In our church, the young women have a program entitled "Personal Progress". It's been around forever, seeing as it was part of the youth program when I was a teenager :-) It is supposed to be the equivalent of scouting for boys.
When Johannah first turned 12, and I realized that this program would be part of our lives, I was extremely disappointed. In comparison to scouting, and the Eagle Scout rank, it seemed piddly. In fact, Johannah wished that there was an actual equivalent program for her, since she had lived through her brothers earning their Eagle rank, and she wanted to participate in the same kind of programs.
I personally didn't have much respect for the program because it hadn't played a large part in my life. When deadlines were approaching, I would simply open the book, see what goals I could "fill in" for the past year and get things signed off.
After seeing Johannah finish the program at the young age of 15 last week, I now feel completely the opposite about the program. This program is inspired.
The purpose of the program is in the name. It is supposed to be "personal", and it's a chance to "progress".
Unlike the boys, I have done almost nothing to help Johannah finish the requirements. She has done it all on her own. And unlike my teenage methods of completing it, she has taken the program to heart and has honestly progressed as a human being because of it.
The thing of which I am the most proud of Hannah is that she has actually set goals along the way. She has set hard goals too. At times, she actually wasn't successful, and she had to reevaluate and recommit.
An example: As much as we love to eat the never-ending food at Interlochen, the endless buffets wreak havoc on our womanly figures. Johannah had gained more weight than she wanted to have on her figure. She set a goal to lose 10% of her body weight. She started running, and actually competed in the Zombie Run with John and Glo. While she got stronger, she didn't lose any weight. She looked at it as a "failure" in her personal progress.
Enter me. If there's one thing I know how to do, it's lose weight. Not that I exhibit enough self-control to do it most of the time, but I know the tricks of the trade.
Johannah approached me because she was frustrated. We laid out a healthy diet for her. Not starvation, not deprivation. Healthy eating, low calories. It took her several months, and a lot of self-control, but she lost the weight! Her clothes are all too big on her now, and she feels great about herself. Too, she has kept the weight off, and continues to drag me to the gym daily. Now that's progress! I was seriously so proud of her, and she feels so much better about herself.
Another example. Johannah needed to learn a new skill such as sewing, or cooking. She's already great in the kitchen, and she didn't have much interest in sewing. So, at Interlochen, she decided she wanted to learn how to silk-screen a t-shirt. Mark had done it the year before, and Johannah was interested in doing it herself so that she could create t-shirts for her chamber ensemble.
This was no easy task since she wasn't a high school student, and since she wasn't taking a formal class. She basically had to beg some instructor to work on the off-hour and help her. I will never forget the day she biked back to the house with a giant silk screen in her hand, and brushes and bottles in her bike basket (don't even get me started on the fact that she wasn't wearing a helmet, and she rode down a busy road..with one hand on the handlebars!) It was a lengthy process, meeting with the person, and being graphically artistic (not something at which Johannah professes to be good). She loved the t-shirt because she had made it, and I loved the t-shirt because she learned how to do it herself. And that's the whole point of the program.
It's unfortunate that the Young Women's leaders didn't let her speak about her accomplishments, but on the way home, we had our own little testimony meeting in the car. Glo, seeing Hannah do such an extraordinary job, wants to earn her Personal Progress....quickly. She was doing what I had done as a teenager. Looking back on her life and seeing if there were any things she could "plug into" the program to get it done. Johannah explained to Glo that the program isn't about finishing. It's about progressing, and that Johannah would help Glo find her own projects and set her own goals.
When Johannah first turned 12, and I realized that this program would be part of our lives, I was extremely disappointed. In comparison to scouting, and the Eagle Scout rank, it seemed piddly. In fact, Johannah wished that there was an actual equivalent program for her, since she had lived through her brothers earning their Eagle rank, and she wanted to participate in the same kind of programs.
I personally didn't have much respect for the program because it hadn't played a large part in my life. When deadlines were approaching, I would simply open the book, see what goals I could "fill in" for the past year and get things signed off.
After seeing Johannah finish the program at the young age of 15 last week, I now feel completely the opposite about the program. This program is inspired.The purpose of the program is in the name. It is supposed to be "personal", and it's a chance to "progress".
Unlike the boys, I have done almost nothing to help Johannah finish the requirements. She has done it all on her own. And unlike my teenage methods of completing it, she has taken the program to heart and has honestly progressed as a human being because of it.
The thing of which I am the most proud of Hannah is that she has actually set goals along the way. She has set hard goals too. At times, she actually wasn't successful, and she had to reevaluate and recommit.
An example: As much as we love to eat the never-ending food at Interlochen, the endless buffets wreak havoc on our womanly figures. Johannah had gained more weight than she wanted to have on her figure. She set a goal to lose 10% of her body weight. She started running, and actually competed in the Zombie Run with John and Glo. While she got stronger, she didn't lose any weight. She looked at it as a "failure" in her personal progress.
Enter me. If there's one thing I know how to do, it's lose weight. Not that I exhibit enough self-control to do it most of the time, but I know the tricks of the trade.
Johannah approached me because she was frustrated. We laid out a healthy diet for her. Not starvation, not deprivation. Healthy eating, low calories. It took her several months, and a lot of self-control, but she lost the weight! Her clothes are all too big on her now, and she feels great about herself. Too, she has kept the weight off, and continues to drag me to the gym daily. Now that's progress! I was seriously so proud of her, and she feels so much better about herself.
Another example. Johannah needed to learn a new skill such as sewing, or cooking. She's already great in the kitchen, and she didn't have much interest in sewing. So, at Interlochen, she decided she wanted to learn how to silk-screen a t-shirt. Mark had done it the year before, and Johannah was interested in doing it herself so that she could create t-shirts for her chamber ensemble.
This was no easy task since she wasn't a high school student, and since she wasn't taking a formal class. She basically had to beg some instructor to work on the off-hour and help her. I will never forget the day she biked back to the house with a giant silk screen in her hand, and brushes and bottles in her bike basket (don't even get me started on the fact that she wasn't wearing a helmet, and she rode down a busy road..with one hand on the handlebars!) It was a lengthy process, meeting with the person, and being graphically artistic (not something at which Johannah professes to be good). She loved the t-shirt because she had made it, and I loved the t-shirt because she learned how to do it herself. And that's the whole point of the program.
It's unfortunate that the Young Women's leaders didn't let her speak about her accomplishments, but on the way home, we had our own little testimony meeting in the car. Glo, seeing Hannah do such an extraordinary job, wants to earn her Personal Progress....quickly. She was doing what I had done as a teenager. Looking back on her life and seeing if there were any things she could "plug into" the program to get it done. Johannah explained to Glo that the program isn't about finishing. It's about progressing, and that Johannah would help Glo find her own projects and set her own goals.
I realized then that the program had been completely successful, but only because Johannah chose to embrace it. John always says that she's the most self-motivated child we have, and I must agree. Seeing her recite the entire "The Living Christ" by memory, and seeing the tears stream down her face as she bore testimony of her Savior proved to all of us that she is a better, more beautiful young woman because of the Personal Progress program.
Johannah has grown into such a beautiful young woman. She has accomplished so many amazing things! And she just gets prettier each time I see her.. I'm so happy for her!
ReplyDeleteWay to go Johannah! :)
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