What One Man Can Do

In Forest Man from Engage Their Minds, the author shares a video about Forest Man. This man in India started planting trees in 1979 to save his island. His forest is now larger than Central Park in NY. I’ve been to Central Park and walked across it which seemed to take forever. This park was huge so to think that one man can grow a forest bigger than that is astounding!

I found the video so interesting! As his forest grew, animals started finding a home there. There are now elephants, rhinos, deer, and vultures. It is a growing habitat and he is trying to protect from people who want to poach or hurt his forest. Over the years, the country has given him many awards and he has started trying to get his ideas out to others but I’m not sure anyone has done anything with them. He says he will keep planting trees until the day he dies.

I’m amazed at the commitment this man has to continue to forest the land. His family seems very supportive of what he is doing. It also seems like he is very happy and at peace with what he is doing with his forest.

As I watch the video and see the expanse of the forest, I’m amazed at what one man can do. It doesn’t seem like he stood on the corner and ranted and raved about what everyone else should be doing. He put his words into action. He is showing the world what can be done. If one man can build a forest bigger than Central Park, imagine what many people could do.

I think this would be inspiring to many of my students. Many of my students feel discouraged and frustrated because they don’t feel that their actions matter. If they watch this video, they don’t see a man who talks about the things he can’t do or let other people influence what he can do. He just goes out and does what he thinks is right and continues doing it without giving up. He knows that he is making a difference and he is being a great role model for his own children as well as others.

This would be a great lead-in for a discussion about the things that one person can do in our own community. Things like picking up trash or volunteering to help elderly neighbors or giving food to a food bank or planting a community garden. One person can truly make a difference over time. We just need to be patient and keep focusing on what we are doing.

What are some things one person could do in your community? Please share.

Photo by Deglee Degi on Unsplash

Investing in Learning

In The 100 hour asset from Seth Godin's Blog, Seth Godin shares,

“If you invest 100 hours in a rare skill, you’re likely to acquire it.”

I played an accordion since I was four years old and I still play it occasionally. I have invested over 100 hours in learning this musical instrument.

I have been writing since I was a young child and I really enjoy it. I would say that I have over 100 hours invested in it also.

In 2007, I started working with fiber. I began crocheting, then knitting, and then spinning yarn. I still love it and do it daily. I can’t imagine not doing this and I like creating new things.

I have tried several things that I didn’t invest the hours into it. Either I didn’t like it or it didn’t hold my interest. Obviously, I didn’t acquire the necessary skills to be good at it.

I have spent my entire life invested in learning. As a young child, I liked learning new things and getting better at some of the things. As I grew older, I became more specific in the things that I wanted to learn. Even now, I find things that I’m interested in learning how to do. Some things I want to continue to learn about and others may fall to the wayside.

I want to help my students learn that they need to invest the time into a skill if they want to get better at it.

If they want to get better with a musical instrument, they need to consistently practice at it.

If they want to be a better athlete, they need to put in the hours of training.

If they want to be a better reader, they need to read more.

If they want to be a better artist, they need to work hard on creating art.

If they want to get better at gaming, they need to put in the hours of practice.

In this age of instant gratification, most skills do not get perfected immediately and many people get disappointed in this. Usually with patience and hard work, the skill is perfected, but it takes time. Time may be days, months, or even years.

Students seem to think that everything comes easy for everyone else than themselves.

One way that I like to show this to students is to model my learning process. I like to take photos and reflect on my learning from the very beginning. I monitor my progress with more photos and more reflection either on a weekly or monthly basis. When I look back at my starting attempts, I can feel proud of my progress and see how much I have improved.

How do you help your students learn that they need to invest their time into learning? Please share.

Photo by Jonathan Chng on Unsplash

Be Patient

In Tailgating from Seth Godin's Blog, Seth Godin shares,

“Tailgating creates frustration, limits your choices and isn’t safe.”

