During my brief stint as an adjunct professor, I would often preface activities I knew my students were unlikely to enjoy with commiseration: it sucks, I get it, we'll get through it together. It wasn't until I taught for a summer reading enrichment program a few years later that I realized my approach was flawed.
It was one of the hardest summers of my life. I was very pregnant (Little Sister was born in September) and on my feet all day. The days were long with minimal time to catch my breath between groups of preschoolers, elementary school kids, middleschoolers, and high school students and adults in the evenings. But it was a pretty incredible summer, too. I don't think I ever felt more empowered as a teacher, nor felt like I had made such an impact.
One of the lessons that has stuck with me since that summer is attempting to frame hard work in a positive way. Yes, it might suck, but as the person in charge, I don't have to say that. What I can say is what we're all going to get out of it, how it's going to be helpful, how it's going to make us better. Those are the things that I can say out loud to assert some modicum of control over how we're going to internalize it.
And now I'm in charge of me, and my experiences. Not only how I live, but how I talk about my life.
2016 was hard, but it was a really good year, too. This morning I joined a dear friend for a Zumba class we both laughed and flailed inarticulately through, and after an awkward fifty minutes, we cooled down to Prince's Purple Rain. Sweat was in my eyes, and a few tears, too. I stretched my sore muscles. It was absurdly tranquil. It felt like saying goodbye and hello at the same time.
There's a lot to look forward to in 2017, and I have strong friends and allies who will help me work, fight, and celebrate. I know I have to work daily to control my own negativity bias, and to be a force for positivity in the lives of others.
I need to focus on what I can do, and do what I can.