Bye, Bye February

Ahhhhh, the seasons.  Gotta love 'em because they put things in perspective.  No matter where you live, you feel that moment when winter will move out and spring will roll in with all her green and gold and blossoms and sometimes turbulence.  We love the warm seasons, but without the cold ones, we'd have no anticipation, no thrill at the sunshine and warmth emerging over the horizon, seeming to penetrate our blood and bones and waking us as well as all of the rest of nature.  The poets often use the seasons to clearly capture the cycles in life.  Age, grief, struggles, all follow the pattern.  Shelley muses, "O Wind, if Winter come, can Spring be far behind?"  Yes, even the old adage "Where there's life, there's hope" confirms it.  Wise readers will note that winter will come back too.  Oh, amen to that, and we need to be aware.  Shaw wryly  and rightly comments "If nothing were wrong, we'd have nothing to do."  Strange but true.  We'll always have obstacles, problems, even tragedies, but most of us find the strength to dig deep, find the bright light, the spring in our souls, and rise like the new grass pushing through the hard-frozen earth.  Yeah, sounds dramatic, but people do that every day, every day and honor the life they have and LIVE.  That's no small task and deserves a little homage, eh?  That's it, that's the spirit I trust to take us through all of our rough spots, as individuals, as a country, as a universal consciousness.  Oh to wave a wand and have EVERYONE tap into that and operate with honor and wisdom.  The seasons will come and go, no matter what.  How we handle each, how we react to what happens, how we treat each other during each season...ahhhhh, there's the challenge.  Are we up to it?  No doubt in my mind.  As Faulkner put it,  "I believe that man (mankind) will not merely endure: he will prevail. He is immortal, not because he alone among creatures has an inexhaustible voice, but because he has a soul, a spirit capable of compassion and sacrifice and endurance."  Look, here's spring on the near horizon.  Let's dance her into our lives and thrive on her energy and promise.   

Lend me your ears

Caesar said, "Friends, Romans, Countrymen...."  This morning I'm trying to think about ALL of my students.  I say trying because the numbers are staggering.  I've always told everyone that I just lucked out falling into teaching.  Before I decided on college, I'd always say, "What will I do for a living?  All I know how to do is drive and type."  My mom would laugh at that, but I was serious.  I couldn't draw or paint or sing or dance or build things or anything to earn a living.  I'm not sure when my decision came, but I knew I liked English and what can one do with English but teach (at least that's what I thought, more on that in a later blog).  Forward I went, and in the end, I discovered my passion...English, sure, but way more than that...TEACHING.  I have a teaching blog called "Yoooohoooo, You Who Teach," (Clever, eh?), but I post this in The Bright Spot because I must say THANK YOU to all of you out there:  students, fellow teachers, administrators, parents.  You have made possible the huge BRIGHT SPOT I've lived in all these years.  Oh, I have a life outside the classroom of course, but teaching has colored me bright, has given me insight,  memories, challenges, perspective, a richness I cannot totally explain.  Have I done everything right?  Am I the perfect teacher?  Absolutely not.  As I've always told my students, "No one is perfect.  All you can do is the best you can do and learn."  I'm still teaching, and I'm still learning.  You know, I think I'll post this on the teacher blog too, but it belongs here, here in The Bright Spot.  I hope a whole raft of my "partners in crime" eventually read this and hear my THANK YOU, and yes, I mean ALL of you.  Hugs all around... 

My cardinals

Working in my computer room yesterday morning, I heard a familiar sound, the distinctive short chirp of the cardinal.  I swear to you a family of the flaming red birds has followed me from residence to residence.  I know.  That's a bit of a stretch, but I choose to believe it.  Funny how we can do that and make it work.  Believing something lovely never hurt a soul.  I know, too, that the female of the species does not sport the luscious scarlet, but I see her and her babies frolic and flash a red of their own.  Again, it's through my eyes, through my rose-colored glasses, so to speak, even more appropriate in this case.  We all know the scientific explanations and the actual reason I hear the chirping outside my front window every year, but why not swirl in a little something special, a little something lovely?  So yes, my cardinals have joined me once more in welcoming spring.  Oh yeah, I have the big head, Mother Nature.  One of your delicate creatures has chosen me.  Hmmmmmm, let me look around.  What else lovely can I believe?

Afternoon delight

Ooooo, provocative, eh?  Bet some of you are singing that song.  Well, this is Friday afternoon after all, and we're sitting on the cusp of spring.  That alone is cause for celebration.  As I watch the posts on FB, I think of all the good times planned for the weekend, fun both simple and extravagant.  People will be making memories.  Here's hoping we all choose to hold on tight to each good time, each moment of joy, each opportunity to share with friends and family.  The more we store, the more we have to help us through the tough times.  Oh how we'll need those little reminders of how happy we can be. 
Thanks for the comments so far.  I'm already loving this! 

Oh my...

Would you look at me?  I'm posting to my very own blog.  Am I 2011 or what?  Well, let me first say my title means many things, but I hope to encourage two in particular:  bright thoughts as in positive and bright thoughts as informed and respectful.  Anyone surprised?  Hey, we can do this together.  I totally believe many people are holding on to all the wonderful aspects of our country, of our personal lives.  The power of positive thinking is nothing new, but it's getting lost in all the bickering and nonsense.  Disagreeing takes little thought and energy, but finding compromise and real solutions, now that takes BRILLIANCE.  Do we face huge challenges?  Yes.  We must be serious and realistic, but there's no reason we must always focus on the negative.  Let's let the positives breathe a little.  Here we go, my peeps.  Join me.  I hope to post just about every, single day!!  I'll probably start another blog to deal with some universal questions I have.  I'll welcome your stories, your thoughts, your ideas for ACTION.  Woooooohooooo...loving it already.

Doc