Just Like Riding a Bike

Image @ drgreene.com

Yesterday I had one of the toughest days of my career as an educator, which is why I didn't log in and write an article. The pain and emotions were so over-whelming, I'm not sure my words would have made sense anyway. People often assume that educators are about academics but that only tells part of the story of what we do. The biggest part, in fact, involves relationships...with our students, our colleagues, parents, etc. and it is not uncommon for us to become extremely attached to those we deal with on a daily basis. This means when they are in pain, we are in pain...when they are suffering, we are suffering. And like with any other relationships, when those connections are deep, you can't just turn them off like flipping a switch (even on the days when you really wish you could). Even now, as I've had time to process some of the things that have transpired over the last couple of days, my mind is still wildly disjointed, my heart torn, and honestly I have no idea what to do about that. I'm not good with compartmentalizing things that are attached to strong emotions, and telling me to "just do it" or that I "need to do it" doesn't help. HOW do you do something that does not come naturally? Waiting it out is not always an option because whatever is going on in my life, I still have to function on a day to day level. The answer to how came from an unexpected place, along with the encouragement and assurance that I COULD do it! It came from a youtube video.

This morning, I got up, got dressed, and went to my weekly meeting/training session like I do every Friday in hopes that it would provide me with a way to channel some of my wayward sorrow into a more positive, less sad direction...or at the very least, provide me with a much needed distraction. My boss, God bless her, did not disappoint! First, she let me talk about what happened in a safe environment and offered me some of her best advice by way of years of experience. Then, at the end of our session she showed a video that demonstrates in a wonderful, happy way just how powerful the brain is! The video below reminds me that often life is HaRD but whatever it is we're faced with, we are already adeptly equipped to handle just about anything. Even better...it shows this in a fun and interesting manner! I hope you enjoy it as much as I did. Missed all of you yesterday. May your weekend be safe and full of joy.

Always,
A.