Thought Grenade
THOUGHT GRENADE
This post is originally happening on a Saturday. Saturday for teachers is either booked for a show choir competition, a choral festival, adjudicated event, or sometimes *gasp* a **day off.** I hope you’re having a day off, and that you are recharging your batteries.
When I have time to reflect, one thought that crosses my mind is “Am I really getting through to these people?” I care about my students (we all do), and so I feel frustrated when I feel like my efforts just slide off like oil on a teflon pan.
When you have these feelings, remember what my wife once told me: “I know you’re frustrated, but what you say sticks with kids. It doesn’t always click with them in real time. Sometimes it just hangs around, and then one day it explodes in their heads like a thought grenade. That’s what happened to me. Some of my teachers told me things I just wasn’t ready to hear, and then later in life those voices came back to me in a flood of understanding.”
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I love that phrase - THOUGHT GRENADE. A grenade is powerful. Once the pin has been pulled, the explosive has been activated. There is a delay involved, but it is GOING TO EXPLODE. You pull the pin of knowledge, toss the grenade at the student, and now they are carrying it around. At some point, it’s going to go off. My wife’s theory was confirmed; I ran into former students who told me so. “I remember you always said X, but I didn’t know what you meant. Now I’m in the real world and you are totally right!”
Rest and recharge, folks, and remember - you might feel like some days this week you didn’t hit the target. Not true at all! You didn’t miss; you just tossed those kids some thought grenades.
WHAT IS YOUR BEST THOUGHT GRENADE STORY? PLEASE SHARE IN THE COMMENTS BELOW. WE ALL NEED THOSE AFFIRMING STORIES TO KEEP US GOING!
