Once at a A Hardees in Oakwood Georgia

You know with a title like that, this is going to be good.

My major professor, Steve Oliver, told me and a classroom full of student teachers a fabulous story one Friday 5 years ago. I was pregnant with my youngest, working as his TA, and that day I was ready to go home. I can remember looking at my swollen ankles thinking, "he's going to tell a story now?"

But it was great. He was the 3rd person in line to order at Hardees. The cashier finished up with her customer, turned, and knocked all the cups out of the dispenser. They scattered all over the floor. She picked them up, restacked them, and put them back into the dispenser. She looked up at the new customer (so the guy in front of Steve), and says, "May I take your order?" The customer says, "I would like to know if I'm going to get a clean cup."

The beauty of the story comes in Steve's interpretation. That interpretation changed forever the way I think about my work on a daily basis. Steve said, "That girl forgot that her job was to provide food to a customer in a safe and clean way. She was operating as if her job was to move through the line." He went on to describe how teachers get lost in a similar place-working to get the kids from 1st grade to 2nd grade or 3rd period to 4th period instead of working to empower them to grow, think independently, and solve problems.

I would be lying if I said that didn't happen to me sometimes-albeit not nearly as much now as when I was a novice. I go in with huge aspirations for what my kids will learn or discover, and then that grand vision gets lost in the minutia of the day. I'd wager most if not all teachers find themselves losing focus sometimes. Maybe it is taking attendance, running copies, grading homework, or washing the glassware that seems to be the most important task when in fact it should be assessing and planning the students' learning.

When I get focused on all the wrong things, I think about this story and I get my eye back on the ball.

July 13, 2010 Blessing # 77

Today I am thankful for Steve and the wisdom he brings into my life. That story was a transformative blessing in my life. It really resonated with me, and his interpretation has a wisdom that works beyond teaching. I think of that story in my work and my parenting, and everytime it prompts to me to re-energize and reprioritize.