One of my favourite bloggers happens to be my vice principal, Kristi Keery-Bishop. Her posts always have me thinking, and since reading her one this morning, this is all that I can think about.
Here’s the thing:
I LOVE my job! Even on the worst day, when nothing seems to have gone right, and I question why things didn’t work, I still want to come back to school the next day. I still want to try again. I’m determined to have students succeed, and I’m determined to do it with a smile on my face.
Yes, the Winter Holiday was wonderful. Yes, I was feeling tired (and maybe a little stressed) before the holiday started, and I definitely enjoyed the Break. It revitalized me. It made me want to come back. It allowed me to reflect on my current program, and it gave me time to make good changes to that program. These changes have made things better. I’ve noticed the difference in my students and I’m thrilled.
Truthfully, I’ve never been happier in the classroom. I have fun every day, and I see students learning, sharing, collaborating, and wanting to be at school. I love the excitement in the classroom. I love that the students are willing to take risks. And I love seeing all of these aha moments when students have struggled through a problem and solved it. School’s terrific! Life’s wonderful! I mean it when I say that I’m truly happy!
So why do I feel so sad this morning? Because after reading Kristi’s post, I can’t help but wonder if I’ve really shared with others how I feel. When teachers are talking (be it in the hallway or in the staffroom), do I chime in with my positive news? Not always. I wish that I could say that I always do, but sometimes doing so is hard. It’s easy to get immersed in the stress. Sometimes people need to vent, and in doing so, the positives get overlooked. Unhappiness though breeds more unhappiness, and I don’t like the sound of this. I wonder if one person shared some good news, if other positives would follow. Happiness breeds happiness too.
From now on, I’m going to work hard at remembering this, and really trying to spread the smile, the laughter, and the good news. This matters! Thank YOU Kristi for reminding me of the importance of this! I have the BEST job in the world, and I want others to know that as well! How do you spread the joy? Let’s spread more of it starting today!
Aviva
I’m glad you are feeling great. I am too, and maybe that’s why I found it so noticeable this week that people were struggling. Maybe I shouldn’t have started the post that way; everyone should hear positive things no matter how you are feeling. However, thanks for your response/post. That’s why you are great – I say thank you once and you try to figure out the best way to have everyone passing around the positives all the time 🙂 the world needs more positivity. Let’s take over with kindness, care and humour. We would all love life just a little bit better.
Thanks Kristi! I totally agree with you. There’s something so wonderful about a good laugh, a big smile, and a positive attitude. I’m also glad that you started your post the way that you did, as that’s what inspired me to respond (and really had me thinking today). And it’s amazing the power of attitude: I had SUCH an amazing day today, and I honestly think that this focus on positivity definitely helped!
Aviva