing? Rough morning? Ah, this sucks, let’s see what we can do for you?” Nothing. Just CRAZY odd and rude. Stunned. That was me. Stunned. My daughter went to look in her car and found he had thrown the keys across the seat to the other side.

My next move was to call the shop. I called Doc’s and spoke to a man … yes, I was angry when I called. The tow truck driver was rude to us and had barked at my child. Not once did he say anything other than “Keys” and “If you wouldn’t be on your phone so much, these kinds of things wouldn’t happen!” That’s all he said to me. I tried to explain this to the man on the other end and neglected to mention the throwing of her keys across the inside of her car … and that we still needed a tow.

His response? “Ma’am there are two sides to every story. I’m trying to help you here … but you’re just yelling and I will not be spoken to like this on a Monday morning. There are two sides to every story. It is a service we offer and I do not have to offer it to you.” And without listening to me … he stated that he would not be sending another tow truck to me, that I should call someone else and have a nice day, and he hung up.

What the what? Again.

I tried to call back as I could not comprehend what was happening. The same conversation played. No amount of “the customer is always right” and not that I was even looking for that … I just needed the car towed out of St. Charles Rock Road. We’re talking just feet. Can you move it a few feet? No. Call someone else. We will not send another truck to you.

Doc’s Towing. 2810 Walton Rd, St. Louis, MO 63114.

We had lived in our small-big town for 19 years and in that time, we’ve made many friends and connections. One connection is within the St. Ann police department. Long story short here …. phone calls made. Police arrived on the scene. A phone call made to Doc’s by someone of influence – the Chief of Police – also my friend (he was told I cursed the man out – I can assure you I said the “D” word to the driver and dropped the “F” bomb about the driver to the person on the phone. That was the extent of my foul and apparently “abusive” nature).

A tow truck from Doc’s came back to the scene. And our car was taken to a local shop.

By the way … ‘what had happened was’ the lower ball joint broke. She could drive no farther. Not an inch. Not a scrape. Not in any way caused by a teenager on a cell phone … but a faulty ball joint or bracket or whatever the terminologies are! Part of the undercarriage was straight on the GROUND and against the tire.

The younger tow truck driver apologized to me for what had taken place. And to him, Daniel, … I say, THANK YOU.

You, sir, are a gentleman. You worked with efficiency on a difficult problem. You spoke to me with kindness. You spoke to us both with kindness and explanation. You helped me made a decision about where to have the car towed. Thank you.

Kindness is a balm. It is soothing. It is necessary. You, Daniel, obviously get that gem about work ethic! And I’m glad for you. It will serve you well, Daniel at Doc’s Towing!

You are a diamond in that workplace. Others today, in my conversations out and about the great little city of St. Ann, have affirmed my thoughts on this matter and have stated to me that Daniel is the employee there who provides kind and efficient customer service.

Daniel … thank you.

Also … at Village Auto came another moment of exceptional customer service. The owner Tim did not speak to me first. No, as Daniel had given him a head’s up on the situation, Tim spoke to my daughter.

He said, “I bet that was scary, huh?”

There was a physical change in her. Her shoulders relaxed – I saw the sigh escape her.

She said, “Yeah, it really was.”

Validated instead of barked at … belittled with ignorance.

The first man assumed and barked. This man … validated and offered kindness. Village Auto on Ashby Road at the corner of St. Matthew in St. Ann, Missouri. Thumbs up.

Mom and daughter both soothed with just a few words of kindness.

I do not know what the preceding story was today with the initial driver from Doc’s Towing, nor with the person(s) I spoke to on the phone … but wowza – I have to believe and know they aren’t just like that – that there must have been some AWFUL circumstance before my jumbled, lacking in vocabulary phone call for help. I try to teach my children and my students to always consider the circumstances surrounding another person’s behavior.

Customer service is king … and today, it was not displayed. Today is was smattered. Splattered into smithereens. Crushed. Placed underfoot and squished with a turn of a heel. My 17-year-old daughter accused of somehow causing the situation to happen because at the moment of key exchange she had her cell phone in her hand … WHILE SHE WAS CONTACTING HER INSTRUCTOR. Did I react to that? Yes, I did. What that man said was inappropriate. In no way professional. It was harsh. Rude. AND wrong. And I know his name, but am choosing not to use it. I’m not setting out to smear him … but to state that customer service is crucial. “The Customer is always right” is at least a motto leg to stand on … do not presume to know what is happening with the consumer you are there to serve. When a consumer is paying you for a service … be kind. That is your job.

Would I recommend Doc’s Towing’s services? Only if you get Daniel. Otherwise, no. This was a horrifying experience and it’s been with me all day. It was a talking point in my classes – customer service is key. Work Ethic is everything. If a business is to survive – it is on its Work Ethic. Word of Mouth. Word of Mouth in the digital age. That’s what I have to say.

