This was my second year teaching in Arizona, and while some amazing things happened (my 8th graders did a Capstone project resulting in a 5 page paper, presentation and project on the evolution of a subject of their choice) there have been some things going on in my 2nd year that have been difficult to share.
Some of it was beyond my control, but a large part is this feeling that
many things that I’ve done have not been as successful as they could have been. I haven’t been
satisfied with most of the things I’ve tried this year. I definitely
feel like I’m in a valley in my teaching career, and I’ve spent a long
time trying to figure out why that is. Last year, I felt that I was trying not to drown because of the sheer amount of work I had to produce for 3.5 different classes. This year, it felt like everything I did wasn't good enough. That I wasn't good enough.
By now you are thinking, "Why is this post on a family history blog?" Well, allow me to explain. As a reward for our 7th and 8th graders, my wonderful and extremely capable co-teachers and I took the students to Antelope Canyon, the Pink Coral Sand Dunes, Bryce and Zion National Parks. We had 33 children, three amazing chaperones and one guide.
I have many fond memories of Southern Utah. We had been there a few times as a family. I grew up with stories of my great great grandparents and the adventures they had in Southern Utah. They were ranchers and farmers. Life was not easy there, but they loved the beauty of it. During the depression, my great grandfather helped build Zion.
We started the trip early on a Saturday morning. We drove to Antelope Canyon and walked through the slots. There were a ton of people and it was crowded. I liked it earlier this year when it wasn't so crowded and I could take pictures like this.
After, we drove to where we would be staying for the evening. It's a little town in Southern Utah, surrounded by red canyons and an hour from Bryce and Zion's. The town is called Kanab, and according to Google has a population of
4,463. Kanab has a Subway, a McDonalds, and a lot of hotels for tourists who want to see the parks (our hotel was amazing!). But, for me, the greatest thing that Kanab had was a cemetery, where my Great-Great Grandparents, Fred and LaVerna are buried, along with my great Aunt and her husband.
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| Driving into Kanab. |
I was on the trip for my students, and trying to help them have a fun time. Our day was packed and we didn't have much personal time. So, early Sunday Morning, before anyone woke up I left the hotel and walked to the cemetery. It was only a 10 minute walk but it was so quiet and peaceful. It was exactly what I needed, because I wasn't able to go to Church that day. As I walked, looking up at the hills and canyons, I realized that it is a sacred thing to walk where your ancestors have walked.
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| Fred in Kanab |
When I found the graves of my Great-Great Grandparents, I just started talking. I've read so much about them from the accounts of my Great Grandma Stapley that I felt like I knew them. LaVerna left her family and moved to a middle of nowhere ranch in Northern Arizona. She taught children of all ages and taught them all of the subjects. She was a one teacher school. I don't know how she did it, but in my book, she is a rock star. She and her family are legends, and my siblings, cousins and I are their legacy.
Life can be difficult and we often feel that we are not reaching our potential. We feel lost and disconnected. Hold tight to the memories of the past, of the people who came before you and paved the way. All of Laverna and Fred's children went to college. Their oldest daughter, my Great Grandmother, Edna, became a teacher. Her grandchildren went to college and now her great grandchildren are going to college and creating a better world.
I will climb out of the Valley eventually. Teaching is a
continuum – there are moments of great highs and moments of tremendous
lows. There have been some lows, but I am trying to hold on to the highs, moments of integrity and growth that proved to me that I am where I'm supposed to be.
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| Bryce Canyon |
"Her mother was an herbalist. She married Arnold Lowe,
but he died of Tuberculosis when he was only 31 years old leaving her with four kids. The
youngest, Lois, was only one year old.
Nita was a master seamstress. She made all of their clothes and could make anything
out of any kind of material. When her granddaughter Janice took an interest to sewing and
would teach herself, she would help her when she would visit her.
Nita made black licorice, gingersnaps, and loved to build huge cities out of cards. She
was also a master storyteller.
One time when Janice was visiting her, her cousin Mike played a trick on her cousin
David. He told David to take Polly’s tail (Nita’s dairy cow, Aunt Polly) and go up and down up
and down to get the milk out. Their dad, Uncle Allen was mad when he found out.
When Janice was in 5th grade she would tell her Grandma Nita all her woes and she
would take her side. Nita would whistle all of the time. She was happy and had a cheerful
disposition. She was a good storyteller. One time she was riding her horse away from some
Indians. She was holding a pail in her teeth and a knitting needle was poking into her leg, but
she rode on.
At Christmas she would dress up like Santa and give oranges out. She had open heart
surgery when she was older." (Pictures, Nita as a young woman, Nita as an adult, Nita and her Mother, Nita and her husband John.)
8. Frank B. Stapley was born in 1915 and died in 2002. He married Lucille Robbins and after she died in 1980, he married Ruth Baker. Pics- Right Frank Stapley, Above- Frank and Lu and Frank and Ruth
