I’m
sending this out early because, as you know, the construction crew is taking us
offline soon after the dismissal bell today.
It is hard to believe we are at semester. If time flies when you’re having fun, we must
be having a blast. Either that or we are
so busy trying to stay ahead of the constant demands that time gets away from
us.
No
doubt about it, we do have a lot on our plates.
We are still figuring out TEDS, HSE21 pushes us to look at instructional
practices, the building project has officially broken ground, budget cuts keep
worrying us, and in the meantime, kids keep coming through the doors.
My Neighbors
Below
are pictures of two houses which sit side-by-side in our neighborhood. The first one belongs to the Fishers version
of Clark Grizwold. Chances are good that
you have a house like this in your neighborhood as well. You can’t tell from
the picture, but his lights are synchronized to a radio station. If you tune in to the right station, you can
watch the lights flash on and off to the rhythm of the music. When my wife and I were out walking a few
weeks ago, our neighbor was putting up the lights and called out, “Just wait
until Friday. You’re in for a treat.” He was right.
It is a veritable House of Wonder.
Our kids want us to take the long route through our neighborhood when we
come in at night, so we drive by slowly and are appropriately dazzled by the light
show.
 |
| Lights, Action.... |
This
next picture is a neighbor who lives to the immediate east of the Holiday House
of Wonder. My guess is this homeowner
knew he wasn’t going to be able to compete, so he used a little humor and
ingenuity to get a response.
 |
| Ditto |
If
I have my etymology right, ditto is
Latin for something that has been said before.
In this case, I think the neighbor is saying, “I can’t beat him. I might as well join him. I’ll make his
lights become my lights.”
HSE: So what does this have to
do with us?
It’s
a bit of a stretch, but I suggest that sometimes we are like the House of
Wonder, and sometimes all we can manage is “ditto.” That’s okay.
We do what we can do, use a little humor, keep our spirits up, and we
all keep taking steps forward.
I
hope your holiday break is a good one.
Find time to relax, enjoy friends and family, and come back ready to
light up your part of the HSHS neighborhood.
When that seems like too much, maybe a little Ditto can help keep you going.
Even
though it has been said before, have a great break, HSE.
Phil
I
would like to end with a few words from a variety of faith traditions that seem
appropriate for this time of the year:
- Always wear a smile. The gift of life will then be yours to give. –Rabbi Nachman
- Many people are alive but don’t touch the miracle of being alive. --Thich Nhat Hanh
- Kindness in words creates confidence. Kindness in thinking creates profoundness. Kindness in giving creates love. –Lao Tzu
- The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others. –Mahatma Gandhi
- May you live fully. May you love wastefully. May you become all you were meant to be. –John Shelby Spong
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