And This Exhausts Me...

Things at school have been insane lately! I have taken on too many tasks, I have neglected too many students' needs, and I have found myself completely exhausted. Is this the third year blues? Do all teachers go through this?

My students have been coming into the school hallways with one too many felonies that they are dealing with this semester. Felonies that would cause many to judge them as bad people. I don't get to feel that way about them, which is okay because I don't want to feel that way about them. It's strange to know that they have made choices that I strongly disagree with, but I refuse to write them off. Is this where my exhaustion comes from?

Either way, I think of my friend Kristine in moments like this. A few years ago, we watched a naked man run around Wash Park causing a complete ruckus. He acted completely foolish, racked up a few charges, and made pretty much every person in the park dislike him. There were numerous fire men, police men, and even the diving squad chasing him around the public space. I have to admit, I didn't want to be around him! I found him to be quite disgusting. But, while everyone else was thinking about how stupid this man must be, Kristine was thinking something else. "I wonder who out there loves this guy? Where is his mom right now? His girlfriend? His friends? His fill-in-the-blank?"

The last three paragraphs you just read do connect, I promise! Think about it. Even a drunk/stoned/tripping/rolling guy who spends his day flashing the public deserves to have someone out there who loves him. He wasn't ALWAYS that gross guy running around the park! This is the same for my students. They don't always make the good choice! They may have a lot of people out there who think they are bad people. However, they deserve to have someone who loves them, someone who knows that they have good qualities.

I know that my opinion about them is not going to change what happens when these felonies are prosecuted. Every person has to pay the consequences of their actions and I understand and fully support that. I just hope they know that they have at least one person (probably more knowing the staff that I work with) out there who has faith in their ability to make the necessary changes to right the wrongs they have committed. I have hope for my students that they will find a virtuous path and I love them as much as I can along the journey.

And this exhausts me.
lovemaura