He who laughs – lasts.

No, I didn’t write this quote,

“He who laughs – lasts.” Anonymous (6717 Draper’s Quotations for the Christian World) 

but boy it fits!

This morning I jumped into the shower half awake after being at a sports banquet last night very late.  Then, when I hopped out, ready to make a run for the hair dryer, the ONLY thing I had in the bathroom to dry myself was one, yes, I said it, one single small, frayed blue washcloth!  It wouldn’t have even dried me off in my teensy weensy 125 pound days!

So, I grabbed a robe and dried my hair with the washcloth and laughed.  Yes, I laughed.

It was 5:45 am in the morning and I was in the bathroom laughing my head off.  Kip groaned (he is not a morning person) but I just thought to myself,

“you know what, it is May.”

I grew up in a family of teachers and Mom’s solution to May was not to feel guilty — if they ran out of underwear, she’d just go buy more!  The mountains of May are HUGE — grading, laundry, banquets, calendars, schedules.  It is not just the students that are stressed out — educators are too!

And yet, as much as I look forward to summer, part of me knows that deep in the heart of me, there is a piece that is only happy when I have students cycling in and out of my room.  I’ve gotten to where I don’t want it to end.  I have so much for them to learn — I cannot stop.  No put feet on the desk and relax the last few days — there is more.  More to teach and so much more to do.

The newest mountain is our week long immersion project on the Flint River, an endangered and beautiful river that runs along the west side of the county.  You’ll have to peruse our Ning as we work.  If you want to have your students be involved and give feedback or review our work, contact me directly by responding to this blog post or through twitter and we’ll see what we can work out.

The final presentations will be a week from Tuesday in which the students will present their movie and a 15 minute presentation about their findings for the whole school.  The project will have two grades, a team participation/ reflection grade and a presentation grade for each person (we’ve already given the students the rubrics) and it will count as two test grades in each class.  It is going to be FUN but also hard work.

We’re very excited about the rich learning experiences of this project, but it is a lot to do!

Amidst the Mountains
But amidst these mountains – these tasks – and even the lack of cleaned and proper bathroom accoutrements, this is the crazy, amazing, fun time that ends our school year.

I say “fun” with tongue in cheek because so often many educators are crabby.  Some are down right ornery!

Oh, don’t let that be me and please don’t let it be you.

If you don’t learn to laugh at trouble, you won’t have anything to laugh at when
you’re old. Ed Howe (1853–1937)

Amidst the craziness and exhaustion, if you’ll take the time to laugh at the absurdity of the immense amount of work and often ridiculous situations you find yourself in, you’ll feel better and get your work done. 

In the toughest times of history, the greatest people are able to face the present as a living present to those that surround them.

Be that living present.  Take time to laugh — and you will last! (and so will your legacy)