Schaeffer & dyslexia

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When I taught special education, I posted examples around the classroom of famous people with disabilities. Lee and I are now serving as the coordinators for special needs ministry for children at our church, so I loved seeing this interesting tidbit on Justin Taylor's blog a couple days ago.
An interesting, encouraging, and little-known tidbit about Francis Schaeffer:
A large obstacle to his development, which went unnoticed, was severe dyslexia. In later years many of his students at L’Abri noticed what seemed to them amusing mispronunciations: he spoke of Mary Quaint (instead of Quant), the film Dr. Strange Glove (instead of Dr. Strangelove), and Chairman Mayo (instead of Mao). His youngest daughter Deborah Middelmann remembers him frequently calling down to her for the spelling of simple words like who and which, even when she was as young as five or six.
—Collin Duriez, Francis Schaeffer: An Authentic Life, pp. 17-18.
 Also, another good JT post this week was on my favorite Bible for preschoolers, The Big Picture Story Bible. 

(Image above borrowed from my good friend Wikipedia.)

What I Am and Am Not Looking Forward To

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I am not looking forward to...
...presenting my thesis proposal tomorrow in front of my panel of four professors, who will ask me to leave the room at least once and possibly twice to discuss whether or not my proposal is worthy of being approved.
Hanging out in the hallway while they judge my proposal in the room.
Trying to figure out the right things to say when they ask questions.
Driving to Greenville and back.
Finding a parking spot on or near campus.
 
I am looking forward to...
...being done with my thesis proposal and being able to start actual research.
Having some prayer time in the hall while I wait for the thesis committee to make their decision.
Jamming to Pandora in the car.
Having a nonfat pumpkin spice latte with a bit of chai added in as a reward on the way home.
Snuggling up with Lee in the evening once I return home.
Friday.
The weekend.

A parable based on Psalm 23

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I love the book of Psalms. Psalm 23 is tried and true and commonly used, but it’s also one of my favorites.

That’s why I was excited to find Sammy and His Shepherd. I requested it to review from Reformation Trust because I love children’s books. And I love Psalm 23. (I know I said that already. It’s my party blog, and I can cry be redundant if I want to.)

This is the story of Sammy, short for Samuel, who has a loving shepherd. And the story of a sheep who had no name and an unkind shepherd but who is bought and redeemed and loved and named Precious by Sammy’s shepherd. As she learns about the blessings and responsibilities of being a sheep of the shepherd’s, we (parents and children) learn lessons about being children of our Shepherd.

Each of the eleven chapters is titled with a verse or part of a verse from Psalm 23, and then that chapter illustrates the verse through the parable of Sammy and his shepherd. To help parents in using this as a Bible study or in just discussing it further, a lengthy appendix in the back includes additional verses, questions for discussion, and action steps for each chapter.

I consider this another must-have for your children’s library. Love, love, love it.


Then we your people, the sheep of your pasture,
       will praise you forever;
       from generation to generation
       we will recount your praise.
Psalm 79:13

Many thanks to Reformation Trust Publishing for allowing me, an unworthy sheep, to review this. They didn’t ask for a positive review, only an honest one.