Today

Every now and again, I begin to wonder what on earth I’m here for. Am I fulfilling my purpose? Am I making a difference? Or am I simply getting up in the morning and getting through each day? Am I wasting my time?

So today, I took notes. Here’s what I came away with:

Today – I got stuck behind a schoolbus on the way to work – and only complained for a little before I prayed for all the people on the bus.

Today I ate an apple.

Today I danced in the hallway with a child because he had a good morning.

Today I sat on the floor and read a book out loud.

Today I typed up the minutes from our last deacons’ meeting.

Today I listened to a 25 year old man proudly reading the two page report he’d written this morning.

Today I puddle jumped.

Today I walked 10,800 steps.

Today I crouched by the chair of a crying student, and listened, until he was ready to smile again.

Today I spent time on my knees with the Beginner of time.

Today I showed a group of students how to work together to learn something new.

Today I found a partner for a lonely child.

Today I taught an angry child how to spell ‘squid’ as I sat calmly beside him.

Today I shared advice with the sub next door.

Today I modeled good behavior in the hallway – and then celebrated with my class when the principal complemented them on their own good behavior.

Today I listened to 12 students reading the realistic fiction stories they’d written, and I edited 12 more.

Today I laughed at a child’s joke – not because it was funny, but because he had so much fun telling it.

Today I watched a light turn on in a little mind that suddenly understood double digit subtraction with regrouping.

Today I played with my adopted kitten until she was an exhausted purring puddle on the carpet.

Today I exercised.

Today I walked up the same flight of stairs six times.

Today I read a chapter in God’s love letter to me.

Today I colored in ten more boxes on the hundreds chart on our Wall of Fame.

Today I let my students ask questions and get me off the lesson plan, because I knew they would learn more.

Today I danced with a child in the hallway because he’d turned a bad afternoon around.

Today I told my students about a mistake I had made, to show them that it's ok to make mistakes.

Today I texted my son to remind him he is loved.

Today I hi-fived a boy for finishing a test.

Today I got more hugs than I could count.

Today I sat down to blog.

So what do you think?

I’m thinking I might be in the right place after all…

How about you? What did you do today?