Jeff...

My first year teaching AP English, I had a student who was easily one of my favorite students ever. His name was Jeff, and he graduated in 2003. He was just one of those really smart, really funny kids who's just fun to be around. I actually have his brother this year.

To make a long story short, the other night at Take2, Jeff showed up. He came up to my buddy Ryan and asked, "Is Mr. Tieche here?" Ryan started laughing. Jeff had been searching spiritually, for a little while, when one day some guys on his campus at SJSU asked him if he wanted to be in a bible study. Jeff agreed, and started meeting with the guys. He started reading the Bible with them.

But these guys were from a demonination called the Church of Christ, which has a foundational doctrine that, among other things, says that if you aren't physically baptized in their church, you aren't really saved. Now, I'm not here to nitpick about demoninations, and I'm certainly impressed and grateful that these guys were so gregarious and caring to befriend Jeff. And I'm sure they're sincere. But like a lot of Christians, they kind of did more damage than they helped. A lot of the things they said about God made sense to Jeff, but some of the other stuff just didn't seem to sit right.

Jeff started talking to his parents about this, and they were supportive, but heard "Church of Christ" and thought the guys were Mormon, I think. So they urged Jeff to be careful. And then his mom gave Jeff a newsletter from a church called "The Spirit" which just *happened* to be from my church and which *happened* to haved a cover article written by me. "Why don't you go check out that church, too," Jeff's mom said.

Since then Jeff's been to every Take2. He came and sat next to my wife and I at church last week, and came last night to First Wednesday and we hung out afterwards, talking about life and love and God and other such crucial matters. It's just cool.

Teaching students like Jeff the subject of English is one of the biggest blessings of my life. But this journey...this is so much better.