I started back to work this week. District meetings, faculty meetings, getting my new PE schedules, visiting each school to check in with Principals and teachers and check on my PE closets. And of course, lesson prep. I truly like being a teacher and working with kids. And I like having summers off, and I like going back to school in the fall (or end of August actually). I like getting back in to a routine during fall and winter. Ready to hunker down for the long haul, dealing with trials as they come, and taking breaks along the way as needed.
Kind of like the backpacking trip we took last weekend.
Our Leader-in-Adventure, Lynn (former River Guide with my husband), called us a couple of weeks ago and asked if we'd like to go backpacking to the Grandaddy Lakes area in the Uintah Mountains of Utah. We said yes. We rarely say no to Lynn.
So we planned and packed and bought a new 3-person backpacking tent (think light - 6 lbs.!), dehydrated meals and backpacking towels. I decided it was finally time to buy fancy easy-to-dry backpacking/camping/hiking pants, and did.
Drove to Hanna, Ut looking for the road to Hades Campground (Hades! Uh oh, is that a sign?!) and the trailhead to the Grandaddy Lakes. Couldn't find it. Asked for directions. They didn't help. Asked again and finally found it. Drove on dirt road about 6 miles, parked, loaded on our 30 lb. backpacks, and started hiking.
It was a beautiful afternoon (Fri., Aug. 15), 75 degrees. The trail was steep and rocky. Lots of rocks and evergreen trees. The trail was steep. I got tired. Did I say the trail was steep? But we plugged on, taking rest stops for water and snacks along the way. Four miles in. I'd say about three miles were uphill to the ridge of the mountain, then one mile downhill in to the basin where we could see the Grandaddy Lake, a beautiful, serene mountain lake.
Set up camp before dark, made dinner, sat around the campfire talking and laughing. But I was pretty wiped out. I guess I'm not as young as I used to be. So I headed to bed before the others.
Saturday we hiked another six miles (SIX MILES!) in a loop from our camp around to other lakes and back. Stopped at Rainbow Lake for lunch and photoshots as we jumped in to the cool mountain water.
I was tired again when we returned to camp. Took a nap before dinner. Enjoyed visiting and telling stories around the campfire that evening.
Camping like this helps you appreciate bathrooms with toilet paper and chairs to sit on when eating. But these are trials that can be dealt with. Hiking like this means we can take breaks as needed or wanted. Because we're tired or hungry, or because there is a beautiful view of a lake or tree or bird.
I need those breaks during school also. And I need to remember to see the beauty in my students and co-workers, because, as the saying goes,"the joy is in the journey, not in the destination"! It wasn't just the beauty of our camp site or the lakes, it was the whole experience of hiking, being tired, dealing with no toilets, and sharing stories with friends. The whole experience of teaching PE and teaching anger management and teaching responsibility for one's own actions. Laughing with the kids and crying with co-workers. The Joy is in being able to see the Whole Experience, and to find Joy in it. Here's to finding the Joy in another backpacking trip, and another year of school!
Sunday, May 17, 2015
Survivor Addict, Fall 2014
My daughter says I need an intervention. Yes. I've gotten a bit consumed with watching old seasons of the tv show "Survivor" since last summer. Who wouldn't? I just love watching the drama of outwit, outplay, outlast. Of watching people fight to get the ball first or the puzzle together first, so they can win food to eat and not have to vote anyone out of the game. I love watching their bodies getting thinner while they annoy each other and plot who should be voted out. Is it the weakest person? The oldest? The most annoying? It tends to be those three types that are voted off first.
Why does this show keep me enthralled? I think it's because I'd like to THINK I could do well. Not so much in my 53 year old body. But in my 30's I could have definitely played with the best of them physically. And I think I would have done pretty good socially. Outwit I'm not so sure. But it would've been a blast to try.
I seem to keep finding myself drawn to physical challenges the last few years. A couple of years ago I read "Wild" by Cheryl Strayed, and that made me want to be able to do a challenging hike. So we hiked in to Havasupai. Then this summer we backpacked in to the Grandaddy Lakes in the Uintahs and camped. Been there. Done that.
Outwit? Hmmm. Don't even know how to play chess. Definitely want to work on strategy skills in my life. As I've said before, I'm married to an attorney but can't debate for the life of me. But strangely, teaching 60 children at a time and having to deal with their fights and their disobedience is actually teaching me something about debate!
Social game? All of life is a social game. Figuring out how to work with your spouse, your kids, your parents, your siblings, in-laws, boss, co-workers, friends, acquaintances at church.....and the list goes on and on.
So "Survivor" is a microcosm of life. But it would be nice if you could potentially end up with a cool million at the end.
Why does this show keep me enthralled? I think it's because I'd like to THINK I could do well. Not so much in my 53 year old body. But in my 30's I could have definitely played with the best of them physically. And I think I would have done pretty good socially. Outwit I'm not so sure. But it would've been a blast to try.
I seem to keep finding myself drawn to physical challenges the last few years. A couple of years ago I read "Wild" by Cheryl Strayed, and that made me want to be able to do a challenging hike. So we hiked in to Havasupai. Then this summer we backpacked in to the Grandaddy Lakes in the Uintahs and camped. Been there. Done that.
