G.O.D.

Our life is a constant forgetting and remembering. An ongoing seesaw between being un-mindful and being re-minded. A perpetual journey traveling between exile and homecoming. When I teach and try to articulate the core principles of effective teaching or the core commitment to children’s happiness, I’m as much talking to myself as I am to the teachers in the room, re-saying over and over again what is truly important.

 

So a confession here. As any reader of this Blog knows, I have my series of routines that serve to focus, energize, calm, pass time, what have you. They work pretty well and mostly are pleasurable. But like anything, they can become habitual to the point that I’m sitting in my hotel room checking e-mail, scrolling down Facebook, playing Solitaire, while a beach beckons me just outside my window. “I’ll be right there!” I promise and 30 minutes later, I’m still not.

 

So when I finally got out, I gave myself a stern talking to and vowed (my first New Year’s Resolution?) that I would not wait so long to be out into the world of sand, sun, sea and sky. Begin the day with that and then much later on, peek at the e-mail situation. Make the first connection with the only god I know— the actual natural world. Well, maybe I know a few more, but I can’t play piano before 10 am at home and here, thought there was a lovely Yamaha grand sitting out in the hallway, the hotel people came running up when I started to play saying I couldn’t. Nobody could. It was just sitting there unused and why, exactly?

 

At any rate, I came up with the perfect acronym—G. O. D. Can you guess what it stands for?

 

(I’ll wait a moment while you make your guesses. Hint: It’s not “Grand Old Flag” or “Groovy Old Doug.” Give up?)

 

Drum roll……

 

“Get Out, Dummy!!”

I’ll let you know tomorrow how it goes.