"The Longest Walk"

"And it must follow, as the night the day

Thou canst not then be false to any man/Farewell, my blessing season this in thee!”- Polonius- William Shakespeare's, Hamlet

I took a four mile walk today.  The sun felt like heaven on my strained and stressful face.  These past few weeks have been extraordinary.  I keep thinking to myself that these days are either going to make us all realize how fortunate we are or how angry we are.  I think that all remains to be seen.  How much time are we willing to give ourselves to evaluate and reassess our feelings, our actions, for every single thing we have done.  Or...perhaps not done.  This is a time for honest reflection.

We have been forced to slow down.  Like it or not, we have had to slow down and prioritize.  What really matters? I have some answers now:

• A belief system-I now firmly believe in a clean house.  Clean kitchen, clean laundry. Clean litter box...clean, clean, clean.  We collect so much of nothing really.  I finally realized what I can live with and what I can live without.  I am finding out I can live with a LOT less...well...except for shoes.  I draw the proverbial line with shoes.  1-800 JUNK-A-WAY is just a mere phone call to sanity.  
• I am now more than ever dedicated to spending time outside.  Extroverted people are probably being hit the hardest during these times.  The lack of socialization and the idea of being locked in place is equivalent to water board torture for us. When I get outside and walk, and walk for miles, I am healed of any pressure I may have been feeling.  Excercise also allows justification of that much deserved glass or two of Pinot Grigio.
• I REALLY appreciate food.  Good food.  Food that comes from our earth and prepared in as pure a way as possible.  Once or twice a year...I REALLY appreciate pizza...and chocolate lava cake on my birthday...and my sister's homemade brownies at Christmas and...and...and...
• "You love the one you're with..."  I have a deep premontion that many marriages will find out what they are made of at this juncture.  You look the other way.  You take care of the essentials and take care of each other.  If you are fighting a losing battle, then during this time, take a pause and figure out what matters most.  Are you at odds so you can win or prove you are right or is peace more important? 
• Teaching has given me those necessary wings of assertiveness that I never thought I had.  As it turns out, the wings were there, I just was afraid to fly.  I will never regret my teaching career.
• I marvel at the human trajectory of certain behaviors.  People have either been absolutely psychotic, particularly on the road or they have been angelic, and heaven sent.  We really don't need to be grand-standing about anything these days.  Life need not be a competition, and the most important thing we can be is mindful.  Those who are without can not compete with ego.  They just want to survive. The political landscape will resolve itself based not ego but on compassion, one would hope.  Politics is NOT appreciated nor noticed when people are suffering.
• I've never had a paranoid moment in my life.  Seriously.  I have had very little to be afraid of but now, I can honestly feel the fear circulating.  Again, true leadership requires that we get a sense of strength and comfort from those we have entrusted our vote.  I believe that's needed now more than at any time. History rewards strength not grandstanding and not ego. 

I do not understand my own lack of panic given the present climate.  I do as I have been asked to do but I have to admit that slowing down and staying put has been a gift that I will never EVER take for granted.  This period in our lives is a test of our patience, our love and our character.  We must be respectful and compassionate to everyone even when we are strangers.  This is not a time to ignore what is obviously needed most...our sense of societal and civil common sense.

"Pushing the Reset Button-Part Three...and then some..."

"One isn't necessarily born with courage, but one is born with potential. Without courage, we cannot practice any other virtue with consistency. We can't be kind, true, merciful, generous, or honest."  - Maya Angelou

 

If I was a gambler, I would gamble on nature and Darwin's "Survival of the Fittest" to understand and help carry us through this global pandemic.  "Fittest" meaning those who will not be stubborn and adhere to the precautions that are mandated until further notice.  This, this is not a time to be stubborn.  This is a time to look after our loved ones and ourselves.

A few years ago, (seems like an eternity has passed) I was forced to change everything.  Well, mostly everything and now as I observe the events surrounding all of us, I now have even more gratitude than I had years ago.  My vision has not changed.   My weight is now based on a regimine of healthy foods, herbs and supple ments.  I go to my doctor when I am supposed to go.  My right eye is "status quo" and that's a very good thing to hear.   My dental hygenist says I am getting "too thin."  Really?  You pleaded with me for ages to change.  I changed and then some.  Of course this came NOT from my primary doctor.  As long as I have no aches and pains, get the appropriate annual tests, he is very satisfied. "The reset button" continues to remain in my view. When I go see him, I jump on that scale instead of dreading it.  You can not stop the changes you are determined to make.  When you start, you start and continue no matter what comes in your way.  This brings me to work through other observations.

Longevity is not a given.  My sisters and I were having a discussion about this the other day.  We were discussing what constitutes being "elderly."  My older sisters jokingly reminded me that next year, "I will be among the elderly."    I am fortunate though, that I can say that. My sisters, being wise,  are far from being "elderly" and so, indeed I feel the same.  It's an age.  It's a number. We walked over two miles the day we had that discussion.  We've walked more than that to be sure.  My sisters are active, talented, and have so many interests that I am forever in amazement.   They understand the "reset button."  They have always understood the reset button and now I understand it's importance.  Again, I am grateful.

