Thursday's List: Things I Learned This Past School Year.

Summer Alice is back, but before I get too comfortable and distanced from this past school year, the first List of Things will be about things I learned this school year.  And, if you aren't an educator, you don't know exactly how long and hard this past school year was.  This is not me complaining, but it felt like ten years.  Students came with more baggage than they usually do.  There was more apathy than I have ever seen in my 22-year career.  My fingers are crossed that it is still the remnants of COVID coming through.  I have heard that next year's freshmen will still be hard, but the 7th graders from this year, that will be freshmen the year after this next one, have seemed to turn a corner.  

Anyway, Here is the List of Things I've Learned At School:

1.  Burnout is real.  I was at the lowest point this year.  I even looked to see what other things I could be doing for work.  I haven't ever done that before.

2.  Kids after COVID are tough...is it just COVID?  Have I changed so much after my experiences through the pandemic?  Is it a hard group of kids because of where they were during COVID?  I won't go into my anxiety about it never going away.  

3.  I have a lot of support at work, and I have to seek that support.  

4. I also have a lot of non-supports at work.  I realized I had to pick and choose my tribe.  Some peeps have my back and some do not.

5. Classes are temporary.  I think I have always known this, but I really have thought a lot about how temporary things are.  I thought I was going to sink with one class this year, but within a few months, that class completely changed because the dynamics changed.  Kids were added and more importantly, kids were taken out of that class. The time I have with each of my students is limited.  I need to make the most of those moments.  I will never ever have those classes again....of course there still are a few classes that I am very glad they will not repeat.

6. Along the same lines as #5, Seniors leave.  There will always be kids that I miss so much as they graduate and move on with their lives.  There are also others that I will forget quickly...

7. My office can be a sanctuary.  It IS a sanctuary. I have created a space for myself to just find calm and peace.  It is okay to sometimes hide in there, especially during lunch.

8. Enjoy the moments and people(turnover sucks). Being mindful of the moments you have with your favorites is important.  I will really miss a lot of the people who won't be working there anymore.  I hope friendships outside of work continue.

9. There are always good kids.  In fact, a few years ago, I told myself there really aren't any bad kids. When I have that mindset it is true, there are no bad kids. This year though, when I wasn't in that mindset, I was reminded that there still always are good kids in each of my classes.  There are always students who will help me, and there are always students who will do anything that is asked of them and they will have a good attitude.  Their shadow needs to always overcast the difficult students in my mind!

10. You do not need to grade everything.  Enough said!

Poetry Wednesday...Dealing with Death.

 Well, here I am writing another post, and realizing that I really hadn't planned for it to be a cry session.  About a week and a half ago, we lost our dear Mama.  Reuben's mother was a very special part of our lives.  The 12 years I have known her have been a time of wonderful friendship and she taught me so much.  

She was an amazing cook, baker and homemaker.  She made everybody around her feel like they were the most important person in the world. She had a contagious laugh and loved her grandchildren dearly.  The way her eyes opened wide and glistened when we walked into the room will be missed.  We now don't know what to do with our Monday evenings.  There are so many other things to say about my dear Mother-In-Law, who always reminded me that I wasn't just a Daughter-In-Law, but a real daughter, but that's enough tears to water my cheeks this morning.

As we were going through our morning process and preparing for Mama's funeral, the following poem came to me:

How do deal with death:

Curl up into a ball, repeat.

Note: time may vary.

I am an RV person...

Are you an RV person?  Are you any type of camping person?  My husband has always been a camper.  Being in the outdoors is a common thing we both like.  When I was younger, I loved to tent camp.  I didn't and still don't like outdoor bathrooming.  As I have aged, I realized that I also don't like sleeping on the ground.  Reuben asked early in our marriage: "What would it take for you to go camping?"  I said that it would take not sleeping on the ground and there would have to be bathrooms nearby camp to get me out.

I wanted to go and do and I started looking for an affordable camper.  The kids were still tiny so I thought having two beds and possibly a bunk would be right up our alley.  We found our first camper:

This is what they call a "tin can" camper.  These were popular in the 1950s-1960s

Our little classic 1962 Jet camper served us well for about five years.  Then the kiddos got too big and the sleeping arrangements were tight.  We sold our beloved camper mainly because during the last outing I got leaked on.  We were glad a wonderful retired woman bought it and that she was so excited to restore it.

