Found. (7 Lines/7 Days #108)

 #108Weeks

June 5-11, 2022

[This 2 year projects draws to a close]

I gave and gave, and now I’m recovering 

Traveling to my old stomping grounds: same and different

Met a young man full of possibilities in his life, excited about the connections he’s making and the things he’s learning

Met a boy who could turn a brownie into a pancake, a ball, a mud pit

Met a 65-year-old woman who said ENOUGH and walked off her job, risks be damned

Saw the bats flying out of the chimney, Lake Erie in the distance, on a perfect June evening

Found the most important question for now: What do I want to let go of, and what do I want to give myself to? (Thank you, Parker Palmer)

To end this project, a shout out to my friend Kate who told me about Folk Alley music streaming, and I heard this song while putting together this piece— Molly Tuttle with “Good Enough”

Struggles & Successes (7 Lines/7 Days #106)

 #108Weeks

May 22-28, 2022

 

Cannot believe we are winding down.

My learners have given me some good directions to consider for next year.

I noticed that when my kids were struggling with an activity, they were sticking to it, not giving up. This is HUGE.

There was a lot of devastating news this week, both nationally and personally.

I am pulling together a ton of ideas I think can work next year.

The kids had a blast with the Annual Snowball Battle. 11th period dumped the bag of balls on me, kind of like Gatorade on the coach!

The last full week is complete. 3 more days with kids.

(Shared this video this week. At first it was like, "oh, this is old school." But then they hung on every word!)

 

Poetry! Poetry! Poetry! (7 Lines/7 Days #105)

#108Weeks 

May 15-21, 2022

 

I finally saw 4 more Swallow-Tailed Kites.

Started reading The Grapes of Wrath, as one of my goals this year is to read six classic novels. This is #3.

Challenging week of poetry with my kids -- but no one is complaining!

The final day of testing was massively boring.

Starting to get feedback from the kids: most of the Global Perspective kids found the course boring and sometimes irrelevant to them. Many things need to improve for sure.

The intensive reading kids are doing a great job with the "Thing I Strongly Believe" poetry slideshow.

It's clear that the pandemic removed a lot of engaging strategies from my repertoire, and I'm dedicated to bringing them back next year.

 

Busy Week (7 Lines/7 Days #104)

#108Weeks

May 8-14, 2022

Trying to come up with a new way of motivating myself to exercise is not going well.

Monday was TOUGH--I did NOT plan correctly.

My lack of consistent meditating has caught up with me.

By Wednesday, things were better. I'm blessed with a good testing group.

I'm putting a lot of time into planning for next school year. It surprises me!

My patience was really stretched this week.

I was honored to be invited to the Lehigh Senior Class of 2012's 10th reunion brunch.

What I Learned This Week (7 Lines/7 Days #103)

 #108Weeks

May 1-7, 2022

 

This week I learned...

...songs by the Go-Gos are harder to sing than it appears

...my students really do not know parts of speech

...I can pivot

....a hot button issue is finally on the forefront and I hope it will help make a course correction

...Gina Furtado's song "It Won't Be Me" is my new favorite

...my learners enjoy drawing

...I'm creatively weaving for the future 

 

Spectacular (7 Lines/7 Days #102)

 #108Weeks

April 24-30, 2022

I am keeping up on my reading goals.

I am moving forward on my surging ideas.

I am happily busy and creatively playful.

I am impressed by my learners' growth.

I can see their changes -- at the beginning of the year they didn't even know how to be students. Now they are striving & thriving.

I can feel their involvement.

I can make the last 23 days together spectacular!

Playfulness (7 Lines/7 Days #101)

 #108Weeks

April 17-23, 2022

Easter included a lovely brunch with Pam and family at Lexington Country Club.

Every day I pray for our country.

Decided to bring more playfulness to the last 30 days with the kids.

I'm already organizing a plan for next year and using the rest of this year to experiment.

My learners are definitely showing strength and know-how.

Got my first pedicure in months. Felt so good!

Spent Saturday early hours planning poetry activities. 

I'm alive with ideas that are not just useful, 

but PLAYFUL, too!

 

Unfolding (7 Lines/7 Days #100)

 #108Weeks

April 10-16, 2022

 

Crystal Bowl Meditation is back, and what a wonderful way to untie all the knots!

