Better Days

If you were to listen to mainstream media, and any number of politicians, you might believe that education in our nation were in shambles. It simply isn't true. Are there struggles? Of, course. I'm not going to bury my head in the sand and pretend otherwise. The education system is not immune to society's ills, at times as a classroom teacher you see them amplified. Indeed, there are days when it seems almost too much to bear, and yet we do. We do, because teaching is more than a job. It is a deep calling, a vocation that can scarcely be put into words. We are committed to the young people, the families, the communities that we serve. We know their faces, their hearts, their stories.

There are days when I have wondered, and flat out worried about the direction of our nation. Competition, ranking, and sorting; it seems to bring out the worst in us. It is as if that we have forgotten that we are all ultimately connected to one another, and bound to one another. We have forgotten that for us to prosper as a nation requires collaboration, far more than it does competition. We must do better. There needs to be less isolation, and more connection. We must acknowledge our shortcomings, and look far and wide for ways to improve, we may have to admit that we don't have all the answers, and we need to be willing to make mistakes. We need to embrace curiosity, and cultivate wonder. We need to play, and infuse joy. This need not be a pipe dream, some pie in the sky ideals; no. We are the architects, the innovators, the creators, the voices that together must demand it, and make it so.

When I become discouraged by the state of affairs I do three things. First, I pray. I pray for strength, I pray for hope and I pray for faith. Second, I look at my own children, which strengthens my own determination and resolve. Third, I read my Twitter feed and am inspired and empowered by colleagues, many of whom I have never met. I believe in better days, and I believe in our power to make them better.