Who are you? Who? Who? Who? Who?
“Kids don’t remember what you try to teach them. They remember what you are.” – Jim Henson, who would have turned 76 today
After spending the morning wrestling with tech issues and mounting email queries, I took off and had a lovely lunch with my BH. I returned to work feeling lighter (though fuller), and then I saw this caption under a FB posting about Henson and the Muppets. It is such a fundamental truth, isn't it?
I have been out to dinner with my friend Lois and, time after time, a wait staffer will come to the table and point to her and say: "You were my librarian when I was in high school. Man, you were awesome. Remember that time you..." and launch into a recollection of a booktalk or an author's visit or just the time Lois had taken time one day to sit and chat about a new brother or sister. They remember HER for who she IS.
I know that if I were a student in a school with a Colby Sharp, I would remember him for what he did the very first day of class. I would remember the librarian who shared all those books with me, like John Shoemaker does. I woujld remember being able to write on the book wall Mrs. Miller made for me. I would fondly recall sitting in Room 407 and listening to Mr. Hankins read me his latest blog posting. I still recall Sr. Melanie, my sophomore ELA teacher. I loved her so much, I invited her to my 16th birthday party (and she came!). And the reason I work so hard is because I want to be one-tenth the person Dick Abrahamson is. I aspire to be 1/100th as smart as Kylene Beers. I want to be half as energetic as Sandy Hayes, or even a smidgen as organized as Franki Sibberson or a tad as tech-savvy as Sara Kajder. And the list could go on and on.
So, take heart, as I did, from this lovely piece of wisdom from Jim Henson. Be YOU. That's a good place to start.
After spending the morning wrestling with tech issues and mounting email queries, I took off and had a lovely lunch with my BH. I returned to work feeling lighter (though fuller), and then I saw this caption under a FB posting about Henson and the Muppets. It is such a fundamental truth, isn't it?
I have been out to dinner with my friend Lois and, time after time, a wait staffer will come to the table and point to her and say: "You were my librarian when I was in high school. Man, you were awesome. Remember that time you..." and launch into a recollection of a booktalk or an author's visit or just the time Lois had taken time one day to sit and chat about a new brother or sister. They remember HER for who she IS.
I know that if I were a student in a school with a Colby Sharp, I would remember him for what he did the very first day of class. I would remember the librarian who shared all those books with me, like John Shoemaker does. I woujld remember being able to write on the book wall Mrs. Miller made for me. I would fondly recall sitting in Room 407 and listening to Mr. Hankins read me his latest blog posting. I still recall Sr. Melanie, my sophomore ELA teacher. I loved her so much, I invited her to my 16th birthday party (and she came!). And the reason I work so hard is because I want to be one-tenth the person Dick Abrahamson is. I aspire to be 1/100th as smart as Kylene Beers. I want to be half as energetic as Sandy Hayes, or even a smidgen as organized as Franki Sibberson or a tad as tech-savvy as Sara Kajder. And the list could go on and on.
So, take heart, as I did, from this lovely piece of wisdom from Jim Henson. Be YOU. That's a good place to start.