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At the crossroads on the best possible corner
I should have figured August would be full of emotion. (It always is for teachers—and I am still in that category. Probably always will be.) But this emotion has been building up for 10 months. And today is the final day of that period. I must recognize publicly this time at the crossroads. If you know me at all, you know my hope is that my message might reach someone else—down the road. Ten months ago, almost to the day, I walked away from my school, my position, my community with a heavy heart. Because my loved ones were struggling, I was near heartbreak and could not concentrate on my…
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A Typical Classroom—A-typical Attitude
I heard a song today on the car radio. It was about “living to work” or “working to live.” Those were the actual lyrics. Also the basis for most of my thinking right now. A google search confirmed that this is definitely on many minds—turning up millions of hits for those six words. The thing is, teachers choose this field as a way of life, a way of being. Art and craft. A calling. Teaching requires something more than some 9 to 5s. Call it compassion like I did here. Or call it an identity. What I consider here might help teachers like me wondering how to feel great again…
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Stop Blaming Teachers
Is retaining qualified teachers a thing of the past? Sustaining work that valued head and heart used to be important; the foundation of our teaching. We took care to wrap the gifts of our classroom families with love and attention. We used our creative vision to engage students’ souls. We endeavored to give students and families a place to feel welcome. In return, we felt our gifts of teaching mattered—not just to the students in our classrooms, but to the community. It is not this that was wrong. This love wasn’t enough to make every student a successful reader, granted. But no learning happens without it. Not in a…
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Finding Peace Through the Retreating Path
This past weekend I enjoyed a very moving and restorative retreat with a group of individuals—no longer strangers. Often, people, my husband included, ask me, “What do you do on retreat?” The time is best described as exploring the many paths life presents, with others, knowing this is your one journey. Like the snow in Minnesota, that’s pretty deep! I usually discover something profound about myself and my situation. It was a time of contemplation within a time of contemplation for me as I currently deviate from the teacher path. This Courage and Renewal retreat brought me back to Parker Palmer’s words about a teacher’s “inner landscape”. I came home…
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Warren Buffet does not keep a full calendar and other time-management tidbits
Warren Buffet told Charlie Rose and Bill Gates that sitting and thinking may be of much greater priority than filling every moment in your schedule. The clip, labeled Busy is the New Stupid, came across my feed with obvious interest. I don’t know if I agree with the stupid part, but busy is an idea that is far overused often, in my opinion, creating a victim mentality. To have time is the most precious thing. Even WB can’t buy more. Most, including me, think more time would somehow alleviate some suffering and stress. There is a constant need to get things done and feelings of always falling short. Surely more…
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Teacher Burnout or Compassion Satisfaction
What innate factors and characteristics make for long lasting and sustainable empathy? My brother is an emergency room and flight nurse trained in transporting patients. These patients are of course in the worst stages of trauma and often in life-sustaining mode when he meets them. Sometimes he’s successful in the transport. The measure is not always qualitative. This job requires much patience and on-your-feet thinking under very serious stress and time constraints. Some patients don’t survive. That is something he must deal with on a regular basis. It takes a special kind of person to withstand this kind of pressure and fatigue. I am not trying to compare my job…
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Dear 2019, Please be kind.
I’ve been writing for about a month; free from work responsibilities (what I call freedom) for just over two months and now the old year is coming to a close, new year looming—everyone is talking about it. It offers everyone a space for reflection and renewal. How will I show up? How will I rise to the the shine of sun on January 1st? Will I retreat and close the shades or let the sun inspire new opportunities and possibilities? I’ve imagined for two months the transformation to come. It’s out there. Not just the new year. I have imagined the next part of life and bear witness to the…
