Love Be-ing A TeacHer!

I'm so lucky to be a teacher!

hEy tHeRe!

I'm at work this morning as an 8th grade English teacher at Valley Middle School and guess what?

I LOVE IT!

I mean, what could be better than 

hanging out with kids all day?

(the groWn-Ups are okay, too, I guess . . . LOL!)

Honestly, I feel super lucky and blessed to have a job I love, and to tell the truth, teaching actually found mE. Here's the super no-coincidence story:

Once upon a time in my twenties after college, I was in my room late at night reading a college course catalog (yes, I was working at a department store in the mall with a 4-year degree, living at home with my parents . . . and that's okay . . . I just didn't have a direction, or a focus, and I wasn't sure what to do with my life, hence the college course catalog). I turned a page open and vwah-lah (is that how you spell it?), out popped a section in the catalog for a teaching license program for English (which was my degree in college).

I was like WHOA! COOL! I could be a teacher! and looked farther down the page. I needed two letters on reference from college professors, a copy of my college transcript, an essay explaining my interest in the program, and a filled-out application form. Not a problem, really . . . but then I looked at the deadline: 

iT was 

DuE the

vEry nExT dAy at 5:00 p.m.

I didn't know it at the time, but this was one of the very first times I felt the Universe leveraging itself for me. I knew I was going to be a teacher after I saw this program, and I knew I was going to meet the deadline.  

So, I stayed up all might long writing my essay and filling out the application, and in the morning right away, I called two of my favorite professors the and asked for references THE VERY SAME DAY. They agreed! (of course) . . . 

That very same day (fewer than 24 hours since I had read about the program), I headed down to the University of Minnesota with my application; I picked up the references from my two professors; I went to the transcript office and got an authorized copy of my college grades; AND, I hand-delivered my entire application at (you guessed it!) around 4:55 p.m.

I made the deadline!

Anyway, that is the story of the beginning of my love affair with teaching. I feel so blessed to be a teacher and to have a job that I absolutely adore. Deepak Chopra, in his Seven Laws of Spiritual Success describes The Law of Dharma in this way:

"Everyone has a purpose in life . . . a unique gift or special talent to give to others. And when we blend this unique talent with service to others, we experience the ecstasy and exultation of our own spirit, which is the ultimate goal of all goals."

Do you think your work is connected to your dharma?

Let's continue tomorrow!

Blessings!

Dana

bE aFrAid (not)!

"Do one thing every day that scares you."

~Eleanor Roosevelt

Hey All fUn&fRee feArLESS pEoplE:

Be aFraid! be very afraId . . .! 

Are you scared of being scared? I am. It makes me want to run away and try to control or forget the yucky stuff that scares me. As Eleanor Roosevelt recommends, we should do some (one)thing everyday that scares us. Which, really means, that we must try to tune in to what we are scared of--AND INTENTIONALLY DO THE THING THAT scArEs us The MoStEsT!  . . . seems kind of counter-intuitive, doesn't it?

For me, the scariest thing lately (as in, for the past 10 years), is speaking my truth and sharing my feelings.

I've never been very good at this. You see, I never thought my feelings were right (have you ever heard of right feelings? OMG), and I never got that my voice was, well, worthy of being heard, truth be told (why did I believe my voice was less important than anyone else's?). 
I never got that others valued what I had to say, and that is what caused me to take my feelings
     U
          N
               D
                    E
                         R
GROUND
and even medicate myself with unhealthy behaviors, attitudes, mindsets, and patterns. I am so, so lucky, that the important people in my life are willing to hear the truth, albeit SUPER KLUNKY most of the time. . .  (namely, Keith, Max & Chloe, Mom, Chris, Shelley, Celia, Alana, Brenda, Edward, Diane).
     

HEAR ME NOW,

funfreepeople:

FEAR

(in disguise)

IS OUR

BEST

FRIEND

as in,

our best opportunity for growth.

A mentor of mine, Mastin, has taught me that my fear informs me what I MUST to do next--like a signpost or a roadmap. For example, if I'm scared of telling my friend how I feel or share what I think,  it's EXACTLY what I need to DO!  OMG! It's the total OPPOSITE of how I've lived much of my life. I'm so lucky and blessed that I (sort of) get it now. . .

"Go to your fears, sit with them, stare at them.

Your fears are your friend, their only job is to show you undeveloped parts

of yourself that you need to cultivate to live a happy life.

The more you do the things you're most afraid of doing the more life opens up.

Embrace your fears and your fears will embrace you."

- Jackson Kiddard

So, according to this amazing quote, we are suposed to be friends with stuff that scares the CrAp out of us--and, (what the heck?)--our fears are FRIENDS--they show us what we NEED TO DO--WHAT WE MUST DO-- TO GROW.

Story opportunity: My daughter, Chloe, told me she saw a book called Courage (Waber) that she wanted to get--so, we went down to our awesome neighborhood bookstore called the Wild Rumpus and bought the book!

So weird! When we got home, I received a package from UPS delivering a book that I forgot I had ordered a few months back. 

Guess what it was called? Courage (Ford)! 

We had both wanted the same book? AND they arrived on the same day! 

Coincidence? NO WAY! Synchronicity? YES WAY!

SO what exactly is synchronicity?

English teacher moment:

syn = same

chron = time

icity = the quality of

So, it basically means the quality of occurring at the same time. I also call these magical moments, awakening calls, fairy whispers, Universe knocks, GodWinks, and signs.

They call: HEAR ME! PAY ATTENTION. THIS IS NOT A COINCIDENCE.

These moments happen to me almost every day now, because I have learned to pay attention and listen. It could be a stranger's conversation, a piece of paper I find, a bug or an animal, or a hug from my children. Here's what Deepak Chopra has to say about synchronicity:

Have you faced a fear lately? Or, have you ever experienced a synchronicity that u were aware of? Let me know in the comments!

