In our deepest parts there is a craving to be needed. To know that our lives are necessary. Essential. We want to live for something- something bigger than just ourselves. And we want to impact someone- beyond ourselves. I listen to many stories and each one means something to me. Her’s was special. She told …
Grace or criticism? I have contemplated grace and its place in my life for many years now. I have wondered at its significance, its practical purpose. I have tried to make sense of it. Tried to understand it. And the only way I know how is to put it into the context of my own …
It matters how you treat people. It matters how you live your life, how you do your job, treat your friends, speak to your kids, care for your animals. It matters. And it matters that you infuse love into what you do, through each and every seemingly small moment of the day. Even if those …
I really appreciate my friend for challenging my thinking, as you will come to read below. I am providing her challenge to my thinking and perspective along with my response to her. This welcome challenge was issued to my last blog post regarding What is Worthwhile Knowing: A Teacher’s Perspective. I would readily open any …
I have never before attempted making donuts. They are too big a project- all those tricky steps, complicated instructions. Added to this, I have to admit: the real reason has always been that donut-making is too messy- the grease and flying fat. Yuck. And aren’t they too time consuming, don’t they have to be rolled …
Lately, I have been living my life either five minutes ahead or five minutes behind where I ought to be. It’s like I am either rushing too fast or moving too slow. In all, I am not thinking/living in the moment like I feel I should be if I was to be living up to …
There are few things in life compared to the intensity of a mother’s (father’s) love for a child. Falling in love is full of wonder. The joy of friendship a gift. The feeling of being a cherished son or daughter- a comfort and a consolation. But the love one feels for their child is without …
When he was a little boy, he was never called gifted. He never went to formal school. He was a Down’s baby. Not a baby or child with Down Syndrome, among other distinguishing characteristics. Not a child with exceptionalities. Not a person with special abilities. No. He wasn’t all that. He was mostly a label. …
I have written a lot about teaching and what’s important, but I would be remiss to not emphasize the reason I feel so strongly about creating a caring ethic within the classroom and school. And for me, that reason is very personal. And I certainly do not apply this reason as a blanket explanation for …
I am seeking to make my own journey in education one that is characterized by love. By empathy and kindness. By an overriding influence of Care. In order to have a Curriculum of Love as the guiding light within our classrooms, we must acknowledge that we are part of a vast connection of interconnections- even …
It’s almost recess and I am urging the children to put away their snacks so as to ready for the recess bell. The students start slowly stowing their lunch boxes inside their backpacks and heading for the door. All except for one, that is. The same One who, day after day, has persisted in waiting …
I have been reflecting the past few days on recovery. Recovery means different things to different people, as we are all aware. It means different things depending on the extent of the recovery period. A weekend bender requires less recovery than a broken leg. Of course, this goes without saying. A person recovering from painful, …
