It’s that time of the year, isn’t it?
The time of the year that is so hard because the honeymoon is over. We feel the crunch of assessments and conferences and curriculum. And, honestly, we are really really tired.
The time of year when the holiday craziness begins and the kids are out of their minds on sugar and dreams of Santa. When the days get shorter and it’s dark by the time we leave school in the evening. When we are trying to get our own holiday shopping and cooking and cleaning done during those few dark hours we have in the evenings.
The time of year when we are tired of the cold and when it seems like we will never escape the winter. The time of year when our coats are thick but our patience is thin, and we could use a break but spring break seems so so very far away.
The time of year when spring fever sets in and students are up past their bedtime because it stays light later. When state testing is happening and the crunch of the end of the year is upon us. When summer break is both coming too quickly and can’t come quick enough.
It’s that time of the year, isn’t it?
The time of year to realize that there is no perfect time of year. That each time of the year comes with challenges and blessings and we can either bemoan them and complain about them, or we can embrace them and figure out a way to smile when we get up in the morning and whistle our way to our cars at night anyway.
The time of year to count our blessings rather than our misfortunes. The time of year to be thankful for each day we get to spend working alongside dedicated educators and curious students. The time of the year to focus on boosting the spirits of everyone we come into contact with because there is no neutral. We are either raising spirits or dampening them–no in between.
The time of the year to recognize that happiness is a choice we can make every day. No matter the weather. No matter the phase of the moon. No matter the date on the calendar.
We have the power to make every day a day to celebrate.
“The longer I live, the more I realize the impact of attitude on life. Attitude, to me, is more important than facts. It is more important than the past, than education, than money, than circumstances, than failures, than successes, than what other people think or say or do. It is more important than appearance, giftedness or skill. It will make or break a company…a church….a home. The remarkable thing is we have a choice every day regarding the attitude we will embrace for that day. We cannot change our past…we cannot change the fact that people will act in a certain way. We cannot change the inevitable. The only thing we can do is play on the one string we have, and that is our attitude…I am convinced that life is 10% what happens to me and 90% how I react to it. And so it is with you…we are in charge of our attitudes.”
― Charles Swindoll
