Right, Left, Listen

Speaking at a fundraiser for her presidential campaign in 2016, Hillary Clinton stated that half of Donald Trump's supporters belong "in a basket of deplorables"....she went on to say that "they are irredeemable...and they are not America."  

Continuing, Clinton stated that the "other basket of (Trump supporters) are people who feel that the government has let them down, the economy has let them down, nobody cares about them, nobody worries about what happens to their lives and their futures, and they’re just desperate for change."

Clinton's audience was democrats and her purpose was to raise funds for her campaign. She was simply rallying her constituency. She was defining the terms of the battle.  A political move that became central to the media's definition of the H Clinton candidacy. She couldn't get past it. She could not recover from it. 

In hindsight, that makes perfect sense. You cannot identify an entire segment of the American population as "irredeemable" (racist, sexist, homophobic, xenophobic, Islamaphobic..) and expect that to sit well.  Half of a basket of people, right?! That feels like a lot of Americans. 

On the other hand, she wanted to raise up marginalized people: black, brown, LGBTQI, and non-christian religious groups. Her intention, (rightfully so) was to reject division and embrace equity. 

Unfortunately, her strategy created enormous divisions. You cannot reject one segment of the population and embrace another segment without creating division. She divided Americans. 

We cannot throw away any American. We cannot tolerate hate from any part of our populace. We must respect those with whom we disagree. We must listen to their thoughts and opinions. We must. 

Listening to the viewpoints of others is central to our democratic system.  It is a basic tenant. It is a requirement. Without listening, we devolve into a polarized society.  When that happens, emotions rise and our ability to process logical thought is compromised.  At our worst, we  become violent. We have become violent. 

We are better than this. Our country needs us to be better than this. 

Alive or...?

Alive. Fully alive. What does that even mean? “Live everyday like it is the last!” How does one even do that? If it’s my last day, I am definitely not going to go to work, right?! Oops though..I am alive.  I will lose my job! How will I save for retirement, plan for college? Skydiving? Will I be fully alive when I am skydiving? Fully alive. How about the Bucket List? 

I may have figured this out. Maybe being fully alive is the pursuit of being fully present.  Fully present no matter what is going on.  In a world full of distractions, being fully present is pretty near impossible.  For instance, I will have to get rid of my apple watch and my phone. Just these devices, alone, create a distraction approximately 1 - 3 times per minute. I am constantly shifting focus. 99 percent of my notifications are pure trash.  I really only care about a few friends and my family. 

So, I am looking at my watch for notifications from these people. Or my boss. Why do I need instant notifications at all? Because someone might need me, be sick, or die. I need to know this stuff the second it happens?  It’s an expectation really.  But, I have that expectation, too.  I want my closest people to be immediately accessible to me.  Because, if they aren’t, what might happen? I might feel scared or alone when tragedy strikes?

Clearly my amygdala is driving my life. This is either embarrassing because this is not what anyone else does, or because everyone IS doing this.  Either way, it feels like an awkward confession.

You and You and You and You...

 In the age of social media it has become commonplace to put our worst moments on display.

I have tried to navigate that line. Letting you in to my world, but not overexposing myself. Let's be real, we all have dark, messy aspects to our "Selves". Rolling with me in my emotional mud is not something I would ever expect from you. Truthfully, I don't want to "go there" with you, either. A journal and a blog are not the same thing. 

I guess that's why it has been awhile since I have posted. Honestly,  I haven't had much to say that was sayable to you. Until today...

I have a question for you.  If there were a movie made about your life, who would you choose to play you?  Certainly there would be a child version of you, then an adolescent version, and depending on where you are on life's continuum,  there could be several more versions of you that would be required to fully tell your story. Who would you choose?  When you think about the actors you would choose to play you, what qualities do they have that resonate with the different versions of yourself that you see in your minds eye?  

That's it. Today, is just a little exercise in self-reflection. 

If you would rather not comment here, PM me on Facebook, Twitter, or Google Chat. Thanks for stopping by!

Be Safe, Be You.  Jules 💕

Grinding Stop

If you listen closely, you can almost hear the gears of our world grinding to a halt.  March Madness, the NBA playoffs, NHL, MLB... all stopped. Restaurants, movie theaters, bars, nightclubs are closing. There is no where to go but home. Home. Home.

Grinding Gears, by Stephen Green

People are sick, the economy is failing, and life has been disrupted in manner that is unprecedented. We have absolutely no idea what is coming, or how all of our systems and structures will bear the weight of this enormous,  little virus.

My feelings are a cocktail, a mixture of flavors that offend my taste and those that shift my focus to the swill that enlivens my senses.

So much of our world is centered upon distraction. The more we have advanced as a civilization the farther we have veered from our essential guideposts.  The speed at which we move makes it impossible to perceive the subtleties that illuminate our path. We have stumbled through uncharted terrain in micro-incremental steps.  Our path has led us nowhere except further and further from our essence and our homes. We are lost.

At least it feels like we are lost. Except there are other paths forward. Not a single path. There are many paths. Many ways that we can recover. Remember how it felt to get a pimple? Some of us had more than one. Or, how it felt to trip and fall in front of your friends? Mortifying experiences for anyone in the midst of adolescence. Very dramatic. Very big. Huge, in fact. But, it is not enormous.
It just feels that way.

