Just thoughts – Page 3

Thoughts on Hard Times

I’m pretty sure no one reads my blog anymore, so I’m just going to be super honest today: I am currently going through the hardest time of my life. I thought my mission was kind of hard, but teaching 6th grade at Escalante Elementary under the current administration (something like Umbridge, to give you an idea) makes the mission feel like a Disney cruise.

I love my kiddos, and I won’t abandon them in the middle of the year. But no amount of money could entice me to stay at this school another year.

This morning I was writing Lauren, and Elder Holland’s Mormon Message about good things to come came into my mind. Heavenly Father gives us hard times because He loves us, and He wants to help us grow. I know that this will give me experience and be for my good, and I’m trying to keep that perspective. As long as I stay faithful to my covenants, which I will, everything will be okay.

Be Still

I had bedbugs for like 4 weeks of my mission, and I have said that the bedbugs represent the single most difficult time of my life. I was literally covered in bites (hundreds), everything in our house was put into black garbage sacks, we were heavily drugged on benadryl to control the excessive itching, we had to sleep on the floor, the Spirit was not in our apartment, and it was just uncomfortable in every way.

Last week put that trial in the dust.

I NEVER expected Donald Trump to win the presidency. I even promised some of my kiddos that it would never happen, when they approached me in fear during the election.

Somehow our country let this happen, and we’re still in shock. I played this song for my class on Wednesday morning so they could write their feelings about the election, and I feel it’s appropriate for anyone grieving.

We can’t break character; we need to continue in love and acceptance, no matter who our president is.

13th

I love documentaries. They’re one of my favorite genres, and I delight in Netflix’s documentary selection. Last week I noticed a few Facebook posts about Netflix’s new documentary “13th”, and I found myself alone on a Friday night… So I decided to watch it.

Best decision ever.

It is by no means a “feel-good” film. It’s the opposite. I felt bad pretty much the whole hour and forty minutes. But feel-good movies don’t really empower us to change; this did.

“13th” explores the consequences of the 13th amendment, which gave every man the right to vote UNLESS he’d been convicted of a felony. Racisms continues in the United States today, with Lord Voldemort aka Donald Trump leading his Death Eaters aka Trump supporters all over the country.

Please watch 13th. It could change your life.

That #threefictionalcharacters trend

You know the #threefictionalcharacters thing that was going crazy on social media this week? I usually don’t hop on those bandwagons, including changing your profile picture to be the French flag, but I thought this one was fun.

I chose Hermione Granger, Anne Shirley, and Emma Woodhouse.

I esteem Hermione more highly than possibly any other fictional character of all time, so I feel somewhat prideful including her in fictional characters that represent me. Nonetheless, I aspire to be more like Hermione, and I’d like to think we have a bit in common. For example, I love to read. I guess I love school, because I made it my career. I think friendship and loyalty are the most important things in this life, and I hope that I could be as loyal and true as Hermione is.

I chose Anne Shirley because I feel like we share a passion for life. We’re also sometimes shamelessly outspoken and tactless. And I’d like to say we’d do anything for the ones we love. She also became a teacher, and I hope to be as dedicated to my students as she was to hers. And Imma marry a Gilbert Blythe someday.

Emma. Reading Emma was a revelatory experience for me, because I became aware of several flaws I hadn’t previously recognized. I am prone to get myself involved in other people’s business when I shouldn’t, just like Emma. I’m also an avid match-maker. And Emma and I both almost always have good intentions, but often end up making big messes.

So that’s my #threefictionalcharacters.

Feeling Worthwhile

Last week, one of our vocab words was worthwhile. We were reading a story that featured all the vocab words, and when we came upon worthwhile, I said, “Raise your hand if you’re worthwhile” expecting every kid to immediately wave his or her hand in the air.

I was wrong.

Only about 5 kids raised their hands!

So then I was like, “Wait a second! You don’t think you’re worthwhile? What??” I stopped the lesson to talk about how special each of them is, and I read “You Are Special” out loud. This got me thinking about the huge blessing I had to grow up singing “I Am a Child of God” from like age zero. Then in Young Womens, I stood every week and declared “We are daughters of our Heavenly Father who loves us and we love Him.” This is a precious truth I’ve known my entire life, and I guess I’ve kind of taken it for granted.

