~:[CH7 - Day 155]:~ The Battle Within Us All
All of us have a battle raging inside of us, but sometimes, one is better equipped to handle it. Just like when going to war, if you have a knife versus a machine gun, the machine gun is going to win. It has nothing to do with skill, rather simply the resources available. Regardless, this battle is ever too real and every year around this time, I get to hear the reality of it all. I usually record all our speeches in our class, but for this one, I have stopped to allow each student to feel free to include whatever they wish in their speech. For many, it's a basic speech while others use it as an opportunity to share something they've never found a place to share. I love how our students are open to listen to their peers and provide support whenever needed. These few days are a wake up call to them and also a reminder to myself; that a battle rages within each of us. The struggles we thought were just our own, are shared by many and sometimes it's just a matter of better equipping ourselves with the resources available to us. As I looked around the class and listened to speech after speech, sometimes you'd never guess the pain that someone was feeling and the struggles they faced through their lifetime. As teachers, it's so easy to dismiss someone as lazy or as irresponsible when we really don't know what is going on outside of the walls in which we see them everyday. It's painful to hear these stories, but as I hear these stories, I also see that the wounds begin their first stage of healing. We all need that healing at some point in our lives and it only requires us to take the time to open up our eyes and ears, so we can be the support for those around us and we can create a system to support us when we need it as well. There were many powerful worlds be said as we talked about the pillars of character and the like, but one of the quotes stuck with me, as I began to think about what my goals are as a teacher. As schools push towards standardized testing and trying to reach certain benchmarks, they forget that the whole purpose of school is to develop the minds of these young adults so they are prepared for what's ahead. I thought more and more about it and thought about a single moment in my yearly routine that connected to the quote that a student provided. He said, my mother always says, that directions lead you to a destination, but when those directions change, sometimes it just leads you to a new destination. While I may not have gotten the quote right, the words are quite powerful. I often try to direct students so that they can hopefully find their destination, but while they struggle with the battle within themselves, they also need to know that life is going to throw you off course. Life is not always going to give you a carpool lane to coast to where you want to go and sometimes when you hit a detour, you're forced to find another way to that destination or to find a new destination all together. Life is never ever over when you hit a dead end, because sometimes in life, you're required to take a few steps back in order to get back on course. I could go on and on about all the wonderful words that were shared today, but ultimately it brings me back to my first point, that we must walk alongside one another as we face our battle. No only with our friends and family, but even with that stranger who seems like they could use a friend. The topics ranged from being yourself to avoid tearing down others, they talked about parents and grandparents, their struggles and their success, but ultimately it boiled down to one thing; we're all the same. We all face the same battle and despite our gender, the color of our skin, orientation, economic status and more, there is no difference between us and when we begin to treat each other that way, maybe we'll be better equipped for these battles within us all.
