The Other Side of the Storm

‘Determination gives you the resolve to keep going in spite of the roadblocks that lay before you.’

– Dennis Waitley

What do I define as what makes me determined as a classroom teacher?

How does my reservoir of resolve remain filled when everything around me seeks to deplete it?

Since my last post, the thought ‘the other side of the storm’ came to mind when I contemplated what I would write about. We are now entering the 4th and final quarter of the school year! Wooooohoooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo! Understanding how I felt when I first realized I would have to return to the classroom, after 10 years, and how I’m feeling today, I know there is a God and He cares that I perish:-)

I honestly believe He made use of blogging to aid me in letting go of the attitude and frustration associated with the reality of transitioning back into the classroom. Since then, it has been His amazing grace and the many ways I have seen Him at work in, through, and around me that has equipped, enabled, and empowered me to endure, persevere, and regain the joy associated with being an educator.

I would say, at the top of my list of what makes me determined as an educator is the sincere desire I have to teach. My first year back in the classroom, I recall the day I was excited about capturing my student’s attention long enough to teach for a solid ten minutes! That day, I felt like I won the lottery. I was actually excited and shared openly with others how I felt to teach for 10 minutes. Reflecting on it today, I chuckle, but the feeling is as real today as it was then.

Apart from the supply of God that empowers me to teach, one thing that keeps my reservoir of resolve full is the synergy created when my students begin to actualize the concepts, expectations, and procedures that allow for meaningful instruction and learning to take place. This comes to mind when I sincerely reflect with appreciation regarding a class of students I have grown to enjoy teaching that annihilated my last nerve the first semester of the school year. I had them today and I now look forward to seeing them where there was once only dread. I guess you can say I’ve lost that dreaded feeling. lol!

How rewarding it feels and is to be on the other side of the storm and there be fruit, gain, and prosperity, instead of continued discord, dysfunction, and a depleted reservoir of resolve. After been on both sides of the coin as an educator, I have learned to acknowledge and celebrate the progress and openly acknowledge it to my students as a means for us to try to capture lightning in a bottle and preserve those ‘good days’ for as long as we can!

May God bless and help you to remain strong, firm, and steadfast until you reach the other side of your storms and help keep your reservoir full with the determination to teach, inspire, and influence.