Working in Education through the Language Lens

It's that time of the year - !!! We are gearing up for back to school. My principal colleagues (district colleagues) and friends are prepping their back to school nights. Schools are getting cleaned from rafters to baseboards. Even I have been 'evicted' from my office work space within one of the elementary buildings, that now needs the space for other things.  (SO grateful for the years they have accommodated me!) Then at our leadership retreat, I heard three distinct messages. From our internal Happiness Advantage guru's From our newly appointed Deputy Superintendent From a national leader in brain neuro-plasticity and daily gratitude modeler! and one outcome that I just can't shake - so I need to blog about it, is this:                                        Don't get on the bus - or on the boat - get on the RAFT! 1. In today's educational climate, I'm pretty sure c...

I've posted about resilience before - but this post is geared more towards being able to push through those hard times, when life seems to be falling apart -at the seams. Just like diversity, and other topics near and dear to my heart,  I want this conversation to continue. I recently watched "To Write Love on Her Arms" ~ if you haven't seen it - and you are an educator - you should. It's not a feel good movie by any stretch. However it allows you to take a glimpse - into the lives of those affected and afflicted by addiction and mental illness. Unless you have experienced any kind of trauma or mental health illness of your own, you will watch this movie with blinkers on, missing some key things. So let me share some self reflections (without spoilers- and yes read between the lines): 1. You cannot "see" depression. Unfortunately, it is not always visible when someone is going through a period of depression. Don't expect to see a teary eyed ...

"Well this is a mess!" These were the exact words my orthopedic doctor used to greet me on Thursday to share the results of my MRI. I had torn my shoulder a few weeks back (trying to lock the back row passenger seat in place while turned around in the driver seat). Yup, not smart! Then, instead of resting - we moved. So I packed, and lifted, and packed and lifted. Then, I slipped on a stack of flattened boxes - and while trying to spare my shoulder - landed on my forearm and burned it on a wooden stair case. THEN, while in the new house, I attempted to lift my 80lb chocolate lab up four stairs (usually not an issue), but as I exerted force, my shoulder gave out. So needless to say - I've been unable to do all I need to do. I have pictures to hang - and boxes still to unpack. My hopes of landscaping and building a vegetable garden and chicken coop are being put off until next Spring. Even getting dressed and clicking the seat belt fastener is a challenge. Being on...

I have passed this dead tree stump for weeks - and every time I pass it .... I see an old man, leaning on one knee and reaching out for something, just outside his grasp. It didn't occur to me that this would be my ONEWORD - but with each day - and each visible reminder.... I finally accepted it . . . STRETCH There are a few other areas of my life need stretching too - but for the purpose of this blog space, I want to reflect on how STRETCH relates to my professional life. As a central office administrator, my work can become isolating - and less about students and more about policy and compliance. It can also be relatively easy to focus just on my own department and let other areas seem less important. It might seem like Balance would be a more appropriate choice of word - but it's stretch I need. I often take on more than I should - and feel stretched to the point of breaking. So it's not that stretch that I need either. This is specifically - focus...