The Sunrise Story

I've challenged myself to participate in the hundred day challenge. One hundred days! I started on April 1st (the actual challenge began on April 3rd). Today is day twenty-four for me and I'm plugging along.  I've decided to write a poem every day on my pink typewriter. These poems are short and simple. Sometimes they aren't very good and other days I'm really proud of them, but I'm showing up every day. I think that's the lesson...showing up every day... even when, especially when I don't have anything to say.  That's what writing is. That's what writers do. They show up to the page every single day and write and I'll continue to do so for seventy-six more days. (That's July 1st, for those who are counting.) Twenty-four days into the challenge, I wonder...do I regret starting this? Sometimes I wish I hadn't. Sometimes it feels like it's just one more thing until I sit down at my typewriter and I write. Big goals are ...

Monday was rainy and cold and, well, it was Monday. Why was I awake and out of my house by 4:40 AM? We had a field trip to visit 94.7 Fresh FM . We were invited to be guests of "The Tommy Show" . We spent a few hours watching Tommy, Kelly, and Jen create incredible entertainment.They shared their tips and advice with the middle-schoolers. They listened. They answered questions. They treated the students with such kindness, generosity, and respect.   Students got the opportunity to record a promo for their segment, "Can't Beat Kelly". It was amazing getting to stand back and watch these kids speak on the radio. A few students interviewed Tommy and Kelly too.  As the morning came to an end, they decided to film some of our segments in the studio. Just watching these students grab Tommy and ask him to be in the joke of the day or asking for advice made my heart grow with pride. They had fun. They took our time here seriously and I watched them lear...

Today begins a new challenge. For 100 days I will create something new each day. It's called #the100dayproject I wasn't sure about starting a new project as soon as I completed the slice of life challenge, but I'm jumping in. What do I have to lose? The slice of life challenge this year was challenging. It felt different. I can't figure out why. I read tons of end of challenge reflections and I'm not the only one who felt different. Dare I say, it felt easier this year? I felt like my heart wasn't in it on lots of days...like I was doing it to do it. As I look back and reflect, I'm not sure why, but I've decided it doesn't really matter. I wrote every day for 31 days. I have eight sixth-graders that completed the challenge and six more that came close. The writing always nudges me to grow and doing it with students is an inspiration. Which leads me to this new challenge...I am going to write a poem using my typewriter for the ...