Nelson Mandela:
"What counts in life is not the mere fact that we lived...
it is what difference we have made to the lives of others
that will determine the significance of the life we lead."
This is where teachers have an unprecedented opportunity in a meaningful career where it is possible to make a difference on a daily basis!
Permeate
I cannot imagine a way of life more steeped in Mandela's philosophy than a life serving in classroom spilling over with bright eyed children who believe in the magic that all is possible when we act upon our dreams. --Toby Manzanares
Whether it be science, math, history, or the humanities, we are paid to impart the knowledge and wisdom of our academic disciplines... yet while doing just that, educators have an unimaginable opportunity to simultaneously make a difference in the lives of so many others. Where else can so few make such a colossal positive change in the human condition?
The purpose of this book is to place the importance of teaching back on the front page of our mental landscape for all to recognize or remember... In
"You've got to be tough as nails with your tender heart."
You will come to see that we learn nothing from winning,
the act of loosing however can elicit great wisdom.
It is inevitable to lose now and then,
the trick is not to make a habit of it.
"The great adventure in life, is what you decide to do with it."
"We're trying to be right as often as we can, and trying to live a life that amounts to something."
"We'll share the credit when something good happens, and assume the responsibility for mistakes and not look for a scapegoat."
--Bill Clinton
FOR STUDENTS:
Life is like a camera:
focus on what's important.
Capture the good times.
Develop from the negatives.
And if things don't turn out,
take another shot.
One way to frame my years in the classroom is to imgaine them like a jigsaw puzzle: each student, every colleague, each day like a piece of that puzzle coming together in the final moments to reveal a beautiful panoramic landscape, magnificent to behold.
"Greek-Armenian philosopher and mystic George Gurdjieff taught that
we are born without a soul and that our task in life is to help our soul
to grow and develop: Souls aren’t born; they’re earned. Every single
day." I believe that is what teachers do: help students develop, grow and earn their souls.
My all time favorite book, To Kill a Mockingbird, I first read in high school but was completely elevated by its message and characters when I read it a second time some 40 years later.
Atticus Finch and Good Teaching
Believe that goodness can be found in everyone.
I just saw Aaron Sorkin's 2023 new stage version of to Kill a Mockingbird. It left me in tears at several points but especially at the climatic standing ovation. Suddenly, thousands of affirmative voices ringing out to the performers, not just clapping hands but rising voices! I've never heard such admiration, a once in a lifetime ovation, but I wonder if it was for the performers or for the beauty of the message they delivered. It is the message of Mockingbird that I feel in the everyday work of teachers.
Then I came across Carol Kuchar's 6/2/2019 To Kill A Mockingbird online post:
".... unconditional love, non judgement and protecting one's own child in the face of adversity and fear... Atticus had no judgement... Teach your students to have an open and loving heart and mind, then listen to what they have to teach you! That is what love and teaching is all about!"
Atticus believed that goodness could be found in all the towns people. He refused to believe the people he grew up with, the people on the jury he knew so well would find an innocent man guilty. When they fell short of his expectations he began to question his view that there is goodness in everyone.
Yet, I believe that goodness can be found in everyone. It was certainly true of the students who walked into my classroom over my 39 years as an educator. Looking back, I can see how that belief made the journey so much more enjoyable.--tnm
Sorkin: There’s a scene in the book and in the movie. At the
end of the trial, Atticus has lost, he’s putting stuff back in his
briefcase, and the whole courtroom has cleared out, except for what they
call the “colored section” up in the balcony. Atticus turns around to
see that they’re all standing silently out of respect for him, and
someone says [to Scout], “Stand up, Miss Jean Louise; your daddy’s
passing.”
It’s a great scene and it's a good way to frame the way I see teachers: "Stand up everyone, your teachers are passing."
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