Miracle Worker

“I like these cold, gray winter days.  Days like these let you savor a bad mood.”  --Bill Watterson

February is a tough month.  Most of us are getting tired of the snow and cold, and spring seems like a long way off.  Perhaps you agree with Bill Watterson and are enjoying a mid-winter sulk.  Or perhaps you, like me, start looking to rekindle the spark about this time of year.  This past week, I collected thoughts, ideas, and/or strategies that resonated with me and may help get me through the February Blues. 

If you could use a pick-me-up about now as well, take a look at these:

An Approach from Dan Rockwell on Staying Motivated: Find the Three C’s

• Clarity: Can you define your hopes and dreams in one sentence?  Determine what your life is about and focus on that.  Live in the moment but keep an eye on the future.  Center your vision on people, not projects, products, or programs.
• Courage: Have the courage to say “no” to some things, so you can say “yes” to really important things.
• Consistency: Focus continually on what matters.  It’s not always about doing less.  It’s about doing more of what matters.

What Matters? Thoughts and Ideas about Why I am in Education

• “Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.”  –Nelson Mandela
• “If kids come to us from strong, healthy functioning families, it makes our job easier.  If they do not come to us from strong, healthy, functioning families, it makes our job more important.”  –Barbara Colorose
• “Teachers, you’ve got a million parents behind you whispering together: ‘We don’t care about the damn standardized tests.  We only care that you teach our children to be brave and kind.  And we thank you.  We thank you for saving lives.’”  --Glennon Doyle Melton, in an open letter to her son’s teacher who retires at the end of the year
• “In a completely rational world, the best of us would be teachers and the rest of us would have to settle for something else.”  –Lee Iacocca
• “Teachers can change lives with just the right mix of chalk and challenges.”  –Joyce Meyer
• “Only one person in a million becomes enlightened without a teacher’s help.”  –Bodhidharma

A bit of eCard Humor

• “Every time I see a math problem, it looks like this: If I have 10 ice cubes and you have 11 apples, how many pancakes will fit on the roof?  Answer: Purple, because aliens don’t wear hats.”  –Arrg!  e-cards
• “I’m all caught up,” said no teacher ever.  –Someecards

From Taylor Mali—I Saved My Favorite for Last

• This is the link to “Miracle Worker," a video worth watching at this time of year--or any time, for that matter: Miracle Worker
• If you like that one, try watching Mali recite “What Teachers Make.”  (It’s a bit raw, but it will fire you up!)

It takes more than a polar vortex or two to knock a good teacher down.  Keep fighting the good fight HSE. 

Phil