Just wow.

AND … amazing note at the end … Village Auto fixed the car by day’s end. We have it back and she will not miss school tomorrow. WOW, Village Auto. THANK YOU. 🙂

Didn’t Realize the Color of My Skin Should Determine My Political Leanings

I wrote this: November 9, 2016

Not surprised, but in a state of “shake my head” at the hateful and emotional rhetoric I’ve read across the internet today. So much based in ignorance [meaning without knowledge] and blindsightedness [often intentional because one side does never seek to understand the other], and I can only but choose to remain somewhat silent in response to the spewing of fear-laced words and hate that’s burgeoning forth from left-leaning citizens and celebrities of the same leftedness because Donald Trump is President-Elect.

Quiet I stay for the most part, but I will say this … any argument worth its weight is sans emotion.
This is not my thought – it is what you’ll read in any good Composition II textbook based on the Art of Argument. To participate in effective argument, it is not only necessary but imperative, that the arguer must understand and know inside and out the perspectives of the other ‘team.’ That concession to opposing perspectives is what calms a situation so that listening can even take place. Without this … argument is impossible.
With emotion-laced rhetorical attempt at argument – so far too often what we experience on the political stage and in classrooms and on street corners and on Facebook and Twitter and all far-reaching and up-close corners of the internet – we simply have folks spouting off and setting themselves up to be sound and fury signifying nothing.
There is no listening. There is no communication. There is no truth seeking for Socrates. There is no persuasion for the Sophists. There is no combination of the two which leads to effective conversations and debate … Dialectic Thinking – Critical Thinking.
Emotion-laced rhetoric is simply hate speech – pushing a single agenda with no understanding that it is possible and rational for more than one perspective to exist and not only that for multiple veins to a perspective to exist inside one artery or two of this side or that.
Stating that if someone does not agree with their left-ish agenda, then that disagreeable, deplorable individual is somehow NOT an American … this is what we hear. In this … granted, it is acceptable and understandable for disappointment to exist, but hate-spewing? To what end? Other than to incur a furtherance of preset ideas and prejudices of the ‘other’ side … there is nothing accomplished.
It was stated to me yesterday that anyone of Latino, Black, or LGBT orientation who voted for Trump fell for the schtick of the emperor wearing no clothes.
Basically meaning … if you are of Latino, Black, or LGBT-ness and your convictions led you to a conservative-leaning choice in the election, you are misguided and need to realize you don’t matter – I can only but think of Sheriff David Clarke here [who I respect and admire and would fan-girl over if given the opportunity to meet]. Then, you will be in your right mind and can further the hate rhetoric aimed at you though you didn’t realize it was aimed at you in the first place because you live in another world altogether where folks see beyond ‘limitations’ or ‘colors’ or ‘choices’ and just work together. How ‘foolish’ to not realize when you don’t matter and that those ideals you held were hate-filled in their own right – you know – thinking that people are people are people just because they’re human and therefore equal … fortunately [she says with ALL sarcasm, folks] there are plenty on the left-leaning side to remind you that you should not and cannot be a Republican and/or have conservative ideals because of your Latino-ness, your Black-ness, or your LGBT-ness. Get yourself right and be to the left, then you’ll be right and not matter and can spew hate and engage in emotionalism and rhetoric as you should because of a label you hadn’t placed on yourself but apparently to be a good American, you should affix your label with gorilla glue – do this and continue to perpetuate a problem the left side sees as all Apocalyptic that others who must fill the label of conservative and therefore MUST be white and of no other denomination or attribution – who choose to stay on the ‘calm’ side of things are working to lessen but continue to bump into the wall of hate. What a mess … Confused? I am. Here’s more … I’m not saying those who lean to the right don’t some have these same problems because they DO … there is HATE there too – I just don’t hear it as much, but apparently as I was told yesterday, I won’t see it because I’m white. See, I have to know my place too, according to a white liberally leaning left-sider yesterday who spoke that to me – trying to make me aware I am incapable as an independent leaning conservative and white [though, let me state I find this offensive because I am far more than a color and ‘white’ at that – which is fallacious in and of itself … I am of multiple descents – with some Asian thrown in there] of being anything but deplorable and hate-filled and misled … somehow an apocalyptic on-bringer because of my values, beliefs, and convictions … which, to this person who spoke these things to me, I’ve never shared …. all just assumed on the speaker’s part and not necessarily about me but anyone who would dare to vote differently than the left-leaning agenda … and wow, with the assumptions and assuming.
My God. That paragraph was difficult for me to follow and I wrote the thing.
It’s all sound and fury and insanity and it breaks my heart and baffles my mind … and it isironic to me that those who want to point out hate seem to scream with the most hate. This shouldn’t come as a shock though, Jesus pointed this out. Matthew 7:3-5 states …
3 “Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? 4 How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? 5 You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.”
A rational discussion, that is good and pleasing and yes, something I will be pleased to sit down and have.

