Joy. Peace. Mindfulness.
I have 1.25 hours to squeak this entry in before the arrival of 2018 in our prairie time zone.
My posts were meager this year, which I sense will be the trend over the next while. I even failed to record all the prayers/verses we attempted to memorize during the latter part of this year. For the record, our Fall was spent on memorizing the Peace Pray of Saint Francis and Colossians 3:12-14. I wish I could say we know each verse inside-out and backwards. But we don't. We are more familiar with the theme of each passage.
2017 promised to be a year at the cusp of something inspiring. But as I glance over the past 12 months, I survived instead of thrived.
The biggest focus of this past year was re-entering my previous life as a teacher. However, many aspects have changed since my last full-time teaching assignment. Two children. New community. New school. New curriculum. New colleagues. New technology. And as I encountered the new, I felt old.
I love to teach. That has not changed. However, the profession has morphed to something convoluted. Student and parent expectations are high, but in a weird customer satisfaction sort of way such as when a business is "liked" on Facebook or "followed" on Twitter. Parents helicopter too much. Our snowflake generation of students melt under any bit of discomfort. And there is pressure from our political milieu to just get the kids through high school as quickly as possible. I have found it challenging to adapt.
In the midst of it all, I feel like a disengaged Mother who has ordered far too much pizza for suppers.
Please know that in spite of all my frustration over how much WORK it has been to work part-time, I am incredibly thankful for my employment. Yet, I feel like I am trying to run a marathon at breakneck speed. And I am not even half-way finished this school year!
Maybe I should do what a lot of parents do these day and just randomly take two weeks off in the middle of the semester to lie on beach in Mexico and pretend everyone else is on holidays back at home.
So, what do I hope for in 2018? Joy. Not happiness based on my circumstances but thankfulness in spite of my circumstances. Peace. I have no idea where this teaching career of mine is going in this town as I am on a temporary contract (and sometimes I wonder if I should do something else - what is the purpose in teaching kids about polynomials?). Mindfulness. I am scattered at home as I am uber-focused on solving my work problems. Paying true attention to my children's thoughts and feelings is difficult. I need to sharpen up my boundaries and be present in each moment instead of analyzing tomorrow's teaching challenges today. In conjunction with this, I desire to hone the practice of the presence of God. I am not just talking about setting aside quiet time, but rather being aware of the Holy Spirit's presence and prompting throughout the day AND being obedience to His voice.
Joy. Peace. Mindfulness. My hopes for 2018.
My posts were meager this year, which I sense will be the trend over the next while. I even failed to record all the prayers/verses we attempted to memorize during the latter part of this year. For the record, our Fall was spent on memorizing the Peace Pray of Saint Francis and Colossians 3:12-14. I wish I could say we know each verse inside-out and backwards. But we don't. We are more familiar with the theme of each passage.
2017 promised to be a year at the cusp of something inspiring. But as I glance over the past 12 months, I survived instead of thrived.
The biggest focus of this past year was re-entering my previous life as a teacher. However, many aspects have changed since my last full-time teaching assignment. Two children. New community. New school. New curriculum. New colleagues. New technology. And as I encountered the new, I felt old.
I love to teach. That has not changed. However, the profession has morphed to something convoluted. Student and parent expectations are high, but in a weird customer satisfaction sort of way such as when a business is "liked" on Facebook or "followed" on Twitter. Parents helicopter too much. Our snowflake generation of students melt under any bit of discomfort. And there is pressure from our political milieu to just get the kids through high school as quickly as possible. I have found it challenging to adapt.
In the midst of it all, I feel like a disengaged Mother who has ordered far too much pizza for suppers.
Please know that in spite of all my frustration over how much WORK it has been to work part-time, I am incredibly thankful for my employment. Yet, I feel like I am trying to run a marathon at breakneck speed. And I am not even half-way finished this school year!
Maybe I should do what a lot of parents do these day and just randomly take two weeks off in the middle of the semester to lie on beach in Mexico and pretend everyone else is on holidays back at home.
So, what do I hope for in 2018? Joy. Not happiness based on my circumstances but thankfulness in spite of my circumstances. Peace. I have no idea where this teaching career of mine is going in this town as I am on a temporary contract (and sometimes I wonder if I should do something else - what is the purpose in teaching kids about polynomials?). Mindfulness. I am scattered at home as I am uber-focused on solving my work problems. Paying true attention to my children's thoughts and feelings is difficult. I need to sharpen up my boundaries and be present in each moment instead of analyzing tomorrow's teaching challenges today. In conjunction with this, I desire to hone the practice of the presence of God. I am not just talking about setting aside quiet time, but rather being aware of the Holy Spirit's presence and prompting throughout the day AND being obedience to His voice.
Joy. Peace. Mindfulness. My hopes for 2018.