instruments of inspiration

The day always begins with church, where you say a silent prayer that this year will go well. That you'll have great kids and you'll make an impact and that you'll always be in the right place at the right time to make a difference. You'll say "amen" and head to lunch.

During lunch, you'll be thinking that you should enjoy the feeling of real food as opposed to frozen TV dinners. You'll drag it out since you know the next time you eat lunch, you'll only have approximately 23 minutes to finish.

After lunch, you tell yourself that you are going to relax and enjoy your last day, but really that is pointless. Because you just keep thinking about what you're going to wear, and if you forgot to do anything during prep week, and the butterflies start.

They aren't bad butterflies, and you aren't nervous.... they are just anticipation butterflies. While you enjoyed summer, it has passed and you are just ready to get this show on the road. So you'll watch a few re-runs, grab some dinner and promise yourself that you'll go to bed early so that you can be "well-rested" for the first day. And you go to bed early. And lie there. And toss. And turn. And your thoughts race and your mind wanders. And you look at the clock and it is 2am and you think "I have GOT to go to sleep!" Eventually, sleep comes. But you wake up before the alarm clock goes off, and it is the one morning of the year that you don't hit "snooze." You jump out of bed and get ready, because today is the first day.

There is so much beauty in the first day. I mean, even calling it "the first day of school" is a perfect start to the year. The first day brings promise and opportunity and excitement. I'm no longer the kind of teacher that gets a typical first day of school.

But last night, I tossed and turned and had anticipation butterflies for those of you that are. Make it a great year!

“I've come to the frightening conclusioin that I am the decisive element in the classroom.
It's my daily mood that makes the weather.
As a teacher, I possess a tremendous power to make a child's life miserable or joyous.
I can be a tool of torture or an instrument of inspiration.
I can humiliate or humor, hurt or heal.
In all situations, it is my response that decides whether a crisis will be escalated or de-escalated and a child humanized or de-humanized.” Dr. Haim Ginott