Introductions

Hello to anyone and everyone. My name is Lucas Nikkel and since you have no idea who I am, I figure I’ll introduce myself and make sure we know each other by the time this is all said and done. I am a teacher and am currently 24 years old. I’ve been teaching just for the past semester so right now that is close to four months or so. I’m teaching the best subject, English. This would explain my desire to start a blog, I suppose.

I am married and have been to my lovely wife, Leah, for the last 2 and a half years. It’s been a wild journey and it’s been a real adventure. She is a nurse at the University of Iowa in Iowa City and she has been my inspiration to attempt to pursue writing.

I am teaching 7th, 9th, and 10th grade at Montezuma High School. Montezuma, IA is between Iowa City and Des Moines. The long stretch of highway where you begin to wonder where you are, that’s about Montezuma. I also teach Journalism to the junior high and high school. I direct the plays and half of the Iowa High School Speech Association chapter. Needless to say, I am busy…really, really busy. I am much more busy than I thought I ever would be.

I suppose this would be a good time to transition into why I decided to start a blog and why I think this may be a good a idea for me. When you a writer that truly desires to master your craft, you begin to experiment. I suppose, this is my way of experimenting. I want to see if there is a response and it is positive or negative. I have several avenues that my God, Jesus Christ, can lead me down at this junction. I really love teaching and I know that this is where I am called but my desire to teach isn’t necessarily restrained to English. Don’t get me wrong I wouldn’t be teaching any other subject but I think that God will soon call me to step out of my comfort zone once again. This requires faith and simultaneous action. This is my action. This is my first step.

With each first step there is a lot of hesitation and considering. I have been working on a book for years since I was about 14 years old. I was considering publishing sections as I work on it and getting feedback. That is an option. I also am considering an avenue of lecturing or teaching in churches. I have grown-up in the church and am wondering if God would have me do something among his body. Really, God decides. I don’t need human feedback but it is time for me to put action to my plans and see where he takes me.

The majority of these entries will simply be reflections. I was an education major so reflecting is something I have done a lot. If you’re an education major you can understand and sympathize. With each entry, I will most likely be addressing a specific topic that I see either among my students, news, or really anywhere that you can learn something from. One thing that you learn as a teacher is that learning is intentional and you never learn better than if you teach.