The world is in the throws of adolescence. Like an adolescent growing into emergent bodies and abilities, we as a world have struggled to fully comprehend the magnitude and complex impact of our own material, technological and systemic changes. When we created the internet it felt like a Michael Jordan dunk from the free throw line moment. IT WAS! IT REALLY WAS!

Or, it could have been if we had only had the ability to examine the range of possible impacts of this advancement. A broader view of the cumulative affect of this change on our way of life. Something that an adult could do...someone whose executive function is fully online. But, sadly, our collective brains are closer to 12 than than 32.

Hence the stumbles, falling flat, bruises, and now COVID-19...a deadly virus. A world wide tragic wreck of a disease, that had we been thinking more like an adult than a tween, we could have prepared for. But we didn't. We couldn't. We were just kids.

It's time to grow up people.

There is NO ONE WAY forward. There are many paths. But, when we begin to move again, as a world, we need to do so in a very deliberate way. We need to self-regulate and co-regulate each other as we move from tween-ager to teenager to adulthood. It's time. Let's do this.

The Racist Next Door

There are racists in my neighborhood.  This is not my opinion. This is a fact. I have heard their words. I have heard them describe neighbors from other countries as "monkey's that just got off the boat". My racist neighbor is talking about someone that has a PhD in Physics and works for a Fortune 500 company.

My neighborhood is located in the most affluent county in the state of Indiana.  H Clinton, in the 2016 presidential election, coined Trump supporters as "the basket of deplorables".  I don't
think Clinton's characterization included my neighbor.  In fact, I don't think Clinton understood that the true deplorable's are her peers, colleagues, and neighbors in affluent and upper middle class neighborhoods. They are white men, who believe they are entitled to their white privilege.

I didn't stand up to my racist neighbor. My silence has allowed him to continue to relish in his privilege. No more. I am done being complicit. The cost is too high. Will you join me?

Walking With Children

For a child, missing breakfast can feel like a tragedy.  Not because he cannot survive the loss of calories, but because the food represents something missing from her life that is far larger. Perhaps, an unmet need for love, care, and emotional sustenance.

As a teacher, I frequently encounter unfavorable circumstances in the lives of the children I serve. Some students are not equipped to mask their difficult emotions, as many children (and adults) do. These students often develop, instead, emotional weapons that distort our perspective and originate from deep within their amygdala; the most primal area of the human brain.

Students who 'open carry' emotional baggage are a challenge for traditional classrooms. When a student who is emotionally-armed loses control,  a uniquely trained response is required. A response that redirects the child, allows other students to learn, and maintains the integrity of the teacher.

Teachers, and students are not generally trained to respond in a manner that meets this criteria. Consequently, outcomes vary.  Usually there are negative after effects.  What could have been a learning experience, in the end, inflicts further injury on some or all involved.

A Few Important Facts and Observations

• A well-programmed Robot should not lose control.  Humans do.  

• When Humans lose emotional control of themselves, there can be a range of negative outcomes.

• Losing emotional control of oneself is a traumatizing event. It is messy and very uncomfortable. 

• Between 1980 and 1992, the CDC reported an increase in suicide for the age groups 10-14 and 15 to 19.

Suicide devastates families and entire communities. Young people who are at greatest risk for suicide are those who are challenged by circumstances and emotions that are beyond their current control. In some cases, the causes seem obvious.  In other instances, the student may seem to have the 'perfect life.'

As teachers, we have a unique opportunity to work with our students, colleagues, and our communities to become trained and savvy regarding the emotional responses and well-being of our students.  How we handle the difficult emotional outbursts of our students sends a powerful message to all involved.  It isn't always, but it can become a positive message.

There are extraordinary gifts that can emerge from the most difficult situations.  I believe that the emotional well-being of our students is paramount to their success in school and life.  Creating a classroom where difficult situations are managed, to result in positive outcomes, is essential to developing a secure environment. An environment where all students can learn and thrive.

The Road Ahead: HomeSchool@ School

What can public schools learn from the homeschool movement? According to research, homeschoolers “typically score 15 to 30 percentile points above public school students on standardized academic achievement tests“(Ray, 2015). 

At first glance, class size is the obvious difference between these two groups. No doubt it is far easier to respond to student needs when the teacher student ratios are 1 to 3 versus 1 to 30.

Other advantages of a homeschool include, personalized curriculum, modified school start and finish times, and enrichment activities designed for the unique needs of student/children. 

A homeschool is a personal rather than an institutional environment. Schools are challenged to create a setting that is responsive, caring, and differentiated to meet student educational, social, and emotional needs. Today, the challenge for policy makers, investors, and educators is to redesign the public school setting to better meet these essential skills.  Twenty- first century students need more flexibility and control over their learning path, the structure of their day, and the way in which they choose to learn.

The school itself will need to support these attributes, with an emphasis on comfort, curricular options, and opportunities to play.  Schools need to invite students to the table, like customers or employees at high-end, technology-infused hubs, like Google and Amazon.  Only then, will schools begin to match the dynamic nature of the 21^st century workplace, where information, technology, and collaboration are necessary tools to solve authentic problems and create innovative solutions in a changing economy.