I was a puppy, pressing my nose against the screen today. Temps soared to 52 degrees, the sun was shining, the sky was a deep blue. But when I looked out at the massive snowdrifts still piled up on the playground, the fields and the parking lot, it was hard to imagine it looking any other way.
It was a curriculum writing day...doing the less glamorous behind the scenes work that most teachers really don't want to do. But for some reason still unknown to me, I actually love watching ideas unfold and concepts take shape in a frame. I can sit for an hour and ponder the perplexities of standards and essential questions, learning targets and the map itself. It's like moving the furniture and then filling the walls with pictures and carpets and little nicknacks to fill the space.
But still...
The sun's warmth waited. And I waited too.
At the end of a long day, I packed my bags and decided to take the leap of faith and throw my big old down coat over my arm. I pushed my way through the double glass doors and set my sights on the many errands I had to do before I got home.
It was then that the giddiness began to sink in...the moment just before I'd normally tense my jaw and tighten the rest of me too. The cold...that snap of wind that hits me in the face from the corner of the building each and every winter day--was gone!
The sun's warmth, and only it's warmth, settled over me, and soon I realized that all that waiting was so, so worth it! Turn the page--poof! In the blink of an eye, it was gone!
Sure, the buds and the flowers and the peepers are waiting, but for now, I'll settle for the small surprises, the lessening of winter's grip and the forward motion toward spring!
Slice of Life Challenge:
For the month of March, I'm participating in a daily writing challenge, blogging, and posting, and reading other teachers' blogs. This challenge was started by two writing teachers, and can be found at their blog each day: www.twowritingteachers.wordpress.com. Feel free to join me! It's a great way to keep story threading throughout your brain each day.
