The minutes of my day tick by without thought. I sometimes get to work remembering only the songs on the radio and having admired the architecture of the mercedes SUV in front of me most of the way. Pulling into the lot, knowing the spot is waiting for me, is somehow comforting.
And then lights pop on and passwords are set for the day. What will come is in the wind as I help out, encourage and greet hundreds of kids, one at a time, one after another. First it's 11:05, then 1:25, 3:20 and 5. Where did the day go? So many kids have trailed in for all sorts of reasons, the respect and connections are strong and good. I matter to them, and they to me, and that has been a profoundly important lesson.
I wonder if teaching is my calling after all. My heart gently chides me for being surprised for what I see myself do. We hug and joke around as I push them, fight for them, make them stand tall and and grab their place in the world. There is nothing more exhilirating than knowing the good I do. In this moment in their life and mine, it matters.
Oct 23, 2009
Oct 12, 2009
The Worry Stone
I've been down and out with the flu for a few and taken up worrying about things that aren't mine to decide so I made an electronic worry stone for what's on my mind. Hopefully it works.
Healthcare and Health: Things are stable and improving with most everyone, and people are in transition - including me, who has a long overdue date with exercise and eating sensibly. Aging parent issues with all of my friends are difficult and ongoing. And this new healthcare issue is driving me crazy.
Work and Money: Another friend lost her job last week, but two found ones. Most realize the impersonal environmental climate we are in and have stabilized their thinking, thank God. Kids: come home whenever you need. Houses are in jeopardy. How to pare down monthly expenses in a climate that doesn't encourage refinance is worrisome.
And as for that new phantom 2012 big cataclysmic event: Holy Crimeny! Calm down. The Mayans just ran out of room on the chart.
Healthcare and Health: Things are stable and improving with most everyone, and people are in transition - including me, who has a long overdue date with exercise and eating sensibly. Aging parent issues with all of my friends are difficult and ongoing. And this new healthcare issue is driving me crazy.
Work and Money: Another friend lost her job last week, but two found ones. Most realize the impersonal environmental climate we are in and have stabilized their thinking, thank God. Kids: come home whenever you need. Houses are in jeopardy. How to pare down monthly expenses in a climate that doesn't encourage refinance is worrisome.
And as for that new phantom 2012 big cataclysmic event: Holy Crimeny! Calm down. The Mayans just ran out of room on the chart.
Oct 2, 2009
Invisible Breadlines
I put a few gallons of gas in the car of an older man who offered to wash my car windows this week as his wife quietly sat in the passenger seat with her eyes lowered. Who is saying the economy is rebounding any day now?
Life feels familiar because we have been here before in the stories around the dinner table as our parents recounted life growing up in the shadow of the Great Depression. Friends and family lived together then and formed a tight huddle, pooled their resources, and rode it out. But livelihoods were sacrificed, and property and lives. It was a time when all Americans were reduced to a level playing field and those who could help understood the humanity in it.
After that, our government established coping systems should it happen again. Flash forward to 2009 and these systems are bursting at the seams trying to keep up with an economy rocketing out of control. We don't see the depth of the problem because the systems are already in place and invisible. I know folks living in their car, who lost their home and business, and many more friends/family who are out of work. Are these times as dire as the 1930s? I know we're being fed propaganda that our economy is on the cusp of a rebound and we should hang on for reinforcements. Like the Alamo.
Maybe seeing those long breadlines and children sleeping in doorways is exactly what we need to kickstart this country into quitting its gripefest and unifying with a common goal. It doesn't matter who's in the hot seat: there are serious issues in play and we need direction and help. How about if everyone puts their bipartisanship aside and throw themselves into a fix for that?
Life feels familiar because we have been here before in the stories around the dinner table as our parents recounted life growing up in the shadow of the Great Depression. Friends and family lived together then and formed a tight huddle, pooled their resources, and rode it out. But livelihoods were sacrificed, and property and lives. It was a time when all Americans were reduced to a level playing field and those who could help understood the humanity in it.
After that, our government established coping systems should it happen again. Flash forward to 2009 and these systems are bursting at the seams trying to keep up with an economy rocketing out of control. We don't see the depth of the problem because the systems are already in place and invisible. I know folks living in their car, who lost their home and business, and many more friends/family who are out of work. Are these times as dire as the 1930s? I know we're being fed propaganda that our economy is on the cusp of a rebound and we should hang on for reinforcements. Like the Alamo.
Maybe seeing those long breadlines and children sleeping in doorways is exactly what we need to kickstart this country into quitting its gripefest and unifying with a common goal. It doesn't matter who's in the hot seat: there are serious issues in play and we need direction and help. How about if everyone puts their bipartisanship aside and throw themselves into a fix for that?
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