Rebounding 101
I never asked to have a cup of UGH for breakfast every morning this week, but my oh-so-willing barista, Life, served me up a steaming up of it every morning. It was the start of school, but not just that. It was also the start of me as a high school teacher in a world where nobody knows me. I had no anxiety about the first day. I had no bad dreams where I was totally unprepared. I slept really well, albeit not long enough. I woke up semi-rested and ready to start my new reality. I proceeded to welcome class after class into my room with smiles, only to have them respond with grunts, groans, and eye rolls.
Day 2 was much of the same. So were days three, four, and five. On Friday I sat in my classroom, sending a cheery message to the parents of my students about how much I enjoyed the week, and how much I looked forward to the long journey that we had embarked upon. The truth?
I wondered if I could do this for the rest of the year.
How do you rebound from the worst week of your life?
I suppose that perspective is a good way to start. Buried deep inside every cup of UGH from this past week were very tiny grains of “OH YEAH!” There was the student who smiled when I was being silly in class. There was another student who wrote on her paper that she wanted to be my best friend in that class. There was yet still another student who told me, when asked what I needed to do to be better, wrote on a piece of paper that I had already done enough just by being positive. Hmm…maybe those grains weren’t so tiny after all.
Maybe they weren’t tiny at all.
After a bit of time to reflect, I understand something deeper about the power of why, because I am a why seeker, after all. Our “why” is not mostly a naturally occurring phenomenon that manifests itself 24/7. Sometimes it is quite visible and we can feel it humming through our veins like happy blood. Other times we know that it is there simply because the confidence is there. But what about when that confidence has been shattered? Where is the why then?
If I am learning anything in this season where my life has been turned upside down, I have learned that our why is the balance between the good times and bad times; the mountains and the valleys. Our why is both the battery within and the force around us. It keeps us going while also pushing us forward. The power of why is that it exists in the tension, while providing levity to endure all of the pain, suffering, and steaming cups of UGH that are likely to come our way in this life.
As I sit here looking forward to the next week of school, I now understand that it will not be an easy road to success. Yet, even in that, there are parts of me that are looking forward to the test. My why, which is the inspire, encourage, and motivate, has me thinking of ways to impact the social and emotional aspects of my students as a way to build the relationships that they might not want to have with me right now, but ones that we will need to have with each other in order to thrive this year. My why has me thinking of how I can be better, how I can focus on the grains of “OH YEAH”, while still accepting those cups of UGH with a smile, or at least not a grimace, on my face.
How do we rebound?
By realizing that our power comes not from anything that happens to us, but rather from the steady energy that pulses through us. Whether in a classroom, boardroom, conference room, basketball court, football field, soccer pitch, or baseball diamond, this equation works the same.
Knowing Your Why+ Having the Courage to Live it Out= Success.
So…let’s get busy!
