Tuesday, July 26, 2011  Give 'Em a Break  Today driving along on
the interstate, I became frustrated with the driver in front of
me. He wasn't doing anything wrong, just not doing things the
way I wanted.  As I thought about that driver and my reaction to
it, this thought surfaced: "You don't know what he is dealing
with." I pondered that. That driver may be having a bad day or
dealing with some serious issues. I didn't know what was going
on in his life. And, if I did, I would probably treat him
differently, or at least feel differently about the situation.
(My reflective nature strikes again.)  As I continued to think
about this, the image of one of the kids in my class popped into
my head. I just learned something about her. She daily is
dealing with something that I was unaware of. And that set me to
thinking about relationships between teachers and kids.  Often I
hear teachers talking about kids...the kids that frustrate them.
I do that, too. But I don't know what that child is dealing with
in his life.