Thoughts from the desk of Dr. Buuck

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Christ-mass

Christmas is all about presence – not presents, but presence.  It’s about the presence of Jesus Christ on earth.  Even the famed Grinch from Dr. Seuss fame gets it.  He said, ” It came without ribbons. It came without tags. It came without packages, boxes or bags.” And he puzzled and puzzled ’till his puzzler was sore. Then the Grinch thought of something he hadn’t before.  “What if Christmas,” he thought, “doesn’t come from a store?  What if Christmas, perhaps, means a little bit more?”

The Grinch is right.  It absolutely means more.  True God and true Man, born of a virgin, wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger.  With one purpose – saving mankind as Savior of the world.  Yet Christmas without Easter is just the birthday of a nice guy.  Christmas with Good Friday and Easter, however, is the most amazing act of love ever conceived.  Christmas is best viewed in light of the cross, where the innocent blood of Jesus Christ, the son of God, was shed for you and me.  As the band Newsboys sing, “Amazing love!  How can it be – that you my King should die for me?!”  More amazingly, He rose again on Easter conquering death once and for all.  It’s in that glorious resurrection that Christmas has its real value.  So, Merry Christ-mass!!

 

“Snow Days”

For posterity’s sake, I must blog about our Snow Day in Las Vegas.  According to news sources here in the Valley, this is the first Snow Day in Las Vegas since 1979.  Since the Clark County public schools closed, Faith followed suit as roads were deemed unsafe for student travel.  It is always wise for decision makers to err on the side of caution in this regard.  And boy were they safe!  Here are some pictures of Faith’s campus taken at 10 a.m. on the morning of our snow day:

Student Center (if you look closely, you can see some snow in the grass)

Student Center (if you look closely, you can see some snow in the grass)

The Chapel/Performing Arts Center (that is wet pavement, not icy pavement)

The Chapel/Performing Arts Center (that is wet pavement, not icy pavement)

 

The gym (again, if you look closely in the grass, you may see some remnants of snow)

The gym (again, if you look closely in the grass, you may see some remnants of snow)

Reflecting back on my 23 year career in education, other “snow days” came to mind.  When I was a student teacher at Milwaukee Lutheran High School in Wisconsin, I recall school closing at noon due to very high temperatures in late August (the school didn’t have air conditioning at that time). 

Milwaukee, WI on a day too hot for school

Milwaukee, WI on a day too hot for school

While teaching English and coaching football at Concordia Lutheran High School in Tomball, TX in the late 80’s, we had several days off because of torrential rains. 

Tomball, TX on a day too wet for school

Tomball, TX on a day too wet for school

As principal at Lutheran High School North in Macomb, MI for more than a decade, we had multiple days off for snow.  These larger snow storms were more frequent in MI, of course, and were met with much joy from students (and teachers!).   

Lutheran High School North in Macomb, MI on a day too snowy for school (or softball!) 

Lutheran High School North in Macomb, MI on a day too snowy for school (or softball!)

 

 

  

 

But today’s snow day in Las Vegas will always be special because of the lack of snow in Summerlin and the sheer rarity of the occasion.  Let’s all appreciate and enjoy it as it may be another 30 years before it happens again.

PS.  Thanks, Julie, for your post. Here are two pictures of the Spring Mountains taken on our “snow day.”

God's creative genius in full display (Spring Mountains)

God's creative genius in full display (Spring Mountains)

The desert covered in snow!

The desert covered in snow!

Sports…

Today in chapel, our high school athletic director, Mr. Bret Walter, recognized some outstanding accomplishments by Faith athletes in the fall season.  Senior Keely Bakken won the state 3A girls cross country championship (by 40 seconds!).  Both the boys and girls soccer teams lost in well played games in the state championship games (both lost to Truckee High School, a school in California – doesn’t that make us Nevada state champs??!!).   Sophomore Ashley Lacher won the state 3A girls golf championship.  Congratulations to all of our fall sports teams, players, and coaches.  To God be the Glory!

