blown away.

it's official: i'm an occasional blogger at best, a sporadic blogger at worst.  however, over the past month (specifically the past week) i have been blown away by the kindness and generosity all around me and i absolutely have to share it with you.

i'm not ashamed to admit that at times (or many times) with my new job i've felt overwhelmed.  i'm a little baby teacher and i often lack the confidence needed to execute everything i want to execute.  it's been quite a test of patience to develop long term goals -- i'm such an instant gratification type person that i've really had to take a step back and pace my tasks.

this past week was my FIRST BOOK FAIR EVER (besides the last one i went to when i was 10 years old) and i SURVIVED.  there were 100000 things i could've done better, but there were at least a couple things that i did right.  i'm calling it a success, even if my financial form isn't filled out just yet.  it was one of those mental successes.  i had to get through it to know that i could get through it.

and speaking of getting through it, i could never in a million years have survived without the generosity of my volunteers (and my dad who was manipulated into spending TWO ENTIRE DAYS with me at my book fair).  these are some of the most selfless people i have ever met and i am truly blown away by their kindness.  they gave up hours upon hours to sit at cash registers, straighten books, or offer a warm smile.  there were also so many teachers (who are BEYOND busy with their own things) that stopped by to lend a hand during planning periods, pass along words of encouragement, or just remind me to breathe (or share a halloween cookie with me).  you can't find those types of people these days.

and besides that, my precious college roommate, who happened to get married this past weekend, took the time out of her week-before-the-wedding-crazy-time to send me words of encouragement about the book fair.  (and side note: the wedding was amazing, no one tripped down the aisle, AND i got to spin around in circles in a field during photographs ... my kind of party!)

so what have i learned the past week (and month)?  there's good all around me.  good moments, good learning experiences, and most importantly, good people.  i'm a blessed baby teacher.

the power of the four-way stop

every day on my way to work i go through the same four-way stop.  and every day i love it.

now let's get a few things straight.  no, i don't enjoy the actual drive to work.  in fact, i don't enjoy any drives.  i hate driving.  this girl was made to be driven, people.  also, my love for the four-way stop has nothing to do with obeying traffic laws.  anyone who knows me even a little knows that i've broken my fair share ... and then some.

so what is it about the four-way stop that makes my day?  it's what it represents.  it's how people (generally) behave.  it's how no matter how late i am, i chill the heck out and wait my turn.

and that, my friends, is how it should be.  wouldn't every day be better if we had four-way stops for us throughout the day?  those people that feel so entitled to belittle others could wait their self-righteous turns ... the awkwardness of the question 'when do i go?' would be fixed with a simple wave and a smile ... and we could all slow down once in a while because in the end we'd know that the extra 3 seconds of patience was worth it.

and of course, there's always that dip that cheats and goes even though you could have gotten out and cartwheeled before he even began to stop his car at the intersection.  life is full of four-way stop haters.  however, in my experience, the small amount of "ARE YOU KIDDING ME?" that i feel when i encounter one of these dips is easily removed when i receive that encouraging smile and disappointed shake of a head from my fellow four-way stop rule followers.  that's right, dip.  we all saw you disrespect the sanctity that is the four-way.

so this summer, as life either gets insanely busy, begins to slow down, or stays pretty much the same depending on your profession, i challenge you to behave as though you were at a four-way stop.  chill out, smile, and heck, maybe even throw a wave or two.

you're killing me, smalls!

today i woke up and was delighted to learn that the absolute best baseball movie EVER was on tv today.  that's right, folks.  the sandlot was on for my (and hopefully your) viewing pleasure.  if you missed it, well let's take this little walk down memory lane.

now that we're all caught up, let's play a little connect the dots game.  because you see, the sandlot was more than just a movie to me.  in fact, it's the reason i started loving baseball.  did it inspire me to strap on some cleats and start sweating out in the middle of the diamond?  heavens no.  don't be crazy.  but did it instill a love of watching this classic, timeless game?  absolutely.

and you know what else?  when the 6 year old version of myself first saw this movie, i fell for it.  i fell hard.  and not just for the movie.  i fell flat on my little face for benny.  and i honestly don't believe it was simply for his athletic prowess or his dark and mysterious good looks.  (yes, even as a little tot i was very well informed about what was hot).  

you know what made my barely-in-elementary-school self melt?  it was his kindness.  when smalls would rather run a ball (which he couldn't catch in the first place) back to the pitcher instead of throwing it, and when  all the other guys were shouting that smalls was an L-7 weenie, benny stood strong.  his heart was kind.  and when you move around every 3-4 years as a kid, you cling to kind people for all they're worth knowing that they'll always have your back.

so you know what?  the sandlot may have tipped off the younger version of myself that baseball players were drool worthy, but it showed me something more important about myself.  that i like kind people.  and i think that's the best kind of thing a 6 year old can learn.  

and of course, it doesn't hurt when those kind people are hot.  

[side note: did i know i liked kind people at the age of 6?  probably not.  but hindsight's 20/20.  did benny's hottness help me love him initially?  probably.  but his kindness kept me rooting for him even when hotty phillips came on screen.]