We were sitting in a faculty meeting a few days ago. Faculty meetings look a lot different this year. When we had faculty meetings in previous years, the whole gang met before or after 🏫school, typically in the library. We didn’t have assigned seats, but we always managed to sit near the same people. We sipped ☕coffee and shared snacks. We listened to the information that was shared by our principals and colleagues. We ☺smiled. We 😂laughed. We enjoyed the camaraderie. They are nothing like that now.
First, they’re not truly faculty meetings. It’s more a gathering of small groups of people who have the same plan 🕜hour spaced throughout a room. No snacks. No sitting by your friends. Plenty of ↕distance. Shorter time frames. Many 😷masks. We still accomplish the tasks at hand- it’s just different.😕
We heard about another unforeseen 💻technological glitch that we would need to work around for a bit during this particular meeting. Another new way to think about things. We 😡groaned, then 😂laughed. I actually said that we should be used to it by now- that it’s still 2020, after all. Then- the 🔥fire alarm went off- with 4-minutes left in the school day! 🚃Buses were lined up and ready for kids. Parents were 🚗parked in the parking lot. We followed all of the safety protocols for these situations. There was no real emergency- just another example of the 🌀twists and turns that are part of our lives in 2020.
I know that there is still plenty of ⏳time for 2020 to toss out more calamities and chaos, but I was thinking about something. Yes- it’s been a wild 🚀ride so far. I fully expect that to continue. It’s brought things to the forefront that we couldn’t have imagined in a million years. We’ve been 😯shocked. We’ve been 😳blindsided. But- these unprecedented times have also taught us lessons.✔
Let’s not waste that learning. I plan to carry a few insights with me through the rest of this crazy year and beyond. What about you?
- Give up expectations
- Appreciate little things🌷
- Respect the process
- Take long walks👟
- Give a whole lot of grace💝
- Love big💗
- Invest in clothes made of soft fabric with stretchy waistbands
- Take nothing for granted
- Embrace change
- Be present in the moments
- Wear your mask😷
- Smile ☺under your mask because you can still see it in the eyes
- Relax
- Be kind even when you don’t feel like it😘
- Shake it off
- Be there for others😍
- Be there for yourself🙋
- Order the large queso with your carry-out
- Recognize the power in knowledge💯
- Don’t wait for something good to happen- make it happen
- Laugh or cry or growl with frustration- just allow yourself to feel all of the emotions😂😢😬
As my grandmother used to say, “This, too, shall pass.” Don’t expect this 🌀topsy-turvy vibe of 2020 to disappear when the calendar changes in December, though. Put on your comfy pants and settle in for the remainder of the 🎢ride. Just know that you’ve gained insights that you never even knew you needed. You’ve had a wake-up call, and that call is to live your life without regrets and to love others with an open heart.💖
What if…we remember the lessons of 2020? It’s really been life on steroids, so to speak. Whenever our lives settle down to a pace that seems both new and familiar, we can use this experience to bring our best selves moving forward.💥 This bridge will lead us somewhere, so let’s be ready. Chin up! We’ve got this!💞
sharing the stairs 