Grit
/grit/ noun courage and resolve,
strength of character
Grit is a term I've heard used often
and loudly in scholastic arenas. The word itself means to have strength
of character, resolve, a certain stick-to-itiveness embodied by a
clenched jaw and John Wayne-esque stance. In education arenas I have
heard it used to describe desired student behavior and as a battle cry for
modeling that behavior, teach students to have grit and they will succeed! I
thought I knew grit, what it meant and how to use it, but then something
happened that changed my mind.
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| Me after my second surgery |
In fact, two things happened that
gave me pause for some deep reflective thought. One was very personal, in
April I was diagnosed with skin cancer, which had formed on my nose and back.
This was a very treatable cancer in which the affected area was
surgically removed. I had my first two operations in April, the last
three in June and July, I won't say it wasn't painful physically and
emotionally (nobody wants a surgeon cutting away at their snout) but nothing
compared to chemo or radiation treatment. At the same time my father fell
and was hospitalized for months requiring surgery for a fractured hip and rehab,
two friends died suddenly, one of heart failure and the other as the result of
a fall down a flight of stairs and my insurance dropped me in the middle of
surgery for not checking a box on the renewal form. I was an emotional
and physical mess. If there was
ever a time for grit, this was it.
The other thing that happened was a
student I was working with was removed from her family. I have been
working almost exclusively with kids at risk for the past year and had gotten
to know this child as an extremely bright student with a lot of potential.
I had watched this student struggle to continue excelling as home life
deteriorated complicated by drugs and lack of authorative presence.
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| Ava and Kayla raising funds to buy supplies for Save-A-Pet |
We went down our paths
simultaneously, me choosing to channel my powerful emotions fueled by pain and
anxiety into creating and giving, helping my daughters get involved with
Kindness Heroes a program in beta test sponsored by Misha Collins and his
Random Acts Of Kindness program; my student struggling to make sense of what
was happening. I was able to channel my frustrations into a new gallery
show titled the Celebrity Series, I rekindled my love of rock drumming and
hiked wooded climbs everyday to get strong again. While I poured my
energy into wellness and art I noticed that many colleagues I relied on took my
illness as an opportunity to advance themselves and as some doors closed I
found a whole new set flung wide open with support pouring in from the artistic
community, teachers and giving institutions. My student also found an
outlet on stage building self-esteem and like me, finding support from unusual
sources. We both found out what true grit meant. It can't be
taught, it is not a label, it is an experience in which you pull yourself up
out of hole, that experience strengthens you and makes you grow as a person
into someone who is more empathetic, determined, confident in what you can
achieve and give, knowing you will succeed if your willing to go the mile.
So what’s the point?
As you start your school year you
will find yourself in challenging situations-motivating students, managing
behavior, searching for funding, rethinking classroom set up,
administrative differences, difficult colleagues, children at risk, cultural
barriers in the community. I would challenge you this year to not get
frustrated but instead to look for the silver linings. Use your grit to
come up with creative solutions to your problems and model this for your
students. Who knows, that kid that can't sit still could be the next
robotics genius, that administrator who drives you crazy could come up with
funding for your pet tech project.
I was once told the story of a
teacher whose very studious class was faced with a noisy ruckus outside their
classroom door. The teacher asked her students for suggestions to quiet
the noise. Half said to yell at the noisy students while the other half
suggested calling an administrator to quiet them down. The teacher simply
walked over and closed the classroom door.
We can only control our own behavior.
Use your grit this year to model by
leading who knows what you will accomplish or what you will learn.
-Laura
