Thank You Universe.

Principal Ponderings...

This is the time of year when everyone talks about or writes about what they are grateful for.  It's a time for all of us to be thankful.  Over the years, I have shared different gratitude posts.  Last year, I wrote about how I was grateful for a plate-full.  The year before that I wrote a short post encouraging others to write short and sweet notes of appreciation to fellow educators.  The year before that it was all about having an attitude of gratitude where I listed a top 10 things that I was grateful for.  The year before that I shared what my staff was thankful for at that time.  And the year before that I was crazy enough to write a post where I listed 100 things I was thankful for.  Yep, I have been writing thankful posts around this time every year.

This year, I want to thank the Universe.  I am not trying to be flippant.  I listened to a podcast this weekend (love listening to Sarah Johnson's "In AWE" podcast where she interviews women educators and lifts their voices up for all to hear).  This podcast was part of her series on gratitude.  The woman she was interviewing talked about that notion of putting things out into the universe and how that can often bring about positive things in your life.

I really do feel like I need to practice appreciating the Universe.  I need to thank the Universe.  Over the years, I have put a lot of messages, pleas, bargains, suggestions to the Universe.  And usually the Universe responds in a positive way for me.  Of course, I still have to go through the tough stuff sometimes.  It's not like the Universe always hands the good to us right away.  I was thinking this weekend about my decision to leave my last district and come to Mayo.  I even flipped through my giant binder of letters from former students.  I might have cried a little when I discovered this gem from a little boy who I certainly won't forget...

Before I could make that hard decision to leave and start over, I had to struggle and commit to putting it out to the Universe.  I had to be ok with leaving a comfortable space and starting over.  The transition was not easy, but the Universe responded to my desire for a change and placed me right where I think I needed to be...with all of you!

As I get ready to celebrate my little girl turning 5 in a few weeks...seriously.stop.time.now. ...I can't help but think about how badly I wanted to be a mom and how I practically screamed that message out to the Universe over and over.  And how the Universe made me first experience loss and more loss and more loss before finally giving me my miracle.  I am so grateful that I put that request out to the Universe. 

I think I am pretty good at putting my messages out to the Universe.  It's the appreciating part that I need to keep practicing and not just during the month of November.  Found this thank you letter to the Universe that seems fitting to me...

Do you need to stop and thank the Universe?  More importantly, are you putting your messages out to the Universe so you have something to thank the Universe for?!

The Universe is always listening, waiting to respond.  What are you waiting for?

Currently reading:
I finished Words on Fire, definitely enjoyed it.  I started two very different books...we will see which one I stick with.  The first book is definitely not a book for our elementary students, once I finish it I will let you know if it would be ok for some 5th graders.  It's called The 57 Bus and it's based on a true story.  The tagline is that it's "a true story of two teenagers and the crime that changed their lives.

I also started reading a book called Dear Sweet Pea.  It's about a 7th grade girl who is dealing with her parents' recent divorce and her father's recent coming out.  While her neighbor, a local advice columnist, is away, she is managing her mail and can't stop herself from opening and responding to some of the letters.

I read a great picture book that I might read for my Thanksgiving break bedtime story.  It's not about turkeys, but it's about chickens...chickens that "talk" by writing!  

Another fun read is the picture book called Yes Day!  I have a friend who celebrates yes day every year with her kids.  They mark it on the calendar and the answer to all of their questions on that day is...YES!  This would be a great book to read with your class and then have them come up with some of their own questions to ask on Yes Day. I especially love the calendar in the front and back of the book.

Another cute story I read that I think our K and 1 students would love is called Not Quite Narwhal.  Kelp is not sure whether he is a narwhal or a unicorn.  I love the funny about the author page in this book!

 Events this week:
Monday - CST Meeting @ 8:30
Tuesday - Gr 1 & 2 Fit Club @ 8am, CST Meeting @ 8:30, Bedtime Story with Principal Garden @ 7:30pm
Wednesday - No School, Thanksgiving Break
Thursday - Happy Thanksgiving!
Friday - No School, Thanksgiving Break

Great things I noticed last week:

• I visited 4S and watched as students moved around the room and partnered up to solve math problems. 
  
• Students in 4V had the choice of working on a regular piece of paper or they could choose to draw and create factor rainbows on giant paper. 
  
• Enjoyed taking a deep dive into the writing standards with our K-3 writing team on Wednesday.  I always enjoy spending the day collaborating and talking about writing instruction with the members that are doing this grant work. 
  
• We were lucky to have Wendy O'Leary come into K and 1 on Thursday and Friday to share her book Breathing Makes It Better and to talk with our students about the brain and using breathing to calm ourselves down. Can't wait to have her back in January for PD with staff. 
  
  

Check it out:
I came across this post that has been going around on social media this weekend, thought I should definitely share with all of you!

TO ALL MY TEACHER FRIENDS........

From not having a break from school in months, parent teacher conferences, being overloaded on grading, dealing with student behavior issues, formal observations, pretests, test, and post tests, etc. (the list goes on-and-on)- the month of November can be downright exhausting.

It's around this time of the year we hit the November Wall. A lot of the energy you had at the beginning of the school year is starting to wane, and your patience and enthusiasm might be growing thin. You might even be having thoughts like:

"What's wrong with me? Why do I feel so gassed?"
"I'm not having much fun anymore."
"How am I possibly going to make it through the school year if I feel like this?"

Or maybe even,

"I'm not sure that I am cut out for this work."

So let me just speak this to you:, if this describes you in any way, know that you are not alone in these thoughts. This is typical for educators this time of year, as the work has only grown more complex and challenging, and yet you have not had a break in months to recuperate and reset.

November exhaustion is normal and usually does go away as vacation breaks are on the horizon, as well as the energy that comes with a new year.

But right now, you are tired. And there are ways of finding new energy and thriving during a tiring month like this, but that's not what this post is about.

This post is just a reminder that the way you feel is normal. It's shared by thousands of other teachers right now. You are not deficient. You are not weak. You are not broken. You are not a bad teacher.

You are enough.

You're just tired. And that. is. okay.

(Author unknown)