Speaking of golf…Though Mark Twain once described golf as “a good walk spoiled,” I love the game.  I don’t play it as often or as well as I would like, but there is something about being out in God’s creation hitting a little white ball with a stick that energizes me.  My wife and I play on our anniversary in late June each year.  In ‘09 I’ve already warned her that we’re playing at Furnace Creek Golf Course in Death Valley, the world’s lowest golf course at 214 feet below sea level.  It should be a toasty 120+ that day -  not much hotter than when Mr. Dunning and I played at Wolf Creek in Mesquite this past August. 

I’m leaving you with some truths about golf….

*Don’t buy a putter until you’ve had a chance to throw it. 
*Never try to keep more than 300 separate thoughts in your mind during your swing. 
*If you’re afraid a full shot might reach the green while the foursome ahead of you is still putting out, you have two options: you can immediately shank a lay-up or you can wait until the green is clear and top a ball halfway there.
*The less skilled the player, the more likely he is to share his ideas about the golf swing. 
*No matter how bad you are playing, it is always possible to play worse. 
*Everyone replaces his divot after a perfect approach shot.
*It is surprisingly easy to hole a fifty foot putt … for a 10 on that hole. 
*The shortest distance between any two points on a golf course is a straight line that passes directly through the center of a very large tree. 
*You can hit a two acre fairway 10% of the time and a two inch branch 90% of the time. 
*If you really want to get better at golf, go back and take it up at a much earlier age. 
*Since bad shots come in groups of three, a fourth bad shot is actually the beginning of the next group of three.  
*When you look up, causing an awful shot, you will always look down again at exactly the moment when you ought to start watching the ball if you ever want to see it again. 
*Every time a golfer makes a birdie, he must subsequently make two triple bogeys to restore the fundamental equilibrium of the universe. 
*To calculate the speed of a player’s downswing, multiply the speed of his back-swing by his handicap; i.e., back-swing 20 mph, handicap 15, downswing = 300 mph. 
*Hazards attract; fairways repel. 
*A ball you can see in the rough from 50 yards away is not yours. 
*If there is a ball on the fringe and a ball in the bunker, your ball is in the bunker. If both balls are in the bunker, yours is in the footprint. 
*It’s easier to get up at 6:00 AM to play golf than at 10:00 to mow the yard. 
*A good drive on the 18th hole has stopped many a golfer from giving up the game. 
*Golf balls are like eggs. They’re white. They’re sold by the dozen. And you need to buy fresh ones each week. 
*It’s amazing how a golfer who never helps out around the house will replace his divots, repair his ball marks, and rake his sand traps. 

Not me, of course!   I always help around the house; don’t I, Honey.  Honey???…..

Long Beach

The reason that there was no school Nov 23-25 was not that we needed extra time to prepare our turkey, gear up for another Detroit Lions’ loss, or start our Christmas shopping prior to Black Friday.  We were off so that our entire faculty and administrative team could attend the LEC/CAPSO conference in Long Beach, California.  The Lutheran Educators Conference (LEC) was Sunday, November 23rd and included many Lutheran schools from California, Nevada, Hawaii, and Arizona; 1300 Lutheran school educators were in attendance.  The day consisted of a worship service with communion and an awards ceremony.  Our very own English teacher extraordinaire, Mrs. Emily Ball, was honored with the High School Teacher of the Year award!!  The evening capped off with a dinner reception at the Long Beach Aquarium.  

Tourist tip:  if you have never laid eyes on one of the more amazing creations of God (The Leafy Sea Dragon), you need to see them at the Aquarium.  I am attaching a photo of one until you can get to Long Beach to see for yourself that I’m not making this up!  : )

 

On Monday and Tuesday, we attended the California Association of Private School Organizations (CAPSO) conference.  This included thousands of teachers from Lutheran, Catholic, Jewish, Seventh Day Adventist, Episcopal, and non denominational Christian Schools from the SW United States.  I attended workshops entitled “Creating High Performing Employees,” “Enrollment by Branding,” “Professional Learning Communities,” ” Laughtership for Educational Leaders,” “The Five Levels of Leadership,” and “Passion + Practices + People = #1.”  I learned something valuable in each sectional, and I am confident each of us brought back some fantastic methods, insights, and strategies that we can use at Faith Lutheran to improve what we do each day.

