Awe-Inspiring Moments
April 6
Awe: a feeling of reverential respect mixed with fear or wonder; a feeling produced by something majestic or sublime.
Guilty.
I overuse the word “awesome.” It is one of my favorite words to describe, well . . . EVERYTHING. When I first stumbled upon Jill Shargaa’s entertaining TED Talk, I laughed out loud — mostly because it is SO true! Now I can’t think of the words “awe” or “awesome” without thinking of this spunky talk. That being said, it has had very little effect on the way I use the word — Sorry, Jill!
This brings me to today’s #AprilBlogADay inquiry:
What was your most recent awe-inspiring moment in the classroom?
When I took a moment to think about a recent time that I was awe-struck in my work, my mind returned over and over again to a particular Thursday — March 19th, to be exact. You probably expect me to write about an amazing lesson or a dazzling student. I have a few of those, but I am not going to write about them today. Today I want to share with you a story of my AWESOME colleagues.
A little back-story:
I am our local teachers’ union president. Our local has been working under the terms of an expired contract since August 31. Our members are frustrated, feeling overworked, overwhelmed, under-appreciated, and underpaid. The team has been negotiating for nearly 16 months and, needless to say, negotiations have been tense at times. With minimal progress, by mid-March our negotiating team was ready to begin our efforts to organize and mobilize our members. Following the example of great leaders and organizers like Martin Luther King, Jr., we believe in escalating tactics. This means that our campaign would begin with tactics that were soft and non-confrontational and only escalate if or when necessary. Our goal in this first step was simply to demonstrate our unity and solidarity as an association. We decided to make a visible display of our unity by participating in a Faculty Blackout. All faculty would wear all black every Thursday until a fair contract is negotiated.
This wasn’t the first time I attempted to organize the faculty. I have tried team-building, committees, picnics, dinners, wearing red to show support for Wisconsin, We Are One Stickers, Meet at the Flagpole days . . . most of these unsuccessful. On Thursday, March 19, the date of our first Faculty Blackout, I was nervous. I didn’t know what I would find.
When I arrived, dressed in black from head to toe, I was met in the halls by teacher after teacher . . . ALL DRESSED IN BLACK. With each teacher who passed me, my smile grew. It was exciting! I needed to know — I needed to see the scope for myself. I walked the entire building that morning and I peeked in every room. Teacher after teacher, nodding, smiling, and blacked out.
THAT WAS AWESOME!
Sublime. Majestic. Reverent respect. I couldn’t have been more proud of our members on this day. I was beaming and inspired by their show of support and solidarity. They are the power behind all that we are.
