And sometimes love is tough.
I love my job. I can't say it enough. I feel incredibly blessed and honored to spend my working days reading my favorite pieces of literature and then forcing other people to talk to me about them. It's a sweet life.
Along with that, however, comes an aspect of the job that many people fail to remember, understand, or appreciate. It's the part that makes me say no when kids ask:
Can we just abbreviate Alabama with AL?
Do we have to write in cursive?
Can't we just have Free Speech Friday today? (On Fridays, the kids get five to ten minutes as a group to tell me what's going on in their lives, etc.)
Why do I say no? Do I fail to understand that it's much easier to write AL than Alabama? What's wrong with a little free time? Do I think Satan writes in print? No, but I do understand that laziness has to be squelched out of the hearts of these precious, sweet children. The part of my job many people don't like is the occupation of character building.
To be honest, I hate it too. I don't like policing their conversations for gossip and inappropriate language. I don't like carefully checking their work for thoroughness. And I hate having to ask a student to read out loud so I can stare down the miscreant who has chosen to talk to his or her neighbor instead of listening to me read. I'd rather just be their friend.
But I have come to understand that because I love these wonderful creatures, because I know that they are insanely smart and beautiful and gifted and lovely, I cannot allow them to waste their potential or slack off on their responsibilities just because I want to be well-liked. That would be awfully selfish of me. They have to understand that their intelligence is a gift, their beauty a liability, their gifts an investment, and their loveliness, a choice. I have to expect the best in them.
I tell them all I love them every day. And that is no stretch. I can't wait to share them with the world, for them to take the reigns of adult responsibilities and scatter their talents among mankind. My seventh graders are translating The Aeneid from Latin to English. My ninth graders are analyzing Julius Caesar as they read the biography from which Shakespeare created the play. These children have been given the opportunity to be great, and great will they be.
I can't wait. Love them so much!
Monday, November 17, 2008
Tuesday, November 4, 2008
Someone in 08!
I love election days. Ben and I honestly celebrate them like it's Christmas. We always make brownies or popcorn for the big debates and voting days. Today's been a bit of an exception since Ben won't be home until 8:30ish, but we are still psyched about the returns and will be watching them with excitement.
So the question weighing on everyone's mind is who we support. Let's get our stats straight first. Benjamin is a future dentist. Out of the eight people in his family, five are either working in healthcare or are training to work in healthcare as doctors, dentists, and pharmacists. Benjamin's degree is in International Relations, so he knows a few things about politics. My family owns a terribly successful smalll business. I primarily teach lit, but I did minor in political science and have taught (and am currently teaching) a few history classes. Needless to say, we followed the elections pretty closely since they were so relevant to our families.
In the beginning, we loved one of the candidates. We went to rallies, we bought tshirts, and we fought, pleaded and argued with those who opposed him. Then the candidate started changing his tune about some important issues. Simultaneously, the opposing candidate made some decisions that I thought were sings of terrible judgment. Those decisions resulted in a massive amount of publicity for said candidate, but also cost him my respect. Plunged into an unhappy time of disgust and general disenchantment, I began strategizing to vote with the aim of damage control. As the current Congress is largely comprised of Democrats, I attempted to reign in the government and, with much anxiety and reluctance, voted McCain.
In this election and in the last one I have wished that this country was just a democracy rather than a democracy within a republic. I disagreed vehemently with both candidates on many issues, and in the end the candidate who won my vote did so only because I feel he will be least powerful in his office. How pathetic. How I wish the ballot had a list of issues for which I could cast my vote rather than a list of men.
All and all, however, it was an exciting day. I was able to discuss the electoral college system with my seventh grade history students. They believe they should be allowed to vote, and after listening to some of their ideas, I must agree with them. I believe some of them are more informed than the majority of adult voters. I was also able to congratulate my ninth and tenth graders, as this is the last election through which they must sit out. Some were excited, some were surprised, and some didn't care, but I personally can't wait for them to cast their ballots. How exciting!
I love this country.
So the question weighing on everyone's mind is who we support. Let's get our stats straight first. Benjamin is a future dentist. Out of the eight people in his family, five are either working in healthcare or are training to work in healthcare as doctors, dentists, and pharmacists. Benjamin's degree is in International Relations, so he knows a few things about politics. My family owns a terribly successful smalll business. I primarily teach lit, but I did minor in political science and have taught (and am currently teaching) a few history classes. Needless to say, we followed the elections pretty closely since they were so relevant to our families.
In the beginning, we loved one of the candidates. We went to rallies, we bought tshirts, and we fought, pleaded and argued with those who opposed him. Then the candidate started changing his tune about some important issues. Simultaneously, the opposing candidate made some decisions that I thought were sings of terrible judgment. Those decisions resulted in a massive amount of publicity for said candidate, but also cost him my respect. Plunged into an unhappy time of disgust and general disenchantment, I began strategizing to vote with the aim of damage control. As the current Congress is largely comprised of Democrats, I attempted to reign in the government and, with much anxiety and reluctance, voted McCain.
In this election and in the last one I have wished that this country was just a democracy rather than a democracy within a republic. I disagreed vehemently with both candidates on many issues, and in the end the candidate who won my vote did so only because I feel he will be least powerful in his office. How pathetic. How I wish the ballot had a list of issues for which I could cast my vote rather than a list of men.
All and all, however, it was an exciting day. I was able to discuss the electoral college system with my seventh grade history students. They believe they should be allowed to vote, and after listening to some of their ideas, I must agree with them. I believe some of them are more informed than the majority of adult voters. I was also able to congratulate my ninth and tenth graders, as this is the last election through which they must sit out. Some were excited, some were surprised, and some didn't care, but I personally can't wait for them to cast their ballots. How exciting!
I love this country.
Saturday, November 1, 2008
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