Grateful - Day 9

Today I am grateful for being a teacher.

I took a long way around becoming a teacher (still working on it . . . ugh) but I know that I've found the job I am supposed to have.

There are some really unfortunate downsides to being a teacher:

• excessive work load
• having summers off, but not being able to take them because I don't make enough money during the year
• having to keep everyone happy: administration, parents, kids . . . it is exhausting
• knowing that I'll never make the money I'd like to make doing the job that I love
• I hate grading. I really really hate grading.

But the positives far outweigh the negatives:

• Kids who love coming to school every day because they love to learn and are excited to hear what I'll bring to them today
• Hugs daily, sweet, endearing notes - I keep them all, I have them in a book and refer to them when I'm feeling crummy
• Learning patience. It has made me a much better mommy. Having patience for one or two kids is tough enough. Imagine having to have a classroom of patience. Yikes!
• Getting winter break and spring break. It's not a summer break, but it will do.
• Dressing up for Halloween. I am expected to dress up and I get to be the "cool" teacher if I come up with something clever. Last year, I was Amelia Earhart and was deemed cool. This year I was Medusa, the year prior, Harry Potter. But I was the super-coolest when I was Princess Leia. That costume might make another round next year.
• I get to start over fresh, every year. I like having a definite beginning and a definite end. And those kids that push my buttons, in June, I'm done with them. Done done done.
• Kids really do say the funniest things. I get to laugh every day and get my kids to laugh. I get to act like a fool and sing and dance and they appreciate my efforts.
• I have learned what kind of kid I want to have - I have learned through observation what good parents do and what not-so-good parents do.
• I love my kids, as much as they frustrate me, I really really love them. We're a family for nine months and I get to know and understand them like they were my own kids.
• I love giving them tidbits of knowledge that they really don't need to know, but will make them feel smart and cool. You know, cocktail party conversation starters. They eat it up.
• Nothing makes a person feel more amazing than watching a kid "get it." Their eyes light up and you have been put on a pedestal for a moment in time.
• Having parents tell you that you've had not only an impact on their child, but on them as well. Parents that have begun to love history and reading because their child has learned to love them because you have loved them.
• I love making art projects - and I have to make an example. No really, I really should.
• Days go by quickly - there's no time to be bored, or tired. The kids want your best and there's no other option.

Viking Shield with a runic sentence. Cool, huh?



I get to make an impact . . . on kids and on parents. And they make an impact with me. I am blessed to have the opportunity to be creative, every day.