Category: Uncategorized

A few weeks ago my daughter shared that she is being intentional about telling other women when she notices things about them. Instead of just thinking that they look nice or they handled something well or they went out of their way to do something kind, she is telling them.

Twice in the last week I had another woman tell me than she liked my outfit. Total strangers. It felt great!

I need to be more intentional about lifting others up.

Friday night I had a teacher thank me for pushing her outside of her comfort zone. She is the one who embraced a new challenge, and she was thanking me. It made my week.

I know that this advice applies to men and women alike. But sometimes the universe seems to be writing this blog for me, and in the last two weeks it has been reminding me how important it is that women support each other and lift each other up.

My daughter shared that she is focusing on this. Then a friend posted this the very next day.

“Comparison is the thief of joy.” Theodore Roosevelt

I will never be as pretty as she is.

Her hair is so much cuter than mine.

She is smarter than I am.

I wish I was as clever, as thoughtful, as successful, as fit, as beautiful…as she is.

Comparison is the thief of joy.

All I have to be today is the best version of myself. All I have to aspire to be tomorrow is an even better version of myself.

You are beautiful.

You are smart.

You are capable beyond measure.

You matter. And you are loved.

Thank you to all of the people who have built me up over and over and over. My goal is to do that for others.

I am trying to become a better golfer. I’ve been golfing for a few years, but I’ve never really worked at getting better. My goal was just to have fun…still is.

In my first year I mastered scooping up the ball as we drove by it in the cart.

In my second year I mastered picking up the ball on the green with my putter. (A friend gave me the right kind of putter which was the key.)

This year I am actually trying to improve my game. It’s a work in progress. Time at the driving range is often frustrating.

It takes time.

I was thinking what I really need is a golf montage. A motivating song. Clips of me swinging and missing. Then slowly, clips of me getting better. By the end of song, I am a master golfer. Just that easy.

But it’s not.

In the real world, things take time. Getting healthy. Training for a marathon. Learning to golf.

There are times, many times in fact, when we just wish it was as easy as a montage in a movie.

But it’s not.

If you are working toward a goal, trying to learn a new skill, walking through some hard times, persevere. It’s not as easy as a montage, but it is worth it on the other side.

I work in education. Our goal, our hope is to help create great people. We spend a lot of our time talking about the college and career readiness skills that our children will need when they leave us.

But what about today?

I have spent the majority of my career working in middle school. I cannot tell you the number of times I have been engaged in a conversation about “what they will need to do in high school.” We focus a great deal of energy on preparing them for the next level.

But what about today?

I am not advocating that we abandon our work preparing students for what lies ahead of them. Our world needs nothing less.

But what about today?

“The real world” is not some time in the future. It is not some place where our students will one day arrive.

The real world is here and now, and whether you are 49 or 29 or 9, you are living in the real world.

Enjoy it. Delight in it. Yes, spend some time and energy preparing for what comes next. But each day is gift, and today is the goal.

I had some of the best snorkeling of my life over spring break. In Roatan, Honduras I spent time swimming along the shelf of the second largest barrier reef in the world. It was incredible. I was swimming with a thousand Nemos and Dorys, and gliding above the most amazing display of corals I’ve ever seen.

Corals are alive. They are not plants or rocks or inanimate objects. They are made up of thousands of tiny animals, and those animals are fragile.

They appear tough and strong and beautiful, but one touch can kill an entire colony. Oils from our skin can destroy the unseen layer of protection that keeps them alive without a single visible piece of evidence.

People are a little (or a lot) like that as well.

We appear tough and strong and beautiful, and we are. But one comment, one social media post, one moment of disrespect from someone we trust can damage our protective layer.  Without meaning to, without even knowing we have done it in some cases, we can damage what keeps someone feeling emotionally safe.

People, and corals, are not as strong as they appear. It is why our community has spent time this year focused on the #BeKind initiative.

I guess I was just reminded that we are all a little (or a lot) like coral. Handle with care!

Last night the Mustangs won a state basketball championship! They’ve never done that before. It was an amazing run in the state tournament, and it was a decisive win.

But that’s not what happened for the boys earlier in the week.

