2-23-2018

Mary’s Minute

“The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others.”

                                                                                     ~ Mahatma Gandhi

Last night I heard a great story that made me think of this Gandhi quote.  I won’t use her name since I didn’t ask permission, but she will know who she is if she reads this.   The story begins when I witnessed the delivery of a sweet treat a couple weeks ago.  I thought the good deed was nice, so when I saw the barer of the gift last night I told her how impressed I was.  It was then that I got the rest of the story… This person told me how a couple weeks ago she was having a really bad day.  She was discouraged and sad.  She was at a low spot, deep in the throngs of worry.  She said she made conscious effort to pull herself out of it, and the surest way she had to do that was to do something kind for others.  She looked around and quickly found a way to spread kindness by making a dessert to share with a couple.  This is where I entered the story since I witnessed the exchange.  I was impressed with the good deed.

Helping others makes us feel good, and it makes me smile that the hero in this story has an overt understanding of that concept. 

The other neat part about this story is the ripple effect.  This person felt good by doing something for someone else, the people who benefited from the tasty treat had a great feeling, and as a witness to the act of kindness I am further inspired by all the good there is in people. 

                                                                    

                                                                         Have a great week!

                                                                                            Mary

2-16-2018

Mary’s Minute

“Darkness cannot drive out darkness: only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate: only love can do that.”

                                              ~ Martin Luther King Jr.

When tragedy strikes we cannot help but see the bad – the evil – in the world.  I still believe with all my heart that there is so much more good than evil in the world. 

I marvel every day at the good I see.  We see it in small ways when strangers smile and say hello, and in big ways when we hear about people heroically sacrificing their lives for others.  People give of their time, talent, and treasure to help people they may never personally know.  There truly is so much good in this world; there is so much light.  In times when the world turns dark, we must remember that it is light that drives out darkness.  It is good - it is light that can defeat evil.  

We are heartbroken, but we cannot let the darkness make us forget the light.  We cannot be complacent, and we cannot forget the sadness, but we also should focus on the good.

We must continue to work on prevention.  We must plan for the unthinkable.  But we must focus on the good!  We must see the good in others, focusing on the light and not the darkness.  You are light; you are love.  Please don’t let the darkness in the world make you forget that. 

                                                                           Be the light!

                                                                                   Mary

2-9-2018

Mary’s Minute

“Great minds discuss ideas; average minds discuss events; small minds discuss people.”

                             ~ Eleanor Roosevelt

I do not like the idea of sorting “minds” into categories of great, average, or small, but I love the idea that everyone can have great thoughts.  It is a pretty powerful notion to think about what we discuss.  When you are with your colleagues, friends, or family, what topics are discussed?  Part of what I like about this is that it is good to be cognizant about our conversations.  I think often we fill time chatting with people without stopping to think about the topics that fill the air.  If we want to have “great minds” we should focus on ideas.  When we are with colleagues do we focus on ideas about how to be better or how to enhance learning for students? When we are with friends do we talk about history, literature, and geography?  I want to talk about ideas, and I want to spend time with people who help me keep that focus.  I may not always be there, but it is something for which I can strive. 

Whether or not my mind is great, by focusing on ideas rather than idle gossip, my hope is that I can move towards having great thoughts.  It is pretty exciting that we have the power in that simple of way to move ourselves towards that pinnacle.

                                                                        Have a great week!

                                                                                    Mary

2-2-2018

Mary’s Minute

Happy Groundhog Day!  I know the day is rooted in a European tradition brought to America to “predict” the weather, but in modern folklore it is also associated with the Bill Murray movie and the notion of doing something over and over until we get it right.  The movie places the character in a time warp where he repeats February 2^nd over and over, and only breaks the cycle after he has made important changes in his life and used the lessons learned for good.  The character is not happy with his predicament and at times feels like his actions are meaningless and without consequence.  Eventually, he uses the phenomena to improve himself and to help others. 

The idea of time standing still until we get something right seems appealing to me.  Time does not stand still, but fortunately in life we do get to continually learn and grow and make changes.  Unlike Bill Murray’s character, Phil Connors, the calendar page continually flips in our lives, but like Phil we can use experiences to make ourselves better.

Also, we wake up each morning and must accept the consequences of our yesterdays, so although we can learn and grow, we cannot erase the consequences of our past. 

It is pretty deep stuff for a comedy!  I think it has a lot of great lessons for us to learn.  Back to the original Groundhog Day, let’s hope winter is almost over!

                                                                         Have a great week!

                                                                                       Mary