I am thankful to Mr. Dunning and the Board for investing in our continual growth and development as teachers and leaders.  I would not want to see a doctor or dentist that had not kept up with current research, literature, or best practices, and I’m confident our Faith families do not want their children being taught and led by educators who have not continually sought out the latest and greatest in education.

The trip to Long Beach was a great way to “keep our swords sharp.”  The only bad news was I learned that the school van I was driving doesn’t enjoy going 70 mph…but other than a few fillings falling out from the rattling, we’re back safe and sound : )

Veteran’s Day

A quick thought about Veteran’s Day…

Take some time to thank God for the many veterans – both alive and deceased – who have sacrificed in service to our great country throughout its proud history.  I’m humbled and impressed by those in the military who put themselves in harm’s way for folks like me that they don’t even know.  It’s so amazingly selfless…some even died so that we would be free. 

It reminds me of the Son of God who died so that we would be free.  That single, incredible, indescribable act of love saved us.  Romans 5:8 “God demonstrates His own love for us in this: while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”   

Thank you veterans!  Thank you Jesus!!

In the photo:  Marine Staff Sgt. Mark Graunke, Jr., Iraq War Vet, Hugs Pearl Harbor Survivor/WWII Vet Houston James (Graunke Lost a Leg, Hand, and Eye Defusing a Bomb in Iraq)

2nd Inning

My doctoral dissertation advisor, Dr. Michael Kurimay at Marquette University, told me at the beginning of my dissertation that the hardest words to write of one’s dissertation are the very first words.  I suppose the same can be said of a blog.  Once you start writing, thoughts should flow – or so I hope.  At least for me, it’s a little bit of a struggle to get those first words typed.  But here we go… 

Before the 2008-2009 school year started, the Faith Lutheran administrators had our annual retreat at the Casablanca hotel in Mesquite in early August.  As the newbie principal, I asked my fellow leaders what made Faith Lutheran special.  Here is a summary of their insights:

* There is a true Christian culture on campus.

* Faith has experienced an incredible amount of growth and success in a short period of time.

* Great students.

* Faculty and staff have a servant attitude and love kids.

* Athletic opportunities for middle school students.

* Number of students and parents baptized.

* Committed feeder schools.

* We do things the right way.

Now that we’re into the second quarter, I see the wisdom and accuracy of these opinions from my colleagues.  While I have not yet experienced baptisms (these happen in a January chapel), I have seen firsthand all of the above.

I am very impressed with the student body.  Their behavior, treatment of one another, attitude, gifts, and abilities are truly amazing.  Typically, great kids come from great families.  We are blessed to have a wonderful partnership with the supportive parents and guardians of our students.

When I met with each member of the high school faculty at the beginning of this school year, I heard two themes continue to emerge from those chats:  1) we have great kids here, and 2) it is a blessing to work here.  Again, after ten weeks of my first school year at Faith, I completely concur!

Faith has been uniquely blessed by God with a caring and committed faculty and staff, supportive families and constituents, excellent feeder schools, phenomenal growth, diverse opportunities for student involvement after school, great vision and execution of mission from the board and Mr. Dunning, and awesome students.  To God alone be the glory!  I am supremely confident that as we continue to “lift high the cross,” we can become one of the world’s premiere Christian schools.

For those of you familiar with the “Faith Family,” what do you think makes Faith special?  Comment away!

In the game…

I’ve sat on the sidelines for too long, and I’m tired of the bench.  Actually, I haven’t even been on the team; I’ve been a spectator.  Even that is a stretch.  In reality, I haven’t even been in the ballpark.  I’m talking about the “blogging” game.  Other than Mr. Dunning’s blog, I’ve never even read one.  I certainly have never posted a comment on one.   Yet I read books like Wikinomics and The World is Flat, and I try to stay up to speed on Web 2.0, and I realize that collaborating on ideas and actively contributing to the world’s discussions are critical components of an educated and informed citizen in the 21st century.  So I am stepping up to the plate and starting to blog.  My passions are Jesus, leadership, sports, high schools, and all things Faith Lutheran so I expect to blog about such things as the days, weeks, months, and years go on.  I value your reaction to my thoughts and look forward to joining you on the blogging team.