As I watch the news, I wonder just how many Americans understand that the one given to heal us during this time is love and kindness.  How do we prevent the very worst in us from surfacing? I was at the grocery store this week and the cashiers and other store employees were so kind and gracious and yes, some of them looked very tired too.  The same went for employees at the pharmacy; so unbelievably kind but again, tired.  There were long lines at the bank.  We are all fighting this virus whether we have it or not. The one thing though that will be our downfall is our lack of patience.  Some have a higher threshhold than others for handling crises. For those people, we need to be more patient and more kind.  It's a proven way of promoting change.  I have never learned anything when someone has been nasty or brash or rude.  I shut down and I suspect that is the case for many.  This is not a time for us to shut down or look the other way.  What we do and how we do it matters now more than ever.  

One final thought .  "Pushing the reset button" is not political.  We still have our say and we should use that freedom with civility.  Health first.  Your health, my health...we are nothing if we are weakened.  We are not living in a plastic bubble.  We evolve and grow organically just like every other living organism.  As I get older,  I understand how important it is to be grateful when I can thrive.  I can get up without pain, or heartache.  I can love without any regret.  I can be truthful and find the pride in the bravery that requires.  Those who have stayed in my life will be there till the end.  How lucky and how fortunate that we have those people in our lives.  The rest, those who chose not to, they have their separate foundations.  We will get to the other side of this crises.  I suspect many will be pushing their own "reset buttons" as they find new respect for what their bodies can do for them and hopefully, what their bodies can do for others.  

"Education Nation" - A different type of pandemic

“I learned helplessness is the giving-up reaction, the quitting response that follows from the belief that whatever you do doesn’t matter.” – Arnold Schwarzenegger

     These are interesting times agreed?  We are fighting over toilet paper, hand sanitizer and God knows a thousand other items.  More to the point and NO ONE is really talking about this yet, but more to the point, are we putting our best foot forward for our children behaving that way?  Our children go to school each and every day, and all their teachers want to do is teach them.  Schools will be closed temporarily and teachers are being called on to provide on-going education.  My question is, who is monitoring the educational opportunities we are providing?  Who will indeed enforce that their education will take place? I am a teacher.  I know I am accountable.  Who is holding my students accountable outside of the classroom environment? It has to begin and end at home.

     Since I became an educator, the talk, the rhetoric, the much needed discussions around education have decreased.  No one is talking about the importance of education these days.  Students come in on any given day and make the conscious choice of whether they feel like doing their classwork and I have to make the conscious choice about what to do when they clearly don't.   

     The one non-negoitable in my house growing up was school.  We were NOT allowed to fail.  We may not have always received the grade we hoped for but failing was never an option.  Now, now it seems it's perfectly fine to fail.  Why is that acceptable?  Some may argue this point and even be defensive and that's all right.  What I witness is more and more students are giving up and turning their backs on their education. For any teacher, this is heart-breaking.  Know this...we are trying to teach the "whole child" but we can not do it alone.

     I remember hating school.  I was bored or I didn't like the teacher.  I was not allowed to fail regardless.  It's also true that everything we learn in a public school, we will NEVER use again.  None of that matters because education shows us what we are capable of and that we have indeed accomplished something with a diploma. We learn and develop our talents.  For those who can NOT handle a public classroom setting, we need alternatives that work.  We need to pour more of the money that is already there into developing alternative education so that these particular students can make a living and provide for themselves and their future.  We keep taking money away from alternative educational opportunities and this achieves nothing.  Those students prevent the education of their classmates from taking place.  They interrupt.  They yell.  They scream for the attention that they are not getting OR they could be getting in a different environment.  Educating the masses is no longer feasible in a one size fits all scenario.  It may be saivng money.  It's good for politics, but not for the kids who need alternatives.  And oh by the way, let's not forget about state assessments that our state and local governments spend millions on to create and disperse to those students who still have the option of well..."opting out."  If a student is not held accountable, they simply have no accoutability for their education, even in the classroom. This is exactly what is happening in public schools.

     For those students who posess a talent for the arts, or science and mathematics, we should be developing our school systems so that our schools provide these students with their life long dreams of going further with their passion.  These alternatives are far and few between and that is a travesty.  If we are not focused on educating our young, we will create a society that can not make educated decisions...that can not read or understand their legal rights or vote intelligently.  They will not be able to hold down a job because they can't take direction or listen.  In short, we will have a society that is easily manipulated, convinced and ultimately at a risk of surviving too.

     Literacy or the lack of literacy keeps our criminal justice system busy.  The neglect and the lack of attention and respect being paid within our public school system is causing more damage than any virus can.  Students need to make connections.  They want to connect with someone or something.  They can not do that if they are not in the appropriate environment and do not have the the support at home.  If the support isn't available at home, public schools make the Herculean effort and they would do a better job if they had the appropriate staff to do so.  The number of students in need of outside services is growing and they are not enough staff to help those students.  Their plates are full.  

     Sounds like I'm whining doesn't it? No...I am just overly concerned about what I am observing in the classroom.  I want kids to learn how to work on their own.  I want students to take pride in their efforts.  I want them to help their friends rise to challenges instead of letting them self-explode academically.  Most of my students "get" what I'm trying to accomplish.  The ones that fight the process, well they have to know that "I am NOT giving up on you...NOT now, not ever."  If you fail, learn from it and triumph.  I will be cheering you on in spite of your poor behavior and your lack of belief in yourself.

     In the meantime,  we are all on edge right now.  We are all sacrificing and forced to put our activities on hold.  Don't put common sense or compassion or the importance of education on hold either.   None of us asked for this pandemic.  This will be the greatest lesson for any of us, young or old...stay informed. Stay educated. Pay attention to facts not fiction.  Pay attention to what's true and not false.  Sounds like a multiple choice test now doesn't it? I hope we all pass.