104 • <strong>December</strong> <strong>2017</strong>
<strong>Hometown</strong> <strong>Rankin</strong> READER SPOTLIGHT April Carter How long have you lived in <strong>Rankin</strong> County? 7 years. Tell us about your family. I have four daughters. Anna is a freshmen at Mississippi College, Beth is a junior at NWRHS, Catie is a freshmen at NWRHS, and Dorothy is in 4th grade at NWR elementary. What are your Thanksgiving Day family traditions? Leading up to Thanksgiving Day, we have a “thankful vine”. We have a rope draped over the kitchen table, and we write things we are thankful for on paper leaves (things as big as family and as small as chocolate or no homework days) and attach the leaves to the rope. Over a couple of weeks, our vine gets very full. What about Christmas family traditions? Christmas Eve, we always go to the Christmas Eve service at Brandon Baptist with our extended family, and then go back to my parents’ house for chili, seafood gumbo, and Happy Birthday Jesus cake. What led you to teaching? I’ve always enjoyed helping other people understand things, trying to explain things, or giving examples so what didn’t make sense before becomes clear. What is the best part of your job? I really enjoy the relationships with students and the opportunity to encourage them and give them new perspectives and ways to think through difficult issues. Do you have a favorite book? This is NOT a fair question for an English teacher! There is a book that I first read in the 7th grade that I tend to re-read about once a year, just for fun, called Celia Garth. It’s historical fiction, set in the Revolutionary War. Reading it for me is like eating comfort food. Do you have a favorite childhood memory? Traveling to my grandparents’ house for Christmas–both sets lived far away with one family in New Mexico and the other in West Virginia. Visiting their houses and being with all my cousins and aunts and uncles was a treat, something we got excited about, and counted down towards for weeks in advance. What are your three favorite places to eat in <strong>Rankin</strong> County? El Sombrero, Newk’s, and Lost Pizza. What is a favorite memory of living in <strong>Rankin</strong> County? Honestly, it’s a little every-day thing more than a big event. It’s the witty, funny conversations around the dinner table with my girls. I love hearing about what’s going on with them, and they can be hilarious when they get together. Those are my favorite memories, hands-down. Where do you see yourself in 10 years? I think I will be teaching–probably helping college students learn to think deeply and to write clearly, whether that is still through teaching dual credit at Northwest <strong>Rankin</strong> or in some different setting. Who is someone you admire and why? I know it’s a little cliché, but I admire my parents for their stability and consistency. They are an incredible resource for so many people because they have spent their lifetimes pursuing the Lord, listening for His direction, seeking His wisdom. They are my most valuable sounding board and are so practically helpful in so many ways. What is your favorite Christmas movie? It’s a Wonderful Life. Favorite Bible verse? That changes all the time and depends on the season I’m in, and what the Lord is showing me. Right now, maybe it’s Hebrews 12:1-2: “Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.” Share some things you like to do in your spare time. Read fiction (not surprising for an English teacher), shop, and be with my girls. Name three things on your bucket list. Traveling in Europe, publishing a piece of my own writing, and maybe owning a house with a great front porch and a peaceful view. What are some fun things to do in <strong>Rankin</strong> County on the weekends? I may not be the best person to answer this question. My weekends are fairly full of essay grading, grocery shopping, and laundry. Maybe I should look into this… . What is your favorite thing about <strong>Hometown</strong> Magazines? Finding familiar faces and names and seeing what friends and acquaintances are doing. n <strong>Hometown</strong> <strong>Rankin</strong> • 105