The blog this week will take on a direction a little different than usual. I am not seeking to educate, or discuss theory, nor share a personal experience. In fact, this blog will have little to do with reflexes and education and more to do with you! Let me start with this . . .
Thomas Paine has said: “The harder the conflict the more glorious the triumph. What we obtain too cheap, we esteem too lightly.”
For some of us, the journey through education is hard. More than hard, it’s a battle we feel we are continually losing. This might be for ourselves, for our children, or for the children we teach. Education is just hard. Plain fact. The children who sail through will never understand this, and we are thankful that for them the journey is less of a struggle and more of a joy. But for those of us who are helping children with educational difficulties our conflict is hard. But let us encourage ourselves with the words of Thomas Paine. If our journey of education is hard, what kind of glory awaits for our children that overcome their difficulty. What triumph will we attain if we continue helping them through their educational journey.
So I want to encourage you – and me! The efforts we are putting in now, the struggle we endure and maybe the tear or two we cry will produce a triumphant ending if we just don’t give up. Did you hear? Just don’t give up. All it takes is one more step, one more try, one more programme or one more breath of patience. Because the struggle we endure on behalf of the children in our care is also our struggle. It’s okay every now and then to pat yourself on the back and say “oh well, that didn’t succeed, but I did a flippin’ good job trying”. Continue to encourage yourself so that our children learn to encourage themselves. The reality is for many of them they may never be at the educational standard they are ‘supposed’ to be at. But maybe, sometimes, we need to learn to let that go, and look to the progress they are making in their own world.
In teacher speak it’s called resiliency. It’s something that we all want our children to have. The ability to get back up again, not get too upset, toughen up a bit, or not to be too overly sensitive. This doesn’t come cheaply though does it? You can’t get it on the first try and probably not on the twentieth. We must persevere. The reality is we need to demonstrate the same resilience we desire our children to have. So, on your journey to helping the children in your life don’t forget to not give up yourself. You may be on the first step, third step, tenth step or feel like you’ve trekked 100 steps. Just take one more step. Try one more thing. It may be the thing that your child needs. And through it all may we set our eyes on the glorious triumph of their success and may they learn to understand the power of the effort they contribute.
Remember:
Nothing great is easily won.
And we want our children to win.
Let’s win together.