The boys lost in Districts in what was literally a Sports Center moment a Sports Center moment. You have got to believe that the Warriors will remember that moment for the rest of their lives…and so will the Mustangs.

It’s one thing after an amazing quarter to have your hopes for state dashed. It’s an entirely different thing to have them dashed in the final second of the game and then watch it played over again on the national stage.

These are the moments we live for in sports, and this week the Stangs suffered a difficult loss and celebrated a win at the highest level for the first time in the school’s history. What a ride!

For one team, it will be the most exciting game of their lives. For the other team, I hope it is a moment that defines their character and their grace and their dignity in defeat.

Because we all suffer defeats…lots and lots of defeats.

One of the best things we can learn when we get knocked down is to get back up.

More important is to learn to get back up with dignity and to recognize that sometimes in our defeat lies another person’s victory. It’s not fun. Of course I wish the victory was ours. I wish our boys’ team was the one being celebrated on Sports Center, but we weren’t.

But we will be.

When we learn to fall down and rise again, when we learn to do it with class, we will be victorious.

I spent too many years watching my father root for the Cubs not to know that losing is hard.

But I also got to see them win a World Series.

There will be a time for us all to win, and in those times I hope we do it with grace and remember the sting on the other side of the court.

And there will be a time when we are the ones feeling the sting.

It was a wild ride this week, and I am proud of both those teams.

I spent Saturday catching up on things around the house, watching Netflix, playing games, and curling up on the couch with a book. There was a blizzard after all, and you should always take what the day gives you.

We are campers. Nothing beats napping in a chair under the tress, reading a good book by the lake, or roasting s’mores by the fire. It relaxes me. But without fail, when my family goes on vacation, it rains. No kidding. Every time. We’ve gone camping in places that were experiencing a drought…until we got there. I have so many pictures of my children on vacation in the rain. Rain can put a damper on a camping trip unless you learn a valuable lesson.

Take what the day gives you!

A friend we camp with taught me this early in our Bounder Motorhome adventures. He found a way to enjoy naps inside when it rained or a day in the water when it was brutally hot. While I was pouting, he was embracing what the day gave us.

I love the anticipation of a party or a concert or a vacation. It helps extend the fun beyond the actual event. But when it doesn’t go as planned, I used to get disappointed. One of the most powerful lessons I’ve learned is to take what the day gives you.

Once I embraced what the day gave me, I could laugh when the rain fell just as our cruise ship was pulling out of the harbor or the time we rode an intense ride at Adventureland in an absolute downpour.

This weekend gave us a blizzard. I got the most amazing text just as the snow began to get heavy from a friend who was in a chair with a warm drink and a book. She was enjoying her blizzard. It really was beautiful.

The weather can mess up our plans…so can our attitude.

Take what the day gives you, and enjoy the fact that rain on every single vacation you’ve ever taken results in a ridiculously large collection of one of your children in a poncho. I wouldn’t trade a single moment of it.

Political drama inspires me. It always has. I know every line of Hamilton, but likely more concerning is that I know almost every line from every single episode of The West Wing. It is possible I have spent too much of my life watching television and movies.

I was struck this week by a line in the Hamilton song “Non-Stop.” Alexander is trying to convince Aaron Burr to help him write The Federalist Papers, but Burr says, “The Constitution is a mess.”

The response is what got my attention. “So it needs some amendments…we have to start somewhere.”

I think there is a belief that leaders somehow have all the answers. Of course that is not true. Don’t get me wrong, I hope that people have studied and reflected and gained experiences to help them lead, but leadership in itself does not infuse you with magical powers. In most cases, leaders are just the ones who are willing to start somewhere.

And we all get it wrong sometimes…that’s why we need amendments.

Our job, all of our jobs, is to do our best with what we know at the time. It is also our job though to learn more and to do better. Leaders are learners. When we know better, we do better.

Of course Aaron Sorkin knows this too. In one of my favorite scenes of The West Wing, when discussing one of the most long-standing issues in the world, Leo says to Sam, “You’re one of the big minds of your generation. Have you thought of anything yet?”

