Put Your Bags Down, Ellen

Everywhere I went this past week, the one central theme seemed to be time.  We all needed more time.  More time to grade papers, more time to read with our students, more time to create with our students, more time with our families and friends, more time to rest, more time to help, more time to grow, more time to do.  I knew my schedule was going to be even more packed than usual, but I tried to approach it in pieces.  As the week progressed I felt like my teaching bags were getting heavier despite the amount of time I was working after school.

I like to think I am continually growing as an educator, but I questioned myself a lot this week about my time management.  How do I get better at managing my time?  Not my students' time, but my time.

The answer I got after praying and contemplating was two fold.  Listen More was the first part.  I had the privilege of helping another teacher get started on Twitter over dinner this week.  For the first time in over ten years of teaching with her, I began to understand the challenges she faces. Despite having limited free time and a very long to do list, she chose to make time to learn something new.  In the hour we spent together I developed a new appreciation for her strength and her faith. This conversation never would have taken place at school.  As a wife, a mother, a grandmother, and a friend, she knows she has been richly blessed.  Her struggles don't discount her blessings.  Her priorities showed me that I had forgotten making time for people should always be first on my schedule.  I gained more from my hour with her then any of the time I spent grading, planning or organizing this week.

As teachers, I think it's easy to lose sight of our relationships when our tasks seem to multiply so rapidly.  Technology can help with those tasks, but it can't reaffirm you when you're discouraged, hug you when you're exhausted, or congratulate you when you've reached a goal or solved a problem.

I finished reading one of the most rewarding and challenging education books I have ever read this week. It took me almost a year of picking it up and putting it down to really dig into this book and it's powerful message.  During the course of reading it I had to admit I needed help in understanding it. My struggle to understand gave me empathy for my students who find everything they read a challenge.  I was fortunate to have help from the teacher who wrote it, and the short time he spent with me on the phone greatly increased my understanding of the material.  He took the time to listen to my questions and patiently explained his message.  He set aside his to do list to help me.

Most people I know would ask me why it was so important to me to finish something I was struggling to read.  My mom used to tease me that I thought of books as friends, and I saw finishing them as my way of nourishing that friendship.  Many friends will joke with me when visiting my apartment that I live in a library.  Even though I struggled with some of the educational language and terminology in this book, I could tell from the beginning I was going to be a better teacher when I completed it.  The closer I got to the end the more excited I became. If I hadn't made the time to struggle and grow I would have missed out on this book's amazing message.

At this point, you are probably wondering what the title of the book is.  I am saving that for another blog post:)

Now to the second part of my answer.  Last night I was blessed by another friend making time to listen.  She constantly reminds me to be me, and let go of all the extra stuff.  She reminds me of the truth of the Serenity Prayer.  "Focus on what you CAN DO, Ellen.  Let go of the rest."  I paraphrased letting go as putting my bags down. "Put your bags down, Ellen."

Tonight, I am putting my bags down.  I'm letting go of every challenge and concern and choosing to rest.  I am enjoying listening to my Phillies play the Nationals, and tomorrow morning I will enjoy watching a couple former students play soccer before I go swim.

 I leave you with two things.  One of my all time favorite Bible verses...

and one of my favorite songs...

My prayer for all of you is that you find more time to put down your bags.

Listen to the Music, Ellen...

It all started with a song.  My affection for Canada geese is the fault of two friends from Montana who make musical masterpieces.

When I first heard Chris Cunningham and Johnny Hermanson sing Steady On, I knew I was experiencing something special.  I knew I would always remember this song.  For me this song paints a breathtaking portrait.  Their description of Canada geese speaks to the teacher in me.  Every time I see a gaggle, I hear this song in my head.  I stare in awe.  I stop every time I see geese regardless of what I am doing or where I am heading. My destination takes a back seat to my journey when I hear their honking.

Some of my friends don't understand my fascination with geese.  They only see the mess geese create.  They don't see the beauty of teamwork or hear the music of collaboration I experience every time I see that uppercase V glide across the sky.  

Every May new families of geese spend time at our school.  I always seem to run into these family processions at just the right time.  Those moments when I need to be reminded that I'm not alone, that I'm part of a team, and that it's all about the children I teach and not about the to do list I'm reviewing in my head.  This year I have been blessed with geese encounters well into our new school year.

It's not lost on me that my first graders constantly remind me of the beauty and strength of that V formation.  They are my gaggle.  They give me strength every day to keep flying and remind me to stop and stare in awe.  My first graders remind me daily to make time to dance.  They remind me to make time to listen to the music.  My first graders remind me of the importance of our journey.  My first graders remind me daily to be grateful to our Creator.

How did I spend my Labor Day?  Listening to my niece and nephew make music:)

Do yourself a favor and search Storyhill on YouTube.  Chris and Johnny have many more musical treasures there just waiting for you to discover them.