9-30-2016

Mary’s Minute

“If you want others to be happy, practice compassion; if you want to be happy, practice compassion.”                                                           

                                                                                   ~ Mary Stewbeck

“Choose to be happy.  It is a way of being wise.”             ~ Colette

I am quick to talk about the power of mind over matter and willing ourselves to act or feel in a certain way.  I believe that we can choose our attitude and that being happy is a choice.  I recently read an article from Washington Post that pointed out that it is not always that simple.  The article suggested that we need to accept and own our feelings.  Sometimes sad or bad things happen, and we need to process those feelings rather than simply discounting them and willing ourselves to be happy.  It made me consider thinking of happiness as something more than just a choice, but as a way of life.  If happiness is not as simple of a choice as I have always claimed, we still have control over it through our actions.  Actions lead to happiness, and the surest way to be happy is to help others.  Happiness can seem like a selfish feeling, but the truth is that true happiness is always connected to others. 

I still believe that happiness is a choice, but I am seeing the route to it being a little different than simply choosing the feeling.  The choice is not in choosing our emotion, but in choosing actions that lead to happiness.                                          

                                                                   Have a great week!

                                                                                        Mary  

9-23-2016

Mary’s Minute

“Spread love wherever you go.  Let no one ever come to you without leaving happier.”

                                                                                               ~ Mother Teresa

The word love can be used in many different ways.  “I love your new haircut” as a thoughtful compliment.  “I love you, man!” to an old friend, or the tender “I love you,” to a significant other.  Eskimos have many words for snow because for of their need for precision in describing the white matter.  I wish we had more words for love in order to better describe its intricacies.  The Greeks had six different words for love.  My favorite is “agape” or love for everyone.  I believe that this is the love that Mother Teresa spoke about.  Love for our families and significant others is a special kind of love that is certainly connected to a love for all, but Mother Teresa’s brand of love is the kind we want to model our lives sharing.

When my dad died I remember as a family pouring over the intricacies of his monument.  We wanted the phrase, “Love Never Ends” etched in the granite as a reminder of the kind of love that Mother Teresa describes.  Not to take away from the relationship of my mom and dad, but we didn’t want the phrase engraved near their wedding date because we wanted the “love” that we were describing to stand for more than romantic love. 

Love – Perry Central style – is what Mother Teresa describes.  That love is our goal.

                                                                       With love, 

                                                                      Mary

9-16-2016

Mary’s Minute

“A journey of a thousand miles starts with a single step.”

                                                                                     ~ Lao Tzu

We all have times when we feel overwhelmed.  It is tough for me to even type the “o” word because admitting it makes me feel weak.  An analogy came to me the other night that helped clear my mind.  It was very late when I walked through my kitchen and noticed the dishwasher had completed its cycle and needed to be unloaded.  I sighed thinking of the task, which at nearly midnight seemed exhausting.  I opened it and thought I would just put away the plates and leave the rest until morning.  The plates proved to be an easy job, so I grabbed the bowls and put them in their place.  Before I knew it all that remained was the silverware – the dreaded silverware!  I had another moment of defeat, thinking it would have to wait until morning, but maybe I would just grab all the spoons.  The forks, and then the knives easily followed.  Just like that the job that had felt overwhelming just minutes before was done because I broke it down into single steps.  I realize that a simple household chore does not compare to the vast workload that teachers and many others face, but as I was stacking coffee cups the similarities stood out to me.  The task before me was not a difficult one, but in the moment it felt exhausting and somehow the dishwasher not being unloaded made the rest of the incomplete household chores surrounding me seem paralyzing.  Tasks, difficult and simple, can seem crushing, but when we start that journey of a thousand miles with that single step we feel empowered to keep going and before we know it we feel better and have a task crossed off our to-do list.  We all have journeys before us.  I wish you the best in your metaphorical trek and encourage you to remember my household conundrum and feel empowered!

                                                                        Have a great week!

                                                                        Mary

9-9-2016

Mary’s Minute

“Every person in this life has something to teach me – and as soon as I accept that, I open myself to truly listening.”

                                                                      ~ Catherine Doucette

For me there are two valuable lessons in the quote above.  The first is about valuing perspectives, and the second is about the act/art of listening.

When we see that every person has something of value to teach us, we begin to see the world differently.  This attitude enables us to think knowledge as relative and dynamic.  Not everyone is equal in intelligence, but everyone has a unique perspective that is of interest and can enlighten others.  If we think of intelligence as a finite body of knowledge, then we can dismiss the value of others, but knowledge is not finite.  Teachers who see their students in an active sense, not as passive participants, understand this notion.  Once we truly accept the value of multiple perspectives, then our next task is to use active listening to learn from others.  It may not always be easy to live without judging others and recognizing that we can learn from them, but when we do we open ourselves up to endless opportunities for growth, fueled by inquiry.  Believe that we can learn from everyone, and I promise you that we will!

                                                                   Have a great week!

  

                                                               Mary

9-2-2016

Mary’s Minute

“Nothing will work unless you do.”

                                                     ~ Maya Angelou

“Far and away the best prize that life has to offer is the chance to work hard at work worth doing.”

                                                                             ~ Theodore Roosevelt

Work is often considered a negative thing.  We use the phrase, “I have to go to work,” rather than, “I get to go to work.”  Work for some is a drudgery with a clear distinction in their lives between work and play.  I have great compassion for people whose work is a drudgery, and I know that many people work in difficult physical conditions that make their feelings justifiable.  My hope is that all people can find the prize that Teddy Roosevelt described by finding satisfying work and having the opportunity to work hard at it.  Through that kind of hard work, not only do we have a feeling of satisfaction, but as Maya Angelou reminds us, things get done!  When we are involved in work worth doing, not only can we find satisfaction in the finished product, but we also can become immersed in a sense of flow.  Great work days are often ones that fly by because we get in a zone.  I am thankful that I have a job I love and am surrounded by people who find joy in work worth doing.  I am appreciative of all the workers who make our world click.  Work like so many things in life is a gift!                                                                 

                                                                              Happy Labor Day Weekend!

                                                                                  Mary