The Sunrise Story

Do you ever have a day when you are grumpy and you can't put your finger on a specific reason? Yesterday started out like that for me. I felt annoyed at things that normally don't bother me and I couldn't seem to shake it. Days like that frustrate me. What do I do? Fight it, sink into it, accept it, ignore it? I tried to control the grumpies the best I could and go on with the business of the day. Yesterday was a day when classes were working on projects. I was moving from group to group, offering guidance and support, but the students were doing the work. My students in communications are busily filming and editing commercials. The sixth graders are beginning their picture book group projects. As I walked around the room and listened in on conversations, I felt lighter. The picture books must include researched information from the students' own culture and because they are working in groups, they are figuring out how to incorporate diverse cultures into on...

This week has reminded me to question perspective. There were some things in my life causing me stress or sadness. I decided to write about them. Seeing things from a different perspective and questioning my perspective turn into lightbulb moments for me. I'm choosing to believe that everyone has a story and is doing the best they can. I'm reminding myself that I, too, am doing the best that I can.  With my students, we created mission statements to focus our perspective during class. I can't tell you how amazing it is to hear the words that they wrote being read aloud, every single day. Here's one class sharing their mission statement:   We begin our time together reminding ourselves of our goals and our potential. Yesterday started out as a dreary Friday. In my communications class, the first class of the day, there were yawns and sighs and not much energy. We decided to change our perspective. In the morning news, we heard that it was Random Acts of Kindness...