Sam says, “No.” But he adds, “You know I’m not done thinking, right?”

As you start a new week, look for places where you can lead. Choose to be the one who is willing to start somewhere.

I’ve thought a lot this week about what I am passing on to my children. They are such bright lights in this world, and I am blessed beyond measure to have them in my life. They have grown into amazing women, and I am grateful for the part I have had in that.

We had a good week, but that will not always be the case.

As they are doing all of this adulting (as they call it), they are no doubt going to have challenges. I know I cannot protect them from hard things, but I hope that I have passed on an understanding that sometimes it is what it is.

Most things in life can be changed. Hair color, clothes, jobs, relationships. In fact, most things in life do change. It’s the very nature of things.

It is what it is, but we can almost always change it and make it better.

We can see hunger and provide food. We can see hurt and provide comfort. We can see need and provide help.

Rarely do we ever have to accept that it is what it is.

But sometimes in life it is what it is, and we can’t change it. There are things that happen that are beyond our control.

But even in those moments, we have some control.  We can control our response. We can choose to stay positive. We can choose to see the good in things. We can choose to get help when doing that is hard.

I wish with all my heart that I could wrap my children up in a bubble and keep anything hard from happening. Of course I cannot. But I can pass on this prayer…

God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change.

The courage to change the things I can.

And the wisdom to know the difference.

I get a little nervous when I post about something I know is controversial, but what good is a blog if you aren’t willing to share your truth.  I saw a funny video on social media today.  On one side of the screen was a person solving a 2 digit multiplication problem using an algorithm.  It was quick and effective.  On the other side was a teacher showing how to solve the problem using a much more complex and time consuming method.  The point of the video was to poke fun at “new math.”

I have a different perspective on this than others, even likely in my own family.  I was good at school.  I am a visual and auditory learner, so traditional instruction worked well for me.  I was motivated and engaged, and I always wanted to please my teacher.  I took good notes and memorized algorithms, so I rocked my mathematics grade.  But I had no idea what any of it meant.  I could multiply any number of digits, divide the longest of numbers accurately, convert fractions to decimals and vice versa, all of it.  But I had no idea what any of it meant.

I have, by many measures, been successful.  (I am, by many measures, still a work in progress.)  My lack of depth in mathematics understanding has not held me back from doing what I love.  But what more could I have done if anyone had taught me not simply to use an algorithm to get to an answer.

It is not an accident that I taught language arts.  My language arts teachers did not only teach me to memorize vocabulary and regurgitate what I wrote in my notes.  They taught me to read for meaning, to analyze, to connect ideas, to think.  They taught me to use what I read to grow as a thinker and as a person.  Yes, they also taught me the foundational skills I needed to read.  I learned phonics and decoding and vocabulary.  But it didn’t stop there.  As they were teaching me those foundational skills, they also taught me the deeper communication skills that have led to my success.

I had many great teachers in mathematics, but none of them taught me the deeper skills, only the algorithms.  I don’t think I even knew that what I was learning was an algorithm.  I think I thought it was mathematics, but understanding that 37 can be easily be broken down into 30 and 7 which can be faster to manage in your mind is foundational.  Understanding that when you divide, the number gets smaller because you are, in fact, dividing the number up is foundational.  No one talked to me about those things.  “Check your work.”  I learned an algorithm for that.  Multiply to check your answer in division.  Easy.  But if I had understood the foundational things, I would have been able to look at the answer and decide if it even made sense.

My father understands this.  So do my brother and my sister.  They are “good at math.”  What that really means is that they knew instinctively, without being explicitly taught, the deeper skills.  They sorted it out for themselves.  I did not.  Again, I got good grades in mathematics, but I remember the frustration when my father would try to help me with my homework.  He understood something that I did not.  But neither of us knew that at the time.

We know better now.

We must teach foundational skills, in language arts and mathematics and all areas.  We must teach phonemic awareness, decoding, vocabulary, fluency, and comprehension.  We must teach number sense and procedural and fact fluency through a variety of strategies including, yes, algorithms. No one does lattice math in everyday life.  Our teachers are striving to help all students understand not just how they got an answer, but why. So we also teach inquiry and reasoning and communication skills.