Outwit? Hmmm. Don't even know how to play chess. Definitely want to work on strategy skills in my life. As I've said before, I'm married to an attorney but can't debate for the life of me. But strangely, teaching 60 children at a time and having to deal with their fights and their disobedience is actually teaching me something about debate!
Social game? All of life is a social game. Figuring out how to work with your spouse, your kids, your parents, your siblings, in-laws, boss, co-workers, friends, acquaintances at church.....and the list goes on and on.
So "Survivor" is a microcosm of life. But it would be nice if you could potentially end up with a cool million at the end.
Personal History via Blogging, May 17, 2015
"Words cannot do justice to the pleasures of a good bookshop. Ironically." (On a bag from the London book store, Waterstones.)
I love going to bookstores. The way some women love to shop for clothes or shoes, I love to browse in a bookstore. New fiction, non-fiction, inspiring biographies, self-help. I have a nightstand overflowing with books I'm reading or plan to read. Whenever a problem crops up in my life, or there is something I want to understand or learn about, or I just want to excape real life, I automatically turn to books first. Somehow I think reading about something will endow me with the necessary understanding. I remember as a teenager my oldest brother saying, "All you do is read! You need to get up and do something in life!" I didn't listen to him much back then, but his thoughts came back to me in college. I purposely tried to make sure I was ACTING in my life, and not just living vicariously.
But all this reading has inspired me to attempt writing at times. I wrote my first story in fourth or fifth grade. Didn't write much as a teenager, but devoured a lot of books. But I was a VERY diligent journal keeper. Journaling helped me sort through feelings and life. And heaven knows there are tons of feelings during teen years! Journaling also helped me learn to organize my thoughts.
After much immersion in Living Life during college, I was married, living in a new state (Washington) with a new baby, and more time on my hands. I kept involved in dance, but my interest in writing crept up again. Mostly essays in my journal, though I dabbled in fiction and poetry.
More children came and life was busy. But I started reading about writing. Mainly fiction. Attended a couple of local conferences for writers and took an online creative writing course. I was so inspired by some of the fiction I read, that I wanted to write fiction that inspired others! The only problem was, I never had any good story ideas. My husband and daughter seem to have an endless supply of story ideas for their writing, but not me.
In the past year I started thinking perhaps fiction wasn't the way for me to go. I started this blog two years ago to help me practice writing and because I loved reading other women's essays on their blogs. Then I started thinking I should write my personal history, and perhaps that was a way to use my writing. So of course I looked up books on memoir writing on Amazon.com! I can't write my personal history without reading thoroughly about it, can I?
Then I sat down and decided to re-read all my blog posts on here. And an interesting thing happened: I realized my personal history is in my blog posts! This blog may not give an exact timeline of my life, but it definitely shares my slant on life and living. My tastes, my joys, my frustrations. And isn't that really what a personal history should do?
I love going to bookstores. The way some women love to shop for clothes or shoes, I love to browse in a bookstore. New fiction, non-fiction, inspiring biographies, self-help. I have a nightstand overflowing with books I'm reading or plan to read. Whenever a problem crops up in my life, or there is something I want to understand or learn about, or I just want to excape real life, I automatically turn to books first. Somehow I think reading about something will endow me with the necessary understanding. I remember as a teenager my oldest brother saying, "All you do is read! You need to get up and do something in life!" I didn't listen to him much back then, but his thoughts came back to me in college. I purposely tried to make sure I was ACTING in my life, and not just living vicariously.
But all this reading has inspired me to attempt writing at times. I wrote my first story in fourth or fifth grade. Didn't write much as a teenager, but devoured a lot of books. But I was a VERY diligent journal keeper. Journaling helped me sort through feelings and life. And heaven knows there are tons of feelings during teen years! Journaling also helped me learn to organize my thoughts.
After much immersion in Living Life during college, I was married, living in a new state (Washington) with a new baby, and more time on my hands. I kept involved in dance, but my interest in writing crept up again. Mostly essays in my journal, though I dabbled in fiction and poetry.
More children came and life was busy. But I started reading about writing. Mainly fiction. Attended a couple of local conferences for writers and took an online creative writing course. I was so inspired by some of the fiction I read, that I wanted to write fiction that inspired others! The only problem was, I never had any good story ideas. My husband and daughter seem to have an endless supply of story ideas for their writing, but not me.
In the past year I started thinking perhaps fiction wasn't the way for me to go. I started this blog two years ago to help me practice writing and because I loved reading other women's essays on their blogs. Then I started thinking I should write my personal history, and perhaps that was a way to use my writing. So of course I looked up books on memoir writing on Amazon.com! I can't write my personal history without reading thoroughly about it, can I?
Then I sat down and decided to re-read all my blog posts on here. And an interesting thing happened: I realized my personal history is in my blog posts! This blog may not give an exact timeline of my life, but it definitely shares my slant on life and living. My tastes, my joys, my frustrations. And isn't that really what a personal history should do?
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