Running Uphill

My job gets very difficult sometimes.  Someone once compared teaching to running uphill on a treadmill at too fast of a speed. . . for 8 hours straight.  That is the best way to describe it.  Teachers aren't just watching their students or demanding they do things.  They have to entertain, inspire, encourage and make children do everything they don't naturally want to do during the course of the day.  Turning your back on your students is like turning your back on the ocean.  You must keep watching, keep moving and keep their attention.

I have been struggling this past week. I didn't struggle doing my job.  I struggled being happy about it.  I wasn't having any fun.  You may think that isn't part of the job description, but if I'm not having fun, neither are the students.  If the students aren't having fun, they won't learn as much.  Not everything is a party, but if the students are excited about what they are doing, they are more willing to want to participate and show off their knowledge. 

Whenever I start to feel this way I know it is time for me to change.  The students don't need to try harder or pay attention more, I have to change.  I have to find a way to have fun.  I have to enjoy myself.  I have to find my path.

Whenever there have been moments when I was grumpy, frustrated with the situation, or forcing people around me to have a stronger will, it was time to change.  When my girls were little, I used to have those moments.  I would be frustrated because I was trying to clean the house or do a project and the girls kept interrupting me with arguing or fighting or they just wanted to be near me.  Once I changed things, once I included them in my work or turned the work into play, the atmosphere changed. 

So this week, as I felt grumpy and overwhelmed, I changed the way I operated.  I let the kids become trains.  I read with a funny voice.  I created inspiration and fun.  I didn't do a lot.  The primary change came with me. 

When there is a problem, look to yourself first.  There are probably many things the other people could change to make the situation better, but you can only control yourself. 

Next time things are rough and you are simply grumpy, look and see what you can do to change the way you see and interact with the situation.  Taking control of ourselves is always the best place to begin.