Winding down the school year with the goal of giving them the best that I've got.

Put the Three Big Questions (Kylene Beers) in front of my kids when we read about Lebron James. I could hear them THINKING.

My stepson is suffering another bout of cancer. Prayers needed.

We had a good PLC talking about how we can best support monolinguals. We need a lot more sessions like that!

Friday was great--beach walk, lunch with a friend, and a massage.

Came across the word "unfolding" in more than one thing I read. A beautiful and gentle word that prompts a question for spring: What is unfolding for me now?

Singing My Own Song (7 Lines/7 Days #99)

 #108Weeks

April 3-9, 2022

Yola’s  album Stand for Myself is incredible. Sorry it took so long to check it out.

The Grammy award show made me smile all the way through—great music and a ton of honor and respect .

The writing test went okay. I have a small group.

Jon Baptiste’s “Freedom” video is so much fun.  I had my 9th period dancing to it.

I have felt a shift in the classroom in some small, positive, and important ways.

Los Lobos won a Grammy for their album Native Sons, which drew my attention to it. It is all cover songs by California artists, including Jackson Browne and The Beach Boys. Great listening.

As I’m inspired by music and the school year coming to an end, I’m motivated to keep singing my own song, and it feels great!

Getting Through (7 Lines/ 7 Days #98)

 #108Weeks

March 27-April 2, 2022

The Sierra Hull concert was fantastic!

Jim and I persevered and got the lanai set up, and we love it. 

The kids were really wound up the first day back from break.

Super busy week with something scheduled every morning. 

By Wednesday I was exhausted and not in a good frame of mind.

By Friday I was back on an even keel and had a great day.

I started showing spoken word poetry videos for National Poetry Month and the kids are mesmerized.

Forward Movement (7 Lines/7 Day #96)

 #108Weeks

March 13-19, 2022

I made the decision to stick it out for three more years and retire in 2025.

Saw my first Swallow-Tailed Kite of the season.

Big beautiful teacher moments: having a student hand me a $25 gift card at Costco, and receiving an invitation to be a guest of honor at the Lehigh Senior High Class of 2012 Reunion Breakfast in May.

I’m on a mission to get my Creative Writing classes back.

We are updating our lanai furniture. Takes lots of work to get it ready!

Talked to Mike about the Creative Writing classes. No guarantees, of course.

Getting back on my bike makes my whole body feel better.

Reaching In, Reaching Out (7 Lines/7 Days #95)

 #108Weeks

March 6-12, 2022

Discovered a great show on Apple TV called Dear…

Really enjoyed reading How High We Go In the Dark

Drinks after work with Kara was much-needed time together

Thinking a lot about people I know who are suffering

Creative Writing Club was cool—an hour of writing stories from a photo

Fantasy story writing in the classroom made me feel alive again

4 more school days until spring break

Building the Future (7 Lines/7 Days #93)

#108Weeks

February 20-26, 2022

I wrote something on the 20th that permeated most of my week, so I thought that instead of parsing out 7 lines, I would include the entire thought here. Once again I recenter myself into what is important, and it is driving us forward.

 

 

I am a teacher.

I do what is best for my learners as we build the future.

I show up every day and work smart to help them grow.

I do not have a narrow vision of what I do or who I am.

I have power and I have a place to stand strong.

I have freedom and I won't forget that again.

I have made the right choices and will continue to do so, for the learner in front of me.

I pour myself into what I do, heart and soul.

I am not complaining and I am not quitting.

I am a teacher.

A professional.

I decide what's best.

Creativity Rising (7 Lines/7 Days #92)

 #108Weeks

February 13-19, 2022

Getting a firmer grip on everything and feeling positive change. 

Finally reading Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan and loving it.

Starting to count the days to spring break and musing what I might do with that time. 

My Global Perspective kids made paper towers and had a blast. The highest was 4 foot, 4 inches. 

Got Thursday’s Wordle in two!

On Friday I was able to connect with a young teacher I don’t really know and have a conversation about common issues. 

My creativity is rising and it feels great. 

(The paper tower challenge—kids were given 20 pieces of copy paper and had 2 minutes to plan and 10 minutes to build. The structure had to stand long enough to be measured).