No coincidences, yo! So much love!

;0) Dana

Pay it For(give)Ward!

"Forgiveness is the most powerful thing that you can do
for your physiology and your spirituality,
and it remains one of the least attractive things to us,
largely because our egos rule so unequivocally.
To forgive is somehow associated with saying that it is all right,
that we accept the evil deed.
But this is not forgiveness.
Forgiveness means that you fill yourself with love and you radiate that love outward
and refuse to hang onto the venom or hatred that was engendered
by the behaviors that caused the wounds.
Forgiveness is a spiritual act of love for yourself
and it sends a message to everyone, including yourself,
that you are an object of love and that that is what you are going to impart." 

- Dr. Wayne W. Dyer 

Dear Fun & Free Ones,

Today I had sort of an aha! moment when I realized that after I learned to forgive others, I could then extend the same courtesy to myself . . . and forgive myself. As I thought about it, it felt kind of inside out, actually--but that's generally been my path: living from the outside:in for a good part of my existence. 

Knowing that pattern of mine, I can actually be grateful for the pains I've experienced, because they taught me how to forgive others and release my resentent,which in turn taught my forgiveness and acceptance of ME--for all my imperfections, for not knowing the right thing to do or say, for not being good enough, for hurting people I love. I was always doing the best I could with the skills I had at the moment; I just didn't realize it at the time.

So today I'll write a bit @ forgiveness. 

TOP SECRET: It's not about the person you're forgiving; it's about you and your own freedom. And, just so you know, that doesn't make right the crappy stuff that people have done. Pain is part of life, and so is forgiveness, release, and acceptance. And, thankfully, so is JOY! What I am saying, is it's our choice what we do with our pain.

Holding onto resentment is like 
holding your breath 

-- only you suffocate. 

@ DeepakChopra

And often it takes time before we are ready and willing to let go of resentment and actually forgive others. And, (I've learned this the hard way)--just because we're sorry, doesn't mean someone else wants to necessarily forgive us --in which case, the work is for us to forgive ourselves.

I know people who have been in pain, drama, and in victim mode  FOREVER! I used to be there, too! And finally, I got sick of it . . . sick of feeling terrible, tired of my same old victim story, and I eventually had to choose to shift or die a slow spiritual death. At one point in my life, I began to run--a lot (which begs the question: What was I running from?). I ran . . . and ran . . . and ran. I was burdened, stressed out, burned out, sad, and exhausted & one morning, as  I turned onto my running course, I found a 15 pound rock (actually, it found me). Something nudged me to pick it up . . . and guess what? I ran 3 miles carrying that 15 lb. rock! When I was  done, I put down the rock, and I felt so very light!

That's what forgiveness does.

It frees us.

It makes us lighter.

It means we quit judging others

and making them "wrong" so our egos can be "right", "superior",

and 

ALL

THAT!

(and it takes the pressure off . . .)

It's easier to stay stuck in being mad, right, resentful, offended, or disgusted by someone else's behavior--which conveniently takes the focus off of ourselves, right? And - - it's only suffocating to the person who chooses to hold his or her breath, in Chopra's words. 

Can you forgive yourself or someone else today? 

Let me know in the comments!

Much LoVe!

OXOXOX Dana

Give Yourself a Beautiful Life!

Dear FunFreeMePeeps!

This amazing reminder landed in my mailbox this week from one of my favorite tweeters, KAren Salmonson at notsalmon.com---check her out! She's so super groovy & inspirational!

Her post reminds me how important it is to take beautiful care of me and to keep all the promises I make to myself.

So, here are some promises I would like to keep to ME!

1. Take beautiful care of myself.
2. Be present when I am with my children.
3. Hug my kids and tell them how much I love them.
4. Get enough sleep.
5. Be a good teacher!
6. Hug my students and tell them how much I love them (WARNING!--POLITICALLY INCORRECT...oh well...)

This is kind of random, but I also promise myself that every day, I will look into the sun, count my blessings, and thank God for my beautiful (and imperfect) life!

I am learning from everything!

Love you,

Dana

It'S MoMMy & ChLoE TiMe !

Mommy & Chloe Time . . .

05.16.13.

Dear Peeps!

I had such a special opportunity today to spend some one-on-one time with my daughter, Chloe. Her brother, Max, is in Chicago on a field trip for the next few days, so we decided to have an adventure together today after school (I have to admit that I took a nap first). 

We went to the Salon and got pedicures together. Chloe and I sat side-by-side in massage chairs and we read fashion magazines and exchanged stories from the day--mine at my school where I teach 8th grade, and Chloe's in her 3rd grade class. Chloe went to do a service project with her teacher today at Feed My Starving Children and I continued to teach my 8th graders a compare and contrast essay, and I introduced the language of poetry to them in a short presentation. Max was off on the coach to Chicago at 7 o'clock this morning on a band field trip adventure--his first overnight trip out-of-state, away from both Mom and Dad (rumor has it that Max and Chloe were both looking forward to a break from each other!). 

After we got our toes done, Chloe and I went down the street to Hello Pizza--the newest and greatest venue in the hood. It was yummy! Chloe had amazing cheese pizza and I had a tri-color salad--we both topped off our meal with a soft-serve cone with homemade dark-chocolate sauce. The best part was we got to sit next to a family with two twin boys who were Chloe's age; we chatted about school, Minecraft, summertime activities, and zombies (true!?).

Anyway, it was great spending special time with Chloe--and I will make a point of doing it more often with each of my beautiful kids; it gives them the message that I care enough to make time to be present with them alone, and that's an important message from me as their mom.

How do you help your kids feel special? We all need ideas for that! Share your experiences and ideas on the blog . . .

Blessings,

Dana