teach.run.pray.

A few weeks ago, I was lying on my right side  in bed . The front of my body was facing the front window of our bedroom. The front window of our bedroom is on the front of the house. We live on the corner, so from our bedroom window, we can see the house across the street and several houses on the street that runs perpendicular. I was having trouble falling asleep and through our blackout curtains, I eyeballed a blinking halo of light. The blinking halo was coming from a neighbor's porch. For close to a year or longer, we have occasionally talked about the annoyance of this blinking porch light. Why the neighbor doesn't fix it or change out the lightbulb, I have no clue. However, on this particular night, I found comfort in that blinking halo and not an ounce of annoyance. See, this flickering light suddenly comforted me. I no longer thought of it as something the neighbor needed to do something about. I saw it as a sign or affirmation of where I was - home. I could be...

As a teacher, for me, my biggest successes are the connections I make with my students. Not test scores. Not grades. Not reading levels. Connections.  And, for those who have read nearly all my posts, you know I have a soft heart for the hard to love ones, and I probably always will. However, I will hold kids accountable, and I will have them take responsibility for their actions. I will do my part in teaching them how to right their wrongs and how to learn from their mistakes. I will do my part in teaching them how to be mindful and thoughtful with their choices. And, I will always treat them with dignity and respect. After all, kids are human, and like us adult humans, I've learned they appreciate transparency as well.  Let me tell you a story about a boy. He's in trouble a good bit. He has a bad attitude. So, automatically, I'm drawn to him, and I wanted to connect with him. The problem was I didn't know how, and one day, when I didn't even mean to, I connect...