I am so proud and impressed!

First let me explain a little about Mormon (Latter-Day-Saint) culture. Every leader in our church, from the prophet all the way down to the nursery teachers, are volunteer. No one gets paid. When we have an assignment, it is called a calling. Depending on the calling, we receive this assignment from either the Bishop - the leader of our ward - or the Stake President - the leader of our stake. (Wards are small units, usually divided by neighborhood, and each stake has so many wards in it.)

My calling right now is to teach the 9-11 year old boys in primary (the children's organization). Every Sunday we meet for 2 hours; the first hour learning church songs and principles as a group of all the children ages 3 - 11, then we divide into classes for the second hour.

I LOVE my calling. I have 10 boys on the roll, and usually have 5-8 boys in attendance. When I first started teaching, only 1 boy was there consistently, and that's because his mom is the leader of the women's organization (Relief Society) and he had to be there. Two brothers would wander in for class if they made it at all. Another set of brothers missed more than they came, and they, too were always late.

Part of the curriculum the church provides us tells us where each age group is developmentally. I learned that this age group - boys or girls -is competitive. And being boys, they are naturally VERY competitive. So we came up with a contest, and it is amazing how well these boys have responded.

It's very simple. I have every boy's name on a piece of paper and they earn points for different things; being on time, bringing their scriptures, singing the songs (which 11 yr old boys generally don't enjoy doing), answering questions, helping where needed, etc. Each month, the boy with the most points gets to play me, in front of the whole class, a game of air hockey. If that boy wins, the whole class gets ice cream. If I win, no ice cream.

I've had parents laughing as they tell me their boys want them to take them to church so they can be on time even though their parents aren't ready; "Just drop me off then come back home and get ready." These boys are consistently bringing their scriptures and singing beautifully at the top of their lungs. They are offering to sit with the little kids if that teacher needs to take someone to the restroom, or they are quickly raising their hands to offer to read a scripture or offer a prayer.

So this is my story. Yesterday was like any other Sunday. Five boys in class 3 on time, the other 2 not too far behind. They helped set up chairs, they sang, answered questions, etc. But at one point, the primary sang a hymn and I turned to the boys and said, "I love this song when it's men's voices. It's very powerful." Next thing I know, they are whispering amongst themselves then one boy raises his hand and says, "We were wondering if our class could come up front and sing this song to everyone?"

I almost cried. These five young men stood in front of all and sang this beautiful hymn. No prompt from me, other than saying I liked that song.

But that's not my whole story. Then during the group lesson (sharing time) these young men continuously were able to tell scripture stories like they knew the scriptures front to back. I can guarantee I still probably couldn't remember the stories as well as they did. What a tribute to their parents! Eleven year old boys, not only knowing, but sharing the gospel with those around them, and doing it well, and happily.

I will definitely write each of these parents a note so they know how proud of this group they should be. I know I am extremely proud! Way to go boys!