However, the spewing of hate speaks of planks and sawdust and non-listening and emotionalism and that blindness to the faults of self and the human anger need for self-justification somehow to come vehemently at the usage of vile language and hateful rhetoric. IN THIS … Conversation cannot be had. A rational discourse of ideas and policy, I am pleased to consider and discuss with another of any background regardless of tone or choice or pleasure or good gracious any difference from my own flawed self. Again, though, if it were Sheriff David Clarke, I would fumble all over my words and be unable to speak … the man is strong, convicted, intelligent, and down right … um, handsome. I’ll go with the word handsome as opposed to a word that means really, really warm. Perhaps, I’d just listen to him talk and enjoy the way his cowboy hat fits just right ….… though … I know our conversation would be seasoned with salt and peppered with grace because beyond a shadow of doubt, he would be in agreement with what follows here ….
Let’s begin with Matthew 22:37-40 wherein we are told what the greatest commandments are. Love God. Love your neighbor as yourself. Okay. There’s the beginning – whether you believe Christ crucified and raised or not – Love your neighbor as yourself is a good policy.
Spewing hate and hateful rhetoric is in no way showing this kind of love – the Golden Rule kind of Love. Treat Others The Way You Want to Be Treated.

That for better AND for worse kind of love.
Tough love – like causing folks to stand on their own two feet.
Tough love – pushing folks to stop taking everything personally and on to learning how to reach for the stars and their dreams and win in their relationships.
Tough love – loving folks when it’s ugly and when it hurts, when it’s uncomfortable, when it’s not pretty, when it seems unfair, when folks are … gasp, different from oneself.

Tough love says … People if you claim to be a follower of Jesus, then realize it is not who is in the Government of this nation that matters, but it is God working through YOU as you interact with those he places in your life. This applies across the spectrum from Democrat to Republican to Independent. Stop thinking this election is the end all be all … whether it is Trump [mistakenly] seen as Savior somehow or Trump seen as the devil incarnate, or as some I’ve spoken to believe, Hitler on the rise.
The true issue is YOU. It is ME.
We have a mission. Micah 6:8 says to Act Justly. Love Mercy. Walk Humbly with God.
There is no room for hateful rhetoric. No finger pointing. No more ignorance.
See people as children of God Most High – all Beloved – all those who I and You have NO business spewing unkindness toward. Folks are folks are folks are folks.
My response yesterday evening as I ‘listened’ to some left-leaning fearful, hate-filled speech relational to the conservative candidate’s winning in the poles was simply, “Well, I guess we will watch the Apocalypse unfold then and in that, Maranatha, come quickly, Lord Jesus.”

So be it.
The task is to love and to speak with kindness – to follow James 1:19-20 … Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, 20 because human anger does not produce the righteousness that God desires.
Romans 13: 1 – 10 sums all of this up …
Let everyone be subject to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God. 2 Consequently, whoever rebels against the authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and those who do so will bring judgment on themselves. 3 For rulers hold no terror for those who do right, but for those who do wrong. Do you want to be free from fear of the one in authority? Then do what is right and you will be commended. 4 For the one in authority is God’s servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for rulers do not bear the sword for no reason. They are God’s servants, agents of wrath to bring punishment on the wrongdoer. 5 Therefore, it is necessary to submit to the authorities, not only because of possible punishment but also as a matter of conscience.
6 This is also why you pay taxes, for the authorities are God’s servants, who give their full time to governing. 7 Give to everyone what you owe them: If you owe taxes, pay taxes; if revenue, then revenue; if respect, then respect; if honor, then honor.
8 Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for whoever loves others has fulfilled the law. 9 The commandments, “You shall not commit adultery,” “You shall not murder,” “You shall not steal,” “You shall not covet,”[a] and whatever other command there may be, are summed up in this one command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.”[b] 10 Love does no harm to a neighbor. Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law.

