Hello again teacher friends. We’ve been thinking about you! How are you doing? Are you holding up? It’s been rough, we know! But March is here! We’re in the homestretch. You have made it this far and we are celebrating that with you!
“March marks the end of winter and the beginning of spring, a time when all of life’s potential, buried underground, pushes its way to the surface and the world seems to be born anew. There is a sense of hope in this season that propels you forward.” Dr. Zoe Shaw
That’s true, isn’t it? The cherry blossoms are blooming, the birds are singing and the daffodils are up. It does bring hope. Hope that we can make it through the rest of this year. Hope that next year will be much, much better. And hope that we can be restored from all of the losses we’ve had over these past few years!
This month we want to encourage you to “restore.” As the pandemic restrictions ease, as the weather warms, and as the flowers begin to grow again, it is a good time to begin to restore ourselves. Think about what you would like restored. Your energy levels? Your sense of hope? Your sense of enthusiasm? Your self-confidence? Your positive outlook? Your happy heart? Dare we say it….Your love of teaching? We would say all of those and even more.
Today’s a good day to start. Think of one thing you can start to restore. It takes time. Just as it takes time for the daffodils to grow and bloom again, it will take us time. But little by little, we can bloom again too. So, think of that one thing. Then think of ways to begin to let that be restored. We will be doing it right along with you, because we have things that need to be restored too.
You know these already, but here are some reminders of things you might do to help you restore.
- Start each day with some positive words and a pep talk! “You are amazing!” “You have confidence in yourself!” “You can enjoy today!” Don’t just think them, say them out loud!
- Buy yourself some flowers! Every time you look at them, remind yourself that you deserve pretty things, and that you can be restored just as spring restores beauty to a gray landscape.
- Go outside on a warm day. Sit somewhere comfortable, close your eyes and just listen for ten minutes. Listen to all the sounds that you can hear in nature. Concentrate on them and let your body relax. It’s one of the best ways to restore a weary soul. Do it as often as you can.
- Give yourself permission to take one day on the weekend, and do nothing. No housework, no schoolwork, just relax. ALL DAY! That’s what our bodies make us do when we are sick. It works well to restore our energy and our outlook on things.
- Grab a cup of tea or coffee and sit somewhere quiet. Give yourself a ten-minute break to remind yourself of all the good things you do, no matter how small. Write them down. This is a great way to restore your self-confidence!
- Get creative again! Drawing? Crafting? Gardening? Lettering? Running? Have you ignored your creative self because you were so busy? Maybe it’s time to restore your creativity.
- Sing Disney songs to restore your happy childhood heart! It’s a great thing to do while you’re driving or doing housework.
- LAUGH! Think of the funniest movie you have ever seen and watch it. Laughter restores so many things!
So what do you think? Are we ready to restore and rebuild from these last few really difficult years? Let’s do it! Let’s take one step at a time to restore ourselves and all that was affected. Here we go!
Hugs and smiles to you all, teacher friends!
Kristin and Lindsey