Teacher Thanks Christy Clark

Written before the passing of Bill 22...

Yes, you read that correctly.  Never did it cross my mind that I would be saying thank you to the same person who is the reason I am on strike this coming Monday.  I am not thanking her for Bill 33.  I am not thanking her for refusing to agree to mediation.  I am not thanking her for her net zero policy.  I am thanking her for being the impetus for a very valuable conversation I had with my students today.  Now Premier Clark, please do not get carried away and quote me as a teacher who appreciates the role you play in educational change - yet.  Rather, your government and your stance during these negotiations, if we can call them that, opened discussions about the very values we pride ourselves on as Canadians - freedom and democracy.

Now, it is true, we are lucky to live in a country where these words even ring true at all.  However, without biasing my students my stance in this particular struggle, I try to open them to how important it is to stand up for our rights when we think they are being threatened, in order to protect their sanctity. After covering the basics of the dispute from both sides in an effort to be as unbiased as possible, for my students deserve this, these are the questions they had:

• Didn't the people in government go to school?  Don't they know how important schools are?

• How can the government say they don't have enough money for education when we pay taxes?

• Don't the people in government have children?  If they do, do they not care about their children's futures?

•  Are universities on strike too?  Why not?

• Can we go to private schools while you are on strike?

• Can we go on strike with you?

• Can PM Harper do anything [about our schools]?  How about in Ontario?

This was just the beginning, so thank you Christy Clark.  I can't wait for the discussions now that Bill 22 has passed and students will not only hear what the Bill means, but to live it.  

Wandering Day

This looks like a perfect start to a wandering day...

I subscribe to a newsletter from one of my favourite artists, Ali Edwards, called 52 Creative Lifts.  She recently wrote about The Fine Art of Wandering, in which she quoted from a children's book Best Friends For Frances by Russell Hoban.

"Let's play baseball," said Frances.

"I can't," said Albert.

"Today is my wandering day. "

"Where do you wander?" said Frances.

"I just go around until I get hungry," said Albert. "Then I eat my lunch."

As a planner, this might be stressful for me, but it sounds fun, so maybe I'll give it a try...
Have you ever just wandered?
 

Letting Go...

This past week I have been nursing a 'stuck' neck. As recommended, I have stayed home and rested for five days now, in addition to going to a daily emergency chiropractor appointment.  I am not good at resting on command.  Unable to turn my neck and with a constant headache, my days have been mostly watching videos and thinking about how much I could be getting done if I could only ignore the pain.  On the third day of treatment, my chiro worked pretty hard on me with many adjustments alongside massage of areas that were refusing to let go without some help.  At the end of the treatment I was quite emotional, feeling frustrated with my body and my inability to move along the healing any faster.  I needed to feel some light at the end of the tunnel, some relief from the physical and emotional tension.  I asked if there was anything I could do to relieve the headaches or speed up recovery, and after a few basic reminders about ice and water intake, Dr. J. said what I needed to do was to rest.  To let go.

Letting go.  A practice in which I am not very skilled. I like to have plans, lists, projects.  I like to be in control.  I am a teacher and our lessons, our units of study, our teaching strategies, they all need to be planned in advance.  In taking on the uncomfortable role of the primary cook for our family after our child was born, I set up a plan.  A system.  I have no problem if the plan needs to be changed last minute, I'm quite flexible, but I always feel more relaxed with a plan in place, just in case I need it. Type A? Perhaps.  Anxious? Without some control, yes.  So this letting go business is hard for me.

As I walked home from my appointment, I started to give thought to what I would do...how I could plan to let go. (No, the irony is not lost on me.) So yesterday (day 4) I spent the day watching more movies and staying on the couch in an attempt to do nothing.  I woke up this morning feeling looser physically and more relaxed.  I was busier than I should have been today, and on the computer a fair bit which I know is not great for my neck, but I'm taking it one day at a time.  I'm learning how to find a place for my active mind and body and still feel rested.  Have some control without letting it control me.  I'm musing on the meaning of 'letting go.'  Letting go, what does it mean to you?