Slice of Life: Thinking about pictures for inspiration

 

   I'm doing my best to keep up with slicing on Tuesdays! All are welcome! Join us at Two Writing Teachers!

As I've been sitting on hold with a financial company that shall remain anonymous, I have been  trying to think of short and engaging writing activities that could inspire students to practice using dialogue in very low stakes ways. 

I love this picture for thinking about what could be said between the fox and mouse. 

I'm collecting some other pictures to give to students as choices, using this one as a mentor!

“I know I look tasty,” the mouse said, “But really, you don’t want to eat me.”

“Why would you think that?” the fox asked. He looked like a healthy young fox who got plenty to eat, but he had missed his morning snack, and his stomach was rumbling. 

The mouse could feel his insides turning circles and spinning. Could this really be the end for him? He sat up on his haunches and looked the fox right in the eye. “The truth is,” he began, but stopped and thought. “The truth is that I ate some poisonous berries this morning. I haven’t been feeling well since, and I don’t know why I did it, but I did.”

“What’s poison?” the fox asked. He really was young and naive.

“Poison is stuff that can kill you,” the mouse said. “And if you eat me, then you’ll be poisoned as well.”

“I’ll have to ask about that,” the fox said, and he left the mouse. 

The mouse didn’t wait one extra second. He spun around and scurried away from the fox and his near death experience as fast as he could!

It's not exactly a slice of MY life, but it's a slice of the mouse's. (My slice is still listening to elevator music. I think I've heard the same refrain about a hundred times.)

Happy Slicing! 

PS I'm still on hold. 

Slice of Life: December 42, 2020

 Throughout the month of March, I am participating in the Slice of Life Story Challenge. I am happy to co-host this event with the team at Two Writing Teachers. Everyone is welcome!

These days seem to be full of curve balls. Since last Tuesday night, when I last wrote, the balls haven't even curved. They've taken right angles and then some. 

Over the weekend, I worked hard to decompress. Long walks, trips to a favorite bakery, binge watching The Sinner, and hard workouts filled the weekend. By Sunday night, I was feeling a little less overwhelmed with life...

And then this from my hairdresser. (Background information: while domestic terrorists were invading the Capitol, I was making sure that my hair looked good, getting little bits of news through CNN updates.)

We just wanted to reach out to our clients and let you know a positive test result has been reported at the salon.  If you have been there within the last 5-7 days; we recommend following CDC guidelines and get tested at your own discretion. Thank you and we apologize for any inconvenience. 

Really? 

Yes, that's an inconvenience. Especially since my math had me there six days earlier. Although I asked for a few more details, none were forthcoming. As I write now, I have my negative covid results. And I am ready to declare the date as December 42, 2020. Instead of dry January as I'd originally planned, I'm going for dryer January. I need my pathways for making it through and handling these curveballs.

Happy Slicing,

 

Slice of Life: Professional Learning or the Bachelor---hmmmm...

   I'm doing my best to keep up with slicing on Tuesdays! All are welcome! Join us at Two Writing Teachers!

At about 7 last night, I was nearing the end of a spinning class (in my bedroom) when Lanny texted. Are you going to the CARR thing, he wanted to know. I appreciated his text, his reaching out, and I appreciated it even more as he responded more. We had met at one of the state reading conferences, he pointed out in a follow-up text. 

My initial reaction was definitely not, but for a moment, I hesitated. When I met Lanny, we were at a local museum, and the venue was so right for a bunch of teachers who were getting together to talk about the profession well after working hours. That being said, I've admired how so many people have kept their learning going in virtual spaces. For just another very small moment (side note: word for 2021), I hesitated a little longer. 

Then I responded. 

Nope. I can't. Watching the Bachelor premier with the girls. 

As much as I'd love to connect with other educators, my connections with my daughters were calling much louder. All four girls are home for another week, and it has been so. much. fun.

Lanny also has three daughters, but they are much younger than mine-- far away from appreciating the muscles on Matt James. Chances are you'll be making a similar choice in another few years, I texted Lanny. 

My guess he is was laughing on his end. If I missed anything good at the conference, I know he'll share. 

It was a good choice. I'm guessing some of you appreciate that! 

My One Little Word for 2021

Last December, I loved my word for 2020. Wow. It seemed like a word with so many possibilities, so many meanings, so much flexibility. Little did I know how many moments of wow the year would bring. Little did I know how many different reasons I'd say the word wow. Little did I like how many wows involved head shakes and closed eyes.

This will be the ninth year that I've chosen a word, and this has been the year when I've had the most trouble. My words are all important to me, some more than others. I'd even like to take on some of them again-- is that allowed? -- but I have been trying to come up with a word that is new, a word that will lead me to grow. My favorite words have historically offered a double meaning. Think about the different ways to use the word present, or brave, or rest. My wow of 2020 didn't go so well in terms of all the meanings, so I'm a little less resistant to a word with a single meaning.

Even though it's becoming a cliché, I think it's fair to say that 2020 taught me a lot. My best parts of 2020 happened when I focused on being present in a moment. Since I have already used present as a word, my word for 2021 will be moment. I like it. It has the power to ground me, to make me pay attention, to remind me to be present and prioritize the people in front of me and the place where I am. And, in a very small way, one that is perhaps only immediately apparent to me, it has a connection to my wow of 2020. If you ask me about that connection, maybe I'll share!

So here it is, my word for 2021: Moment.

May my moments matter. May I stop to enjoy them. May I find the joy that the pause for moments has the power to provide.

Happy New Year, Everyone!