Saturday, May 23, 2015

Celebrate 5/23


It's Saturday and that means it is time to reflect on the week and celebrate things both big and small. Join our community and celebrate this week by linking up or just stopping by the host Ruth Ayres' blog to read others' celebrations.

This week has been a whirlwind of the particular chaos of this time of year. There is a ridiculous amount of paperwork, the kids are starting to look forward to summer and get squirrely, the weather plays with us in Wisconsin, and all the while all I want to do is sit on a secluded beach somewhere, relaxing. 

Finding small moments to celebrate seems especially important as my principal starts conversations about next year and most of the staff in my school turn to negative thinking. New leaders bring new ideas and change, which is needed. This is somehow threatening to a lot of the people on staff at my school. Therefore, my days could be filled with noxious clouds of negativity. But I am a positive thinker and I don't let that get to me most days. On other days, it is this ritual of looking for celebrations that is my saving grace. I am most grateful for this weekly tradition. Even in the weeks that I do not write a post, I find myself picking up on the small celebrations and rejoicing in them. 

Things to celebrate this week:

1. One of my students got a new baby brother on Thursday night. We were excited when the office called to tell him that his grandma would be picking him up from school on Thursday. Sure enough, his mom was in labor and at the hospital. The new baby was born at 9:41pm so my student hadn't seen the baby yet when he got to school on Friday. Boy, was he chomping at the bit to leave at the end of the day. I love celebrating this kind of good news with students!

2. On Wednesday, we had a local company come in to our school to volunteer. We do "JA in a day." The employees of this company who volunteer in our classrooms come in and do a whirlwind day full of Junior Achievement lessons. We had two welders visiting our classroom. It is always a fun experience to hear a little about other people's jobs. They always leave with a much better appreciation of a teacher's job as well. 

3. I started going to Barre class at a local studio. This workout is killer and seriously challenges me, but I have loved every minute of it (once I actually am finished that is). 

4. I am looking forward to the summer and some great travels and conferences. It always starts to be much more real once the arrangements are being made. 

What do you have to celebrate this week? I would love to hear from you in the comments!
 

3 comments:

  1. I know what you mean about negativity. I felt overwhelmed by some of my colleagues' complaints in the last week of the semester--ended up barricading myself in my office a couple of times just to avoid it. But then I almost always think that change is good and needed! I agree with what you say about looking for celebrations--even on the weeks when you don't blog any of them. I find myself throughout the week turning the difficult experiences over in my mind and looking for a way I might celebrate them.

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  2. Small celebrations - you are so right. I'd rather have a series of these through the day, than one big one every once in awhile.

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  3. It is just wonderful to look for the positive everywhere, agreed, Andrea. I sometimes just stay in my room, easier that way. I forgot to tell you last week that I'm going to All-Write, too, as are a bunch of other bloggers. I'll look forward to meeting you!

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