If I had my way, seasons would not follow the moon. They would follow months. Calm down, I don't think the world is 200 years old and that it was created with January-December. I am fully aware that the modern calendar is just that- modern. But I digress. In my perfect world, Spring would begin on March 1st. March through May, the entire months, would be Spring. When May is over, it's summer! Summer would begin on June 1st, giving us a true June-July-August Summer. September, the month depicted on calendars with schoolhouses, apples, and orange leaves, would be the start of (you called it) Fall (or Autumn for you fancy people). Winter? December through February, of course.
With these simple seasons, college Spring breaks would be in the actual springtime. Christmas decorating would occur at the start of Winter. Memorial Day would be the true "start of Summer", and Labor Day would be the true "end of Summer". Don't you want to begin and end the Summer with patriotic- one remembering fallen soldiers and one celebrating America's love/hate relationship with Capitalism- Bar-b-ques? (Side note- where on earth did that name come from?) People, it only makes sense.
If I were in charge, that would probably be my number 2 frivolous change. My first would be creating a national/ international database of fingerprints so that educators and volunteers don't need to be re-fingerprinted at each organization. Everyone who has gotten their fingerprints would be in the same database- teachers, police officers, criminals, etc.- then the people on CSI would only need to check one database for everyone. Also teachers wouldn't need to get rechecked in every district. They would just figure out how to scan people on the spot to see if you're in the system for something bad.
Clearly I have gotten off-topic. My topic was supposed to be Summer.
I've written about Summer before. I wrote how it's all about big things and changes. I wrote about traveling, getting married, and moving to new and exciting places. Summer has been fairly wonderful to us.
Because Summer has been wonderful to us, I've had a bit of a quarter-life crisis (thanks for the term, John Mayer) this Summer. No, these past weeks haven't been terrible. In fact, they have been mostly normal.
But that's just it! Summers aren't normal. Summers are crazy and exciting and unknown! Summer is when I stand on the edge of the Grand Canyon. Summer is when I pack up everything I own to move 386 miles. Summer is when I get unexpected jobs. Summer is when I marry a fantastic person! Summer is... when I reorganize my closet?
That's right, this summer has been full of activities like reorganizing my closet. And removing the scuffs under our bar with a magic eraser. And finally getting matching bath mats that also match towels that cost more than $2 each. Summer has been, in a word, boring. No exciting new changes, no moving, no reasons to make a big deal.
Well, this is a big deal:
Yep, from scratch. |
I'm getting off track again. I'll talk about that awesome project in another post.
So I'm left with two choices.
1. Admit that Summer has been coincidentally filled with wonderful events largely due to a typical educational schedule.
or
2. Hold fast to the notion that Summer is a time when wonderful things can happen, but change my view of "wonderful things."
I'll give you one guess on what the "right answer" would be.
In order to change my view on what is considered wonderful, or exciting, or noteworthy, or any other adjective I have used to describe my previous Summers, I feel I must start from scratch, and view each day as a chapter in a book. Does this sound weird? Narcissistic? Creepy? I don't care. This is my epiphany, not yours. (Unless it is also yours, then just think of this as some sort of antagonist-type event in your book). As I tell my students, only boring people get bored. Only boring people have boring days. Do I want to read a boring book? No, I finished Gen. Ed. years ago.
Each day has meaning. Each day is filled with blessings. Each day's events, no matter how trivial, are leading to something. Maybe they are leading to something big, maybe they aren't. Either way, why prematurely judge how crucial each day is?
Jake and I recently went camping. We love to camp, but in this case we had just returned from a road trip one week prior. I pushed for the camping trip (to which he happily obliged) because I knew it would be a good time to get away and think about how I want to spend my days. I needed to re-focus on what is important and wonderful about each day. I'm a list- maker, so I decided to write out a schedule like a list.
BAM! Everything was solved and I have wonderfully productive and exciting days now! What you don't believe me?
Okay, it hasn't been perfect. I've been trying to follow my daily lists, but I sleep in, I get distracted, I get lazy. The difference is that I am prioritizing and reflecting- two things that weren't typical of me. After making my bed (Jake spewed some psychobabble mumbo-jumbo at me about making your bed first thing in the morning and being more motivated and I OF COURSE ate it up) I start each morning reading the Bible and journaling while eating breakfast. I also use this time to pray and plan out what I want to accomplish in the day. It has become a nice routine (does 4 days count as a routine?) for me.
The set-up looks a bit like this:
Vitamins! |
I almost think the organization and repetition of this makes me look forward to it- look how the paper towel is even lined up with the seam on the counter! Or, it's starting my day by being spiritually, physically, emotionally, and mentally healthy that makes me look forward to it. Either way, if I can start my day this way, each day has the makings of a great chapter in a book. Picture it:
I would for sure read that book. I should write that book! Oh, I see what I did there.
What's so bad about a different Summer? That's all it is, a different Summer. It's still new and wonderful and exciting, I just need to recognize it.
And since I am a teacher, I can't let this be without a lesson. I want you to recognize it too. As I strain to see the wonderful things in each day for the rest of the summer, I hope that you, too, start to see the wonderful where you haven't seen it before. It's there.
"As Sybra unfurled the drapes to let the light stream in, she looked at the duvet crumpled in the middle of the bed. She began to straighten sheet, and thought about the ingredients she needed for breakfast. Was there enough milk for cream of wheat? Should she pick something with more protein? She held up the mattress while she tucked the sheet in. No, if she was strong enough to hold up the king- size mattress with one hand, protein could wait until lunch. She mentally set her spot as she straightened the duvet and fluffed the pillows in their spots.
While standing back to gaze at the crisp bed, her eyes glanced the clock, which read "later than it should be" in her mind. She set out to the kitchen, simultaneously adding ingredients to her breakfast while locating her Bible, journal, and favorite purple pen. Grabbing her vitamins was unusually easy, as she had organized the pantry during the previous afternoon, easy enough to grab all three instead of just one.
Finally time to sit and eat, she prayed a quick prayer that her heart would be open to the words today, and that she would have enough thoughts to fill a page in her journal. It was, and she did."
I would for sure read that book. I should write that book! Oh, I see what I did there.
What's so bad about a different Summer? That's all it is, a different Summer. It's still new and wonderful and exciting, I just need to recognize it.
And since I am a teacher, I can't let this be without a lesson. I want you to recognize it too. As I strain to see the wonderful things in each day for the rest of the summer, I hope that you, too, start to see the wonderful where you haven't seen it before. It's there.