When the fog rolls in

I was sitting behind a wailing kindergarten child who threw chairs, ran out of class, reached for a broom to swing, pounded and kicked a door, pulled at my clothes, punched and hit me, booted me in my shins, and kicked the plants along the edge of the building until their leaves could no longer hold on and flew only to become litter on the sidewalk.

He finally calmed his body and slumped in a chair in anticipation of his father arriving and his sadness, anger, and frustration were evident in his soulful cry.  I just sat behind him as he continued to express his emotions for a full 10 minutes.

I began thinking deeply and reflecting on the situation and looked up.  The fog was rolling in.

Fog seems mystical, eerie, and filled with the unknown to me.  It was aligned with my thoughts of bewilderment and hampered vision.  What was this child trying to tell me?  How can I help him?

We were suspended like droplets which hung in the atmosphere.  A moment to readjust our thinking, our bodies, and our actions.

The role of a school leader is complex and I believe that the more I learn, the more I realize I don't know.  A prominent area for me right now is the area of challenging student behavior.

My current box of strategies are as useless as lighting a candle to make my way through the thick cloud.  Perhaps it is the same for my child.  We will need to learn together.

The dragon theme continues...

I missed it.  My dragon flower bloomed and closed.  It was only my second flower since receiving the plant about 5 years ago.  I waited after the first bloom for a glorious dragon fruit but nothing happened.  I researched and asked around to find out why.  I was set to implement my pollination strategy as soon as I saw my next bloom but I missed it and am so forlorn. I now wait, with fingers crossed, hoping that nature took care of itself.

In the classroom, I remember frustrating moments where I didn't or couldn't implement effective strategies.  I wasn't reaching my students and kept on working towards seeing the fruit take hold and blossom.

In both instances, I continue to mālama the plant, keep the soil rich, and work towards that moment of sweet reward with hope and expectancy.

I can't wait for my first dragon baby.

When I grow up, I want to be a dragon.

We were in Lytham, England on a combination trip of sorts.  We visited motherlands, saw my daughter, celebrated graduation and adulthood, and was thankful for life.

Walking out to the St. Anne's Pier, we stopped in a shop and saw this dragon kite.  It was a windy day, I was with Jeremiah, and I had to get it.

When Jeremiah graduated from preschool, he said that when he grows up he wants to be a dragon.  It's become a family joke for years.

As he turned 18 on the 22nd of June, he truly is a dragon - large and untamed but fiercely loyal and kind.

How many of our kids want to be dragons when they grow up?  How do we nurture those that want to be something else besides a doctor, lawyer, police officer, or firefighter?

I am reminded to grow the dreams of all and to take advantage of special moments such as these. ♡

Transferable Skills

“It would seem that you have no useful skill or talent whatsoever," he said. "Have you thought of going into teaching?”   ― Terry Pratchett, Mort

My tūtū (grandma) could cook and create delicious treats, my dad can build, paint, and play the trumpet, my mom is an accountant, my sisters are CNAs and social workers who help the aging, one brother is an electrician, another brother is a boat captain, and my other half works for a phone/TV/internet company.  ALL of them have been tapped into and called upon for their talent and specialties numerous times within the past month, but me - an educator - not so much.  In fact, the one thing I've been called upon for help the most is to assist with the writing of resume.

What a strange realization it is to think I have no transferable and useful skill which people can tap into.  I LOVE my job, I KNOW education is important, I SEE the positive impact we have on students, and I am PASSIONATE about my calling and purpose.  So what do I offer the world?  

I pondered and came to the conclusion that I don't serve adults as much as I serve and grow children.  I encourage questioning and wonder.  I create opportunities for discovery.  I validate feelings.  I counsel.  I meet student needs.

Not much of what I have to offer will produce an immediate outcome.  My work will only be realized many many years down the road.  But I have hope and I wholeheartedly believe it is not for naught.

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Hum, that was interesting

Yesterday I attended the 4th Annual Hawai'i School Empowerment Conference.  In a session, speaker Jimmy Casas told us to take out our phones and select a picture which stood out, grabbed us, and was a place we wish we were at.  I selected this picture.

I love hiking, mornings, sunsets and sunrises, and new beginnings.  This picture gives me a warm and happy feeling.

I shared with my partner that it was taken on 1.1.18 as my family and I descended Makapu'u after welcoming the sun on the first day of the new year.  I love this picture because my family (with the exception of my oldest who is studying in France) was together in the same space.  Each of them doing their own thing but collectively enjoying the moment together.

Jimmy then asked us to apply the picture to our work life, since our picture was most likely not something work related.  Hum, what an interesting idea.

So here it goes.  I am an outdoorsy person.  I love fresh air, sunshine, water, and nature.  I love connectedness, my family, peace, and new beginnings.  Connecting this to school I need to continue to encourage many different ways for students to explore, discover, create, and share.  I believe we are on the right path with our social emotional learning curriculum and creating peace within ourselves and between each other is ecstatically liberating.  New beginnings remind us to wipe away the yucky junk and start again.  Lastly, I never started a blog because I didn't know what I would write about.  Isn't this like the pressure we place on our kids?  Interesting.  I think this "challenge" is something I will try to commit to.  Not sure how often I'll write, but perhaps I'll pick a picture every once in a while and make a written personal / professional connection.

A'ohe pau ka 'ike i ka hālau ho'okahi, Not all knowledge is learned in one school.

P.S. I'm so glad I went to the conference.  I was a bit reluctant because my principal encouraged me to go...on a Saturday.  I got off of work at 12:30 am on Saturday morning and had to travel from Wahiawā to the Convention Center and be there by 7:30am.  I prayed that it would be worth it.  So glad I went.

Follow me on Twitter @hiyuuko