Our teachers are working to create the thinkers and inventors and scientists and mathematicians and philosophers of the future.

Nothing is as simple as a social media post makes it…especially not mathematics.

 

A 5th grade class adopted me this year.  I’m not sure I can put into words how grateful I am for purposeful time spent with students in a classroom.  I joined them for World Foods Day, and then I had the chance to spend some time writing with them.  They were curious and kind and funny and thoughtful.

They have dogs and cats and brothers and sisters and many, many ideas about the world.

They love sports and swimming and playing the trombone and the violin and the piano.  They love to write and draw and cheer.

Some of them love Fortnite; some of them hate Fortnite.

And they love their teacher.  (She is one of the best!)

We talked about the blog and why I like to write.  We talked about telling your story and about sharing your voice.  We talked about making things personal.

I asked them to spend a little time reflecting on the things from 2018 that made them grateful.  Gratitude can help shape our view of the passing year.  Sure, some hard things likely happened, but some amazing things happened too.

Finishing all of the Golden Sowers.

Visiting California’s Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Getting my loving, crazy ball of fluff who is a black, brown, and white dachshund named Belle.

Going farther on grandma’s farm than I have ever gone before felt like a brave adventure.

Meeting my best friend in the whole world.

Going on a train to the top of Pike’s Peak and fishing on the mountain where the water was so clear.

Feeling happy and relaxed sitting by a sparkling lake surrounded by my wonderful family.

Going to Disney World.

Seeing the beautiful Pacific Ocean and palm trees.

Eating macaroons for dessert with my friends on my birthday.

Getting an awesome teacher who likes to read books and who I get to see almost every day.

We also spent a little time (but not nearly enough) talking about their hopes for the new year.

A trip to Paris.

The Eagles winning the Super Bowl.

The Huskers winning a bowl game (the Huskers going to a bowl game).

Of course there were hopes for things.  Dogs, cats, trips, games.  But more of them hoped for things less tangible.

A good middle school year.

A new friend.

A great life for my family and a great life for me.

And more than a few of them shared this hope…that everyone will be kind.

Out of the mouths of babes, but these were hardly babes.  These are young adults poised to finish the elementary years with courage and perseverance and grace.  They are smart and wise, not always the same thing.  They are young enough to argue about Fortnite and old enough to discuss friendship and kindness.  And they reminded me once again about the importance of our work.

I am grateful for the young people in our schools, and I am grateful for the adults who are helping shape their lives.  And I am grateful to the 5th grade class who adopted me this year!

happy new year

 

As the weather took a sharp turn this month, I’ve been asking myself the same question.  Friday it was sunny and 54; Saturday it was snowing.  Nebraska weather is never boring.  One day you can be in shorts and flip-flops and the next you’ll need a winter coat.

So why do I live where the air hurts my face?  The week of Thanksgiving seems like the right time to share my answer.

I live in a place where there are four, beautiful, colorful, seasons…sometimes in the course of one week.

I live in a place with wide open prairies and Sandhills and rock formations and forests and rivers and lakes.

I live in a place where you can stand under a waterfall while you tube down the river or cross country ski for miles.

I live in a place where people are kind. Strangers hold doors open and compliment your boots and smile at you and say thank you.

I live in a place with small towns and big cities. Urban, suburban, and rural.

I live with family and friends and neighbors and colleagues.

I live with people who care about me and people for whom I would do anything.

And so do you.

I’m grateful for my family.  And my friends.

I’m grateful for my aunt who came to town to be with her sister when she had surgery.

I’m grateful that surgery was successful and that healing is beginning.

I’m grateful for the people at Makin’ Waves where I’ve been getting my hair done for 30 years.

I’m grateful I have a job with purpose that I love doing.

I’m grateful for the Huskers and for Husker fans who stay to the end of the game even though it’s freezing and snowing and we’ve had a losing season.

I’m grateful for the abundance that is my life.

And yours.

I am also grateful to live in a place that recognizes we have to be intentional about a focus on being kind and addressing mental health issues and ensuring people have food and shelter and healthcare and a quality education.

