Creative Discipline

This is my 100th blog post since beginning this project over a year ago.

I haven't always been faithful. There were long pauses between thoughts, especially last fall-winter. I was kind of busy trying to stay afloat in the sea of confusion that defined my job most of the year.

So, this summer I wanted to make some changes: more exercise, more mindful eating, more creative outlets to