We went two years without camper people, due to a botched car purchase and only being able to afford one car.   This took a toll on my soul.  I hinted to Reuben at the end of those two years that we probably could afford payments on a new camper.  I also reminded him that our children are growing fast and I really wanted to get them out camping before they were too busy and didn't think we were cool.  While searching,  I found a nice value breed of campers: Go Play by Wayfinder.  Here is a pic of it from last camping season:

Here are the things we absolutely love about our 19-foot bunkhouse:

1.  It is lightweight and easy to tow.  This makes it a little more economical to pull with our truck.

2.  It matches our truck perfectly: 

3. It has enough beds for all of us to have one:

Excuse the mess: The queen in the front.
The table can be turned into a bed, the bunks in the back,

4.  Sturdy Steps: If you look at the pic of our tin can camper, you can see the rugged wood step, the one I fell off of on one of our last trips in that camper.  Below is a much better set of stairs, which are adjustable and fold easily into the camper during transport:

5. The Screen Door: We always had bugs in our last camper because we wanted airflow but didn't have a screen door.  Now, we have a nice bug-free breeze:

 6. Full Bathroom with shower:  Now we can go literally anywhere and not need to find a toilet.  We can basically go off the grid for a while: 

7. Solar Panels and reliable electricity:  We can go out for days and our solar panels will recharge our batteries.  We have had a few worried times when the day wasn't sunny enough and we had to conserve but it is amazing how if we charge the batteries before going, the sun will recharge to mostly full while camping.  

8. A great kitchen: We can cook on a gas stovetop, use a full-size sink and refrigerate our food.

9. Bluetooth Stereo: We can listen in the rig, outside, or both. 

10. Awning: This mechanical masterpiece creates a wonderful cover to keep us in the shade.  We have also recently purchased an outdoor rug that added to the awning gives us a great porch-like area outside our camper.

11. Gas heater.  We have been able to camp on some pretty chilly nights.  In fact, our first camping trip of this season was in April and the high during the day wasn't even to 50.  It was so cold, but being outdoors with the right clothes is still great for your soul, and sleeping warmly makes it even more bearable.  

There are a few things that are tiny pet peeves we do have about our camper.  First, it didn't come with a ladder for the top bunk so we use a step ladder that sometimes gets in the way of the bathroom door.  Also, there is a weird space between the dinette and the queen bed, but we have stored drinks there lately.  We also don't like how the storage under the big bed can only be accessed through the top, meaning you have to raise both the mattress and the wood beneath to access it. 

Overall, we are so very glad we made this purchase.  We get family time away from screens and we can see so much of pretty Utah.   It is amazing how just one-night camping can feel like you have been away for a week. 

I look forward to many more adventures this summer/fall!

 

Oh My Bike(s)! (Is there such a thing as bike math?)

Did you know that today is World Bike Day? Me neither actually, but when I saw a post about it on Instagram, I knew I needed to talk about bikes here today. In honor of this big day here is a picture of my favorite bike, Kermit: 

So, how many bikes have I ridden today?  Zero.  A number that truly makes me sad. I am certain I will change that by the end of the day.

How many bikes have I worked on today?  Two.  My hands seem to always have perma-grease under the nails and the smell permeates off my skin.  Good thing I actually like that smell.

How many bikes is the right number to own?  That is a very easy answer: as many as you currently own right now, plus one. So, if you own 0 bikes, 0+1=1, you should own 1 bike.  I currently own 3 bikes that I actually ride, or plan on riding.  So, 3+1=4.  I should own 4 bikes.  What would be the next bike I would own?  I think an e-mountain bike would be very, very nice.  

How many bikes did I own yesterday that I actually ride or plan to ride?  2.  So, the right number for me yesterday would have been 3.

But this brilliant thing happens when you get known as the bike lady, people want you to have more bikes(In fact, maybe the universe wants you to have more bikes).  A man from my neighborhood knows about my bike obsession and gifted me this really cool bike:

He said he didn't think he would get around to fixing it and had had it for a while.  He felt that I would have fun fixing it up and riding it.  I am pretty sure he is right! I am guessing this is a late 1960s or early 1970s Schwinn.  The model is the Collegiate. 

Now, how many bikes have I ever owned?  That is too hard of a question to answer.  I do know that right now I actually own 13, though.  It would be 14, but I just sold one. This is a pile of my future projects or free therapy as I like to call them:

What is it about bikes that is so special? I could go on and on answering that question but I will keep it short and sweet, I think nostalgia is the root of why bikes are so special. I know for a fact that most of you have thought of at least one bike you have had in your lifetime and I bet that bike was from your younger years.  To a kid, a new bike symbolizes freedom, they can go lots of places on a bike.  I know that biking slows travel down and I become more mindful. For me pedaling always helps me be in a good brain and it relaxes me.

  Well, enough wasting World Bike Day when you can get offline and go biking.  Like I always love to say: "Any day on a bike is a great day and every day is a great day for a bike ride."  Get to it!

The Faith of Teens

 For this week's spirit-filled moments, I share with you a quote from a young woman who is in my church congregation:

                                    "Jesus put his arms wide on the cross as if to say, "I love you this much," like little kids say."

Photo found here.

This is how the love of Jesus Christ is supposed to be: simple.  In my church, we don't really like to dwell on the crucifixion of Jesus, but I like to envision Him up there, with his arms outstretched inviting me in for a big hug.  I know that He loves me because I feel it. I feel it most in quiet places and even stronger when I am seeking it.  

I love that I can be taught by 17-year-olds just as much as adults with lots of experience.  Of course, we have to be in a space to listen, but the magic can happen when we do!