Summertime

Summer is a time of rest, renewal, and creativity for me. I've found that if I do not let my creative teaching juices flow in the summer, committ them to paper, and get them out of my head that during the school year I'm way too pulled in too many directions to be creative. So, every morning I wake up and design new and hopefully exciting things for my students to explore and learn.

Summer is also a time when I do what I want at the time I want to do it. After 20+ years of teaching - I feel a bit of justification in that. I am free to go and do whenever I want. I've been taking yoga classes (which I feel have made me stronger than any weightlifting I've ever done) which I intend to keep up with during the year. I can also just drop whatever I'm doing and go wherever the wind is blowing. Today - I feel like going into work and getting some more things organized.

I have some unsettled areas of my life. I still wonder why my friends do not consider me a good person with which to travel. I guess my summer travel will have to be solo. They talk about going places together - it never pans out. I will put that aside though. They are good people and I love them. I have a perfectly delightful time traveling alone - remembering Montana. I'm just not going to plan on them being able to participate in that area of my life - and that's okay. It allows me to expand my contacts and make new friends across the country and the world.

You know, friendship is a weird thing. There are always people who give more in relationships, are aware more in relationships, and who are takers more in relationships. I think groups of friends are made up of a variety of those sorts of people. The trick would be for the takers to become givers, the givers to become receivers, and for all to be aware of who and what they are. To move out of your comfort zone and into the area where you have to push yourself to remember to give, receive, or be aware is important. It's the difference between having the fixed mindset, "That's just the way I am", to having a growth mindset, "I can learn to be better at what I do not know how to do."

The play starts soon. I'm helping out on a regular evening basis. Means I get to see the show for free each time it runs. It's a sweet deal. On the 21st Century isn't a show I know - but I'm sure I will when it's over.

Looking forward to the Chorale rehearsals starting again. I get to sing plenty during the summer between church choir and voice lessons - so its not the singing. I think it's part of how I define myself. It's like work - right about now I've almost had enough time off. It's not a restless thing. I think people look for meaning in what they do and what they accomplish. It's hard to do "nothing". However, many of us have to find that the discovery of yourself is sometimes wrapped up in the "nothingness". There are moments that you are suprised by an insight that you hadn't discovered. For example, I only dream in the summer - and I listen to those dreams.

Well, enough rambling on for the day. . .these things never go in the direction I envision them going. ....

Roaming Rambling