Being Zen (7 Lines/7 Days #91)

 #108Weeks

February 5-12, 2022

 

This week I had a hard time finding lines to write for this project, as things are going extremely well. I almost thought of giving up. I kind of hate to do that, though; I'm on week 91, which means I just have 17 weeks to go. 

Then I remembered that Creative Writing Club met this week, and one of the things we were doing was making found poems from pages of old books. I had highlighted a lot of phrases from Drums, Girls, and Dangerous Pie, and so I thought, hmmm, maybe there is something there.

 Sure enough! This is what came together.

(P.S. Thanks for all who actually read this each week. I appreciate your loving support.)

 Note: italicized text is from the book. The rest are my words linking the thoughts together

 

 The most annoying thing in the world is a room full of crazy young teens who want to do anything but what they are supposed to do

It often tests my self-esteem and sanity

But on Friday, I was in a particularly good mood

As I sat on my raised chair up front, my sacred perch 

To tell you the truth, I was kind of surprised I was not annoyed

That I was pretty tranquil for a change--it was the coolest part

There. I can live with that.

 

 

All I Know (7 Lines/7 Days #90)

 #108Weeks

January 30-February 5, 2022

Taking care of myself is priority #1.

It's taken a long time, but I have figured out how to approach the curriculum.

Found out where to find Linda Ronstadt's final recording before she retired, and it's a beauty: 

"All I Know" with songwriter Jimmy Webb.

 

I have been plodding through a book considered one of the best of 2021 (Firekeeper's Daughter), and I'm constantly reminded I don't like mystery thriller novels. It ended fine, but never again!

 

We completed the second season of For All Mankind. It was something else!

It was fun watching the Global Perspective kids getting creative with their proposal project, making videos and Instagrams and commercials. This is the kind of thing I live for as a teacher, and I can't wait to see their end products.

4 out of 7 days I got Wordle in 3 tries!

Lovely Days (7 Lines/7 Days #89)

 #108Weeks

January 23-29, 2022

 

 

A visit to Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary got the week off to a good start.

I'm beginning to understand that the underlying feeling in everything these days is grief.

Daily WORDLE is so much fun!

I wrote a referral on a disrupting student, only later to find out his family is currently living in their car. :-(

I've suddenly become a big Bill Withers fan.

Pulling out a lot of favorite activities in class I haven't used in ages. This is the best I've felt in 2 years.

It was a good week. :-)

BREATHE (7 Lines, 7 Days #88)

 #108Weeks

January 16-22, 2022

Best movie in a long time: The Tender Bar.

Real laughter is the best way to breathe (Thanks, Natalie).

Everything out of order with my classes is mind-boggling. Glad they’re now back on track.

And reading out loud to them is so fulfilling!

Thich Nhat Hanh, who taught me so much about BREATHING, has left the planet. His teachings will never die, as they are vital to our existence.

Happy surprise when a few changes made one class take off— and on a Friday, no less!

Every morning Wordle gives me a great challenge. Love it!

Godspeed, Doug (7 Lines, 7 Days #87)

#108 Weeks

 January 9-15, 2022

Enjoyed reading Wayfaring Stranger by Emma Johns, as it took me to a part of the country I know and love so well.

My walk at the Slough was awesome. It felt good to be there. And I got a good piece of writing out of it. 

Received news that Doug is in hospice.

School resumed on Wednesday with many new students. Starting over.

Doug transitioned about 3:30 am Thursday morning.

Had success in the classroom with some new things I tried.

I got a kick out of photos Doug’s middle school girlfriend posted from their 8th grade year. So 70s! So fun! Godspeed, Doug.  Love you. 

Quotes That Keep Me Going (7 Lines/7 Days #86)

#108Weeks

January 3-8, 2022

From Kara Vereen

Will you lose your balance?

Will you stumble and fall?

Don't give up

You have a reason to carry on

Lucinda Williams

 

 

Literacy is power.

Kylene Beers

 

 

One energy connects us all,

linking us soul to soul and heart to heart

Julia Cameron

 

 

All I've got to do is to love you

All I have to be is be happy

All it's got to take is some warmth to make it

Blow away, blow away, blow away

George Harrison 

 

 

I am alert to the good in every moment.

Julia Cameron

 

 

You can't just love your country when you win.

Joe Biden 

Beneath the turbulence of daily living, there is a longer, slower pulse of perfect timing

It is to that rhythm I give my soul.

Julia Cameron