The Writing an Essay Worksheet

For several years, I’ve used a home-grown worksheet in teaching essay writing – as I could not find one online or in any textbook to my own liking. Today as I taught Position Argument essay, without my worksheet in hand for my Comp II course as I’d neglected to bring it to class, I pulled it all from memory … and oh boy … adjustments needed!
For instance – in class, I preach that the audience is to be kept in mind through the entire process. However, my previous worksheet had that on page two of the worksheet. Now, after this evening’s adjustments, it’s right near the top. As I tell my students, so you must consider … anyone who writes a thing is selling an idea and in order to effectively sell, the writer must know the audience. So … adjustments completed.
I’ve passed the completed worksheet along to all of my students this evening, and then had the thought to post it for all of you struggling English students who need a simple guide written in layman’s terms with blanks to fill in. Here it is. Enjoy.
Determine your Controversial Topic:_________________________________________________________________
Then, ask yourself … WHO is my Audience? _________________________________________________________________
Time to Word Vomit. Write no less than 15 things you know about the topic – include opposing viewpoints that you know exist. Keep your audience in mind.
Word Vomit:

_____________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________
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_____________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________
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Determine from the Word Vomit, what is truly your Opinion of the Topic? It may not be what you originally thought it was. Read the Word Vomit carefully.
Opinion:
_________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________
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NOW … using your 15 “Things You Know About Your Topic,” determine your THREE MAIN POINTS – keeping the strongest point for LAST. Let your argument build from weakest to strongest, though maintaining that all points must be influential to your audience. Use audience based points. What will influence the audience?
Main Points:
1.________________________________________________________________
2.________________________________________________________________

(STRONGEST)___________________________________________________

Create a Thesis from Your Opinion and your three main points. It must be DEBATABLE and tell what your Essay/Presentation will be about. It must pass the “So what!” test._________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________
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Create an Outline:
Thesis: _________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________
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I. (Main Point #1) ________________________________________________
a. (Sub Point) _________________________________________
b. _________________________________________________
c. _________________________________________________
II. (Main Point #2) ________________________________________________
a. (Sub Point) _________________________________________
b. _________________________________________________
c. _________________________________________________
III. (Main Point #3) ________________________________________________
a. (Sub Point) _________________________________________
b. _________________________________________________
c. _________________________________________________
Restate Thesis (Conclusion): _____________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________
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Time to research. Using your Main Points and Sub-Points, research information to back up your opinion and support your Thesis. Use this methodological means of keeping yourself organized through the entire process of writing your controversial topic paper. Word Vomit. Thesis. Outline. THEN, Research based on where you have predetermined you are headed with your paper.
Use note-cards/Index Cards when researching. On each note-card, be sure to include not only Works Cited information per reference but also where in the Outline, the note-card information belongs. For instance:
Works Cited page – Label each entry with a letter of the alphabet …

Label each note-card with BOTH … which Works Cited source the information comes from AND where it belongs on your outline …

WOW! You should feel great now! The hard part is done.
With the Outline in hand and your note-cards in order of where they’re used in the Outline … Get to work writing your draft … simply follow the outline.
Don’t forget an interesting opener to your first paragraph. Draw in the reader and bring them to the Thesis statement, ensuring that they do not say, “So what” to your opinion.
Once the draft is written and a conclusion crafted that would draw tears from a child, it is time to revise.
Revise. Revise. Revise.
Why the repetition?

Read it aloud. Your ears will catch things your eyes will never see. FIX these things.
Run the Spell Check and the Grammar Check features of your software. If you’re not sure where these are located … ask someone … or look up at the top of the screen for ‘review.’ They’re in there. Let me see NO squiggly lines when I open your paper on my computer. FIX these things.
Have someone else read through your paper – NOT THE TEACHER who will be grading it. Choose someone you trust. Have them look through it … you are too much in love with your own words to cut what needs killed off. Have objective eyes review for you. FIX the things they discover.

See? Revise. Revise. Revise.
Breathe too … you will never craft the PERFECT paper. Work to be as close to complete as you can. Even Stephen King wants to go back and edit his books once they’re in print. If he can find changes to be made in HIS work … they will also exist in yours. BUT … work to do the very best you can.
Ensure your paper is in MLA format, following all guidelines of the school’s writing handbook MLA section.
Like this …..
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25. WRITE LIKE THE END IS NIGH …. From Chuck Wendig’s 25 of my Personal Rules for Writing and Telling Stories.http://terribleminds.com/ramble/2012/09/11/25-writing-rules-i-presently-live-by/
Best advice I can give right now: write like you have no time left. Write like you’ve got a slow-mo bullet tumbling toward your head and you can’t get out of the way. Write like the end times are here, like the Mayans were right and in a few short months we’re all going to die in a tidal wave / earthquake / pyroclastic shit-fit / bird attack. Think about that: let’s say you had two years left on your clock. What book would you write? What story inside you struggles to get to the front of the line, screaming and yelping and waving its arms like a drowning man? Write that story. It doesn’t have to be the only thing you write. You can take paycheck jobs. But make time for that kind of writing. Writing isn’t just about giving the audience something. It isn’t just entertainment. It’s about giving to yourself, too. Because, bad news: maybe you have two years left, maybe you have twenty, or forty, or sixty, but we’re all gonna end up under the Grim Reaper’s riding mower. So get busy writing what you want to write, or get busy sucking exhaust.