I have to admit that one of my worst flaws (I have many) is that patience is not my strong suit. I’m too impulsive and want to jump into things too quickly.

Thankfully I have a husband who is slower and wants to think things through before making any decisions. At times I find his slowness absolutely frustrating but in the long run, I usually benefit from this cautiousness.

When I hear something that I think it's a great idea I want to jump in with both feet. I tend to not look around and think of the negative things. I might think about dangerous consequences but if I don't feel there is anything dangerous about to happen because of my decision I want to do it right away. Luckily over the years, I have tried to make it a habit to discuss these kinds of decisions with my husband. usually, if he is in agreement right away, I know it is a good idea. But if he hesitates and wants to think about it some more, I have to stop myself from doing anything rash. it is his cool-headedness that helps me make better decisions.

When I stop to think about things in more detail, it opens up more options sometimes the first option is not always the best option. I might think about ways that are more cost-effective or even more time-efficient then my initial decision was going to be.

I remember a time when I thought getting an iguana for my classroom would be a great thing to do. I was ready to run out to the store and buy this little iguana because the cost was cheap, and it seemed like it was not an expensive pet for the class. Thankfully my husband suggested that I do more research into the topic. After much research, I found out that some iguanas can be aggressive towards the female students in my class and then I found out that they grow and would need a larger glass enclosure as they grew.  some of these glass enclosures could be 10 feet long and be very expensive. That is when I realized I needed to rethink having an iguana as a classroom pet.

When I went hiking in the mountains of Georgia one time, we went to an interesting talk about vermiculture which is also called worm composting. I was really excited about giving this a try and even my husband was in agreement. That weekend we bought plywood and my dad helped build boxes to hold my worms. then I had to find someone to sell me a lot of worms that were more than you would get in a bait shop. I had to find a supplier for a bait shop. this was a great project and we have had a worm compost bin for almost 20 years now and I've never regretted it.

So, I need to remember did patients sometimes is better than tailgating. I probably will end up at the same place either way and being in a better position by taking it slower. 

 How do you help your students have patience? please share.

Photo by Markus Spiske on Unsplash

Waiting

In What Goes On in a Writer's Head? From Sioux's Page, Sioux Roslawski asks,

“How about you? How do you handle having to wait?”

I hate waiting.

Things I’ve had to wait for or I’m currently waiting for:

·      Christmas (I love Christmas! Yes, I know it just passed but I can’t wait until it is that time again!)

·      My birthday (I just love knowing I’m alive another year!)

·      People that I’m meeting who are late (I have this fear that I’m at the wrong place or the wrong time.)

·      Upcoming trips

·      Meeting friends I haven’t seen in a long time.

·      Waiting until I can eat the other half of my meal (I take a 5 min. break in between so that my brain can have time to let my stomach know that I’m full or maybe it is the other way around.)

·      The next clue in my mystery knit-a-long

·      Spring (my favorite season)

·      My next camping trip (because it is too cold right now)

·      The ending of a good book (I’m so tempted to skip ahead to the ending just to find out how it turns out).

If it is a short-term wait, I usually knit to help the time pass quicker. I can get involved in knitting and it takes my mind off the immediate wait. I may do some baking like banana bread for the police and fire departments. I also watch a lot of YouTube videos, Netflix, or Amazon Prime. One good way to take my mind off of something is to listen to audio podcasts, and audiobook or to take a nap.

If it is long term waiting during the winter:

·      I try to do things that keep me busy like decluttering a specific place in my house.

·      I do some more knitting.

·      I spin my own yarn.

·      I do digital scrapbooking.

·      I read a lot of books.

In the spring and summer:

·      I like to do gardening.

·      I like to go hiking.

·      I walk around the neighborhood.

·      I like to read a good book outdoors.

Students also have trouble waiting for things. This would be a good thing to do with students and have them figure out ways that will help them during the waiting time.

How do you get through the “wait”? Please share.

Photo by Ethan Kent on Unsplash