My kids don’t know who they are!

On the mission, it was my job to teach that God is our loving Heavenly Father and we are His children. One of my favorite street contact questions was, “Who is God to you?” and they would respond, “He’s everything!” or “He’s in my heart.” and then we’d talk. But now that my job is different, I forget that my kiddos are essentially in the same shoes as my street contacts.

Because of church and state, I can’t tell my students who they are. However, I can help them feel God’s love by teaching them that they are in fact special, and treating them in a special way. CS Lewis’s oft-quoted passage about everyone being potential gods and goddesses who we would be strongly tempted to worship applies to EVERYONE, including my students.

Cool Dads

It recently occurred to me that some of the kindest, most beloved men I’ve ever known are school custodians. So on this Father’s Day, I want to give a shout-out to amazing dads with less-glamorous jobs.

I know girls always talk about wanting to marry a doctor or a lawyer, and I myself wouldn’t mind a husband with that kind of paycheck… But tbh I want someone as universally loved as the janitors in my life.

Mr. Giles, the Wasatch janitor, is quite possibly the most popular individual I’ve ever known. He couldn’t walk down the hall without having kids yell, “MR. GILES!!! HIIIII!!!!!” Does your job provide that kind of satisfaction?

At the end of the day, the paycheck doesn’t even matter. What matters is how many lives you touched. And in my experience, school custodians touch a hecka lot more lives than society gives them credit for.

A Political Post

Oh hey, I just wanted to let you all know that I’ll be voting for Pedro. Please consider joining me. I can promise that all your wildest dreams will come true.

On a more serious note, I want to say that I’m truly distressed that our nation has come to this. Two horrible candidates, and we have to choose the lesser of two evils. Tbh I’m embarrassed to be an American rn.

Also, to be clear, I remain solidly in the #NeverTrump camp.

Summer Bucket List

Last week was the last week of school (!!!) and I had the opportunity to stay at school with the kids who didn’t qualify for the Lagoon trip.

Amongst other delightful activities, I introduced them to the concept of bucket lists, and we made summer bucket lists together. #genius

Now I bring you Miss Blair’s 2016 Summer Bucket List:

1. Go to the cabin
2. Have an epic HP party on July 31
3. Finish watching Chuck
4. Go to the Manti temple
5. Attend the Weidmans’ homecoming
6. Go to Elvis and Cynthia’s sealing
7. Hike Timp
8. See a play
9. Get a job
10. Have a fabulous duet recital with all my students
11. Participate in a refugee English camp in Spokane
12. Go to Girls Camp

The Deterioration of High Society

Okay friends. I went to the Utah Symphony yesterday, and it was mostly delightful, but a few pretty serious things went down, and I just really need to vent here.

I feel like I’m generally a reasonably kind, compassionate person. But when I get in a concert hall, I become an entirely different creature, and every little audiencal error (yes, I did just invent that term) deeply offends me.

For example, I don’t normally glare at people, but if your phone goes off during a concert, you better believe I will throw more shade than you’ve ever felt.

Other immensely obnoxious/ disrespectful actions:
1. Opening a cough drop during a performance. #agony
2. Talking. Even whispering.
3. CLAPPING BETWEEN MOVEMENTS. Have you no respect??? Stop being an idiot.
4. Compulsive standing ovations. Come on, people.
5. Texting. #rude
6. Humming along with the music.
7. PDA. Get a life.
8. Cheering/ shouting. Leave the whoops in the stadium.

If we’re going to last as a respectable society (my bad, too late.) we need to get ahold of ourselves in the concert hall. I’m doing my best to educate my 3rd graders on proper concert etiquette, but it only takes one clap to generate a rowdy raucous of uneducated morons. Let’s be the change.

Lifestyle Change

I’m here to announce a lifestyle change I attempted and failed to adopt literally every week of my mission.

It is… Being hydrated. I’ve never successfully been hydrated, and thanks to my new fancy-dancy Hydro Flask, I’m on a path to experiencing hydration.

Unfortunately, that means

I’ve gotta go ALL THE TIME.

So we’ll see if it’s worth it. Michelle Obama claims it is.