The Joy is Back!

Two weeks of school under my belt and I am feeling just the tiniest bit more excited about my job...again.  It was touch and go for a while.  Our wonderful little school still has no principal....of course, our school system still has no superintendent.....so it is no wonder we all feel a bit unsettled. One of my co-workers likened it to working in a circus with no ringmaster. I found that to be an apt description....lots of clowns running around, wild animals growling and roaring, trapeze artists with no net...yep, that's us!

Even amidst the chaos, our teachers are working so very hard to make sure their students receive what they need in the way of academics and moral support.  And those precious students move blissfully through the day laughing, smiling, making new friends and saying some funny stuff! One never knows what is going to pop out of those mouths.

Because of my summer film adventure, I still had very dark, okay very black hair when school began. Needless to say the hair color caused quite a few comments from returning students of all ages.  Let me share a sampling.

"You look kinda like Ms. Thompson who worked here last year." Maybe because I am Ms. Thompson who worked here last year.

"Did you 'died' your hair?" Ummm....yes, how could you tell?

"Why did you dye your hair?" I was in a film this summer. "So now you're rich?!?" Absolutely! I'm just working here for fun...snort!

"Are you a 'bampire' now? 'Cause you kinda look like one...'cept you don't have no blood leaking out of your mouth." That is exactly the look I was going for!

And my all time favorite, "Didn't you use to have white hair?" Sigh, no, it was blond.

Despite the behind the scenes turmoil that comes from having no 'ringmaster' to keep our 'circus' flowing smoothly.....the uncertainty over what happens next.....I am beginning to find bright moments in my work days once more.  True a lot of the joy comes from interaction with my students but as I've always said, I work with a great group of people.  We are all in this craziness together and most of the time there is someone to step in and say, " Hey I know its tough but you are doing a great job! Hang in there because it is going to get better."

At the end of the day, we are still a family of educators looking out for the best interest of our children.  We still do whatever it takes to help them not just feel successful but be successful in their  journey through life....not just academically, but mentally, emotionally, socially.  It is simply what we do.