Having been out of a traditional classroom for over a year now, I’m noticing a few things and forgetting a few others.  The first and perhaps most obvious observation centers around this very challenge.  Over the years, I have learned ways to improve the experience, to introduce students to blogging and to, hopefully, provide a meaningful way for them to reach a broader audience.  That was all before the world of social media really took off.  That said, I’ve also had some years where I eager to write each day and some when it was a struggle to find that slice of a story within the load of what felt like mundane minutiae.

I’m beginning to think that next year will be the end of a years-long Slice of Life Era for me.  Being out of the classroom, I find it harder to maintain that energy to sustain the month-long challenge.  Most of my posts are tapped-out on my phone in bleary-eyed pre-sleep.  Does anyone else feel this way too?  That said, I’ve had a few days lately where the interactions or observations I would have written about have stuck with me.  For the sake of record, here they are:

• “Hey, Mom!  What’s the weirdest sound you can make with your mouth?”  I paused a minute, then created an assortment of strange noises and the requisite strange faces that accompanied them.  “Nice! Here’s mine!”
• “Am I doing a great job?” I replied in the affirmative.  “Thanks!  I needed to hear that tonight.”
• Working with an after school group of 4th-7th graders, I received several offers of best-friendship and was told I didn’t look a day over 26!  When I told them I’d be 41 in a few weeks, one student responded, “What kind of face cream do you use, ‘cuz it’s workin’!”
• After leading groups of 1st graders through analog and low-tech coding activities, they then explored exhibits within the children’s museum.  Upon clean-up, I took advantage of the few quiet moments to catch up on a few emails, while teachers had students line up in preparation for heading back to school.  I heard a few speculating about what I was doing – “Look!  She’s doing research!!!”  or “No, no!  I think she’s coding!” 🙂
• One of the quieter, yet unrecorded observations of the month include the spelling bee studying with my sweet girl that ended with my encouragement to get some good sleep.
• And then, the louder moments of realizing your goal of being calm, cool, and collected will need to be revisited another time.  Humbling accepting, and still worrying, about how to parent well.

I’m sure there were more that I should have recorded right away.  Like the way the wind whipped around our home last weekend, or the sound of the freezing rain that coated the entire southern face of of our house last night.

This attention paid to the small things, is the gift these years of slicing have given me.  It’s a gift I long to carry through each day and that I would love to record on a weekly basis, year-round.  Perhaps Tuesdays in 2020 will be my new challenge.  Anyone interested in joining me?