Came across this in the Twitterverse this morning.  It speaks to me. One, it reminds me of my procrastinating ways, which I will get around to changing some day. Two, it provides more fuel for my personal fire to change education, especially at this twenty-year juncture of my journey.  Again with the destiny–sorry, but as I waffle and waver over my plans for next year, it gives me some strength to venture forth and get some roots in the ground, making me then a steward, a caretaker of that which I would see done.  And thus three, it serves as a reminder of my charge as a teacher. Little makes one more accountable than that for which he has been given charge, that for which he is responsible–my students. They, too, their own trees that, though I did not plant, I do have to help cultivate in the time that they are in my care. And while it is rare that I see the fruits of my labor in real time, for most of the growth is not plain for the eye to see as it happens at the root level, I believe that even the smallest shoot of root helps the health of the saplings struggling to capture the sun around me. And while some will grow more than others–now or later, all I can really do is my best to keep them healthy as I pass them along to their next stewards. I owe them that.  It is my charge, even when I am not at my best, lately I have not been at my best, but I am lucky for the saplings in 219 are rather resilient, and I returned to find them just fine.  Maybe I am not as important as I think.

Happy Thursday, all. It’s great to be back in my little grove of trees in 219, a restorative force not unlike that found in the awe of nature.  Kids.  Sometimes, I think that is all we need.