If I am not able to say it to you directly this week, I am grateful for you!

And I am grateful I live where the air hurts my face.

Happy Thanksgiving!

It’s state championship season. Softball is done. Volleyball was this weekend. Football is coming up. All state musicians have been selected, and state marching band winners have been announced. The fall is winding down, and the next season is gearing up.

Some of our teams won.

Some of our teams lost.

That’s how it works.

Our students are engaged. Some of them played football and then at halftime stepped onto the field to play in the marching band. Some of them played softball and are now on a basketball court every day.

Some of them have a state championship.

Some of them never will.

But we know that being engaged in school activities pays dividends, whether you win a state championship or not.

It is a connection, a place to belong. It instills work ethic and perseverance and grit. It builds relationships and teamwork and collaboration and communication skills. Students who are engaged in activities have higher GPAs and fewer behavior incidents and better attendance, whether you win a state championship or not.

In life sometimes we get the job, sometimes we beat our best time in the half marathon, sometimes we reach our goals. And sometimes we don’t.

Learning that the journey is more important than the destination makes us better people.

Set goals.

Make a plan.

Work hard.

Then play the game and move on. The next journey awaits.

I am thrilled for the Mustang volleyball team. Two state championships in three years is an incredible accomplishment. I hope they savor the moment and enjoy the win. And then I hope they move on. The next journey awaits.

Someone asked me about my scar this week.  Not the one on my chin from the time I fell up the stairs.  Not the one on my leg from the time I missed when I was climbing over the chairs at Rosenblatt.  Not the one on my arm from the unfortunate mishap with a pair of scissors.  The big one.

It got me thinking.  I have a lot of scars.  (I may have passed clumsiness on to at least one of my children.)  Big scars.  Little scars.  Scars that healed well.  Scars that did not.  I’m guessing you have them too.

Life leaves scars.  And scar tissue.

Scar tissue helps repair our body. New tissue forms to replace the injured.  Then in time scar tissue breaks down, and you regain the flexibility that can be limited by it.  Such is life.

But sometimes releasing that takes work, and releasing scar tissue is necessary for our healing.

I have worked out much of the scar tissue in my body.  I think we are always trying to work out the scar tissue in our lives.

But I don’t mind my scars.  They’ve made me who I am.

 

A great listen about not dwelling on your scars…Kenny Chesney’s  I’m Alive

 

It was raining hard that day. By the time I got home from work and picked up the newspaper from the driveway, I couldn’t imagine there would be anything left of it. Then I noticed it was inside of a Ziploc bag.

This has been a progression for the last few weeks. It has been raining quite a bit. First I noticed that there were two orange bags surrounding the newspaper on rainy days. Then I noticed that there was a bag with a rubber band around it and a second bag with a rubber band around it when it was raining outside. Finally this week there was a bag with a rubber band, another bag with a rubber band, and it was inside of a Ziploc bag sealed at the top. That newspaper was dry despite being outside in the rain for probably 10 hours.

I guess I was just surprised that the person who delivers our newspaper had gone to such lengths to keep it dry for us.

Talk about work ethic!

I don’t take enough time to thank the people in my life.  I am surrounded by friends and family and coworkers (and apparently newspaper carriers) who go above and beyond every day.

I am grateful for each and every one of you.  Thank you for inspiring me to always try to do my best.

It wouldn’t be the opening weekend of the Husker football season (we all know last week didn’t count) if I didn’t at least mention the game and Coach Frost.

Calm. Cool. Collected. That’s what I’m hoping for from the coach. That’s what I’m hoping for the 18 year old true freshman quarterback…and the walk-on back-up who stepped in during the final minutes.  There will be ups. There will be downs. Stay calm.

There were two things my parents heard at parent teacher conferences every year when I was a child. I talk. And I have energy. They usually said I talk too much, and they usually said I said have too much energy.

I own both of those comments. Then and now.

As a leader there are times when those traits help me, and there are times when those traits get in my way.

I have had to learn (and am still learning) to listen.

And I have had to learn (and am still learning) to be calm.

Leadership is fraught with moments of mini and sometimes very real crisis. In those moments, listening and being calm are essential.

