The last day of the conference was a beautiful sunny day. I only had two workshops and mass, which was probably good, as I am beginning to get the cold that has been going around school and two of the three teachers I am here with have had as well. My first workshop was about being missionary disciples and the presenter was a professional singer who used music to share her message with us. My second was about being cultural mystics and using media to connect with others in the work of evangelization. While I wish both had a few more classroom take aways for me, it was really nice to end the conference on a slightly less heady and slightly more heart-y note.
After the conference we went to Disneyland, where I have never been before. We had a really good time going on rides, seeing the sights and eating all the food. I was the only one in the group who hadn’t gone before and it was really fun to get to spend a little time feeling like a super lucky kid before going back to the grown up work of teaching tomorrow. Unfortunately, the castle was all covered in scaffolding, so I took it as a sign that I probably need to come back to Disney some day.
My biggest take away from this experience is a sense of renewal in my vocation as a Catholic school teacher and even more excitement to share my faith with others. I feel like we so rarely get a chance to meet with so many people doing the work of missionary discipleship or a chance to build them up in their ministries, that this was truly a special experience. I am so grateful for the organizations that paid for me to go, my lovely and fabulous sub, my school and to Willie for single parenting it this weekend. I know there was a lot of sacrifice involved to make this work and I am thankful.