I saw it Saturday in the Husker game even though we did not get the result we wanted.  And I see it daily in our district.

Great leaders are like ducks calmly gliding along the water while paddling beneath the surface. Notice I did not say paddling wildly or frantically or madly (you’ve heard all the expressions), just paddling. We’re all just paddling.

A leader in our district said it like this in a recent great blog, “do not underestimate the impact of a calm demeanor in a stressful situation.”

As the intensity of a situation rises, my instinct is to increase my own intensity. In fact the opposite is what most people need from me in those moments. They need me to be intentionally calm. They need me to listen, to seek to understand the situation, to make a decision, and to act. I’ve written in the past about these ooda loops. They also need me to take care of myself, so I can take care of them.

There will be ups. There will be downs. Stay calm, cool, collected.

I have a long way to go with this. But I’m working on it.

I went to the Old Dominion concert at the Nebraska State Fair last Friday. More on the State Fair in a future blog I’m sure, but for now, lessons I’ve learned from Old Dominion.

I’m relatively new to country music, and Old Dominion has been my favorite from the beginning. I first fell in love with their music, but now I’m in love with their joy.

In some ways they are new to fame. In fact, they have only released two full-length albums. The first time I saw them in concert (in a hallway at Ralston Arena- seriously- those of you who were there can attest to this) half of what they sang were “covers.”

But they weren’t your typical covers. Old Dominion is made up of songwriters, and the band was formed to showcase the music they wrote. Every one of those covers was a song that they wrote.  They sing their own songs now, but almost every country singer you know has sung their songs. Luke Bryan, Blake Shelton, Cole Swindell. People knew their songs, but people didn’t know them.

Most would credit the Sirius Radio station The Highway with much of their success. Break Up With Him got serious airtime.

The rest is history as they say.

About this time, those of you who can’t stand country music are wondering why any of this matters. Well first of all, there is a serious rock and even a hip hop feel to some of their music. But musical taste aside, there is a joy to their music, and especially to their performances, that inspires me.

They love what they do. I mean they really love it. You can hear it, see it, feel it. There is joy that is contagious.

I want that for all of us. I want our labor to be a labor of love.

I’m not naive. I know that we work because we have to buy food and housing and clothing. We work to contribute to an economy. And there are times when the work we do is hard. But I want to go to work most days with the same joy I felt at the O.D. concert on Friday.

I guess I was just reminded on Labor Day that our work can also be a joy!

I’m a movie girl.  Rarely does a weekend go by that I do not see a movie.  The Oscars are a big deal in my house.  I’ve noticed something lately though.  Because you can order your tickets online and choose your seats ahead of time, fewer and fewer people are getting there in time to see the previews.  Theatres will be almost empty right up until the feature presentation begins.  Not me.  I never miss the previews.  In fact, they are my favorite part.

There is something about looking ahead, the anticipation, that I love.  I enjoy the here and now, but imagining the best of things to come is powerful.

This week we kicked off a new school year.  Teachers and paraprofessionals and food service staff were back in the buildings, and there was an indescribable buzz.  Fall Workshop was positive and energizing.  People were excited in a way that was contagious.  There were hugs and tears and laughter.  Sure, there was some stress and exhaustion, getting ready for students is a busy time, but the energy was undeniable.  This school year is going to be amazing.

New teachers report early each fall to learn a little more about our district and their school and the curriculum.  This year my daughter begins her own journey as a speech-language pathologist.  She will be working with preschoolers in an amazing building.  She is a “new teacher.”  I’ve been reflecting on what I want most for her and for all of our teachers and school staff as we preview the new year.

Previews are not just at the movies.  They surround us.

The anticipation of a new school year, setting up your classroom, learning your students name’s are just a few of the previews this week.

On Monday we get to preview the opportunities that lie ahead for the children and young adults in our classrooms.

Most importantly, each person is a preview of what they can be and what they can do.  Teachers have a gift for seeing the spark many times long before a child can see it themselves.  I want our students to learn to read and write and reason mathematically.  I want them to be college and career ready.  I want them to be independent problem solvers.  But mostly I want them to be the best version of themselves.  And I want the adults who interact with them each day to see that potential inside each and every one of them.

For Kelsey and for all of the people returning for a new school year, my hope is that you never miss the previews.

I washed my windows this week. They pop out for cleaning, so it’s not as hard as it could be. But I am pretty sure it’s been 8 years since I have washed them. It’s fun to see the spring colors through clear windows. It was a sense of accomplishment.

As I was cleaning them, I wondered why it has been so long when it is not difficult or particularly time consuming.

I also cleared out a stack of paperwork this week that has been growing on my kitchen counter for years, also not difficult or particularly time consuming.

I’ve been in the middle of a job transition for awhile now. My focus has been on building relationships with the people with whom I work and learning the details of the job. That is no small task.

It’s not that there haven’t been plenty of important moments in my personal life over the last few years. High school graduations, a wedding, and this week both of my children graduated from college. Life has been moving full speed.

But I have been out of balance. Work has taken more time than tending to things like cleaning the windows. And that’s okay.

A friend taught me my favorite definition of balance. It is having enough time for all of the things you’d like to be doing in your life. And for me, I like my work. It has purpose and meaning and impact. And I like my personal life. It has fun and friends and enough time to see movies and watch TV.

I’d call that balance.

Life has seasons. Sometimes you can’t clean the windows because you are too busy chasing toddlers. Sometimes you can’t clean the windows because you are too busy transitioning to a new job. And sometimes you can’t clean the windows because at the end of day who really cares if the windows are clean.

I love this season of my life. I have loved all the seasons of my life. They pass too quickly, so we should focus on enjoying them as they are.

“Galileo Galilei. He sat in a cathedral in Pisa. He watched a lamp suspended from the ceiling as it oscillated back and forth. He used his pulse to keep time and discovered that the period of oscillation was independent of the size of the arc. A few years later he contradicted the theory that a heavier object falls faster than a lighter one. Which took some guts back in 1609, when you consider that the theory he was contradicting was Aristotle’s.” ~President Bartlett, West Wing, “Galileo”

It can feel daunting to push back on or even to question the ideas of others. When the ideas you are questioning are long-held understanding in the world, it is even more challenging. But I believe critical analysis of ideas is one of the most important “college and career ready” skills we can teach our students.

I was in a session recently where the speaker was discussing the essential questions that educational Professional Learning Communities examine. There were three. You educators know them. Then there were four. The speaker was proposing an additional question. There was a bit of a pause as the audience processed the idea of changing the work of Rick DuFour, the expert on PLCs. Could his work be changed?

Of course!

Our understanding of the world is not complete. It will never be complete. And even if it could be complete at any given time, we understand that the world is ever-changing. What we may have believed to be true at one point, may in fact no longer be true or may never have been true.

We learn new things all the time.

For Galileo to challenge Aristotle was not without controversy. In fact, it got him convicted of heresy. But it moved our understanding of the world forward.

Critical examination of facts and ideas is powerful. I want our teachers and our students alike to question things.

I hope that our students are not only learning names, dates, and scientific principles. I hope they are also learning to examine the world and to develop theories of their own.

Be willing to ask hard questions.

Be willing to listen with an open mind when people ask you hard questions.

And remember to be kind as we talk about hard things.  Everyone is just trying to make their own sense of the world.

“Wisdom is the reward you get for a lifetime of listening when you’d have preferred to talk.”  Doug Larson

I’ve decided that this is a good time for me to pause and listen.  My only thoughts for the blog this week are a gentle reminder to be kind.

Discourse is powerful.  Social media has given a platform to so many.  Email has provided a quick and easy way to reply to anyone with your most immediate thoughts.  All of that is good.

I just hope that as people are sharing their voices, they are kind.  We will not always agree.  There is power in the conversation.  The collective wisdom is almost always better than one opinion in isolation.

But we can share our voices without demeaning others.  Rarely will someone’s opinion be changed because we were cruel to them.  But if we can be kind and caring and work together, we can do amazing things.

“We are how we treat each other, and nothing more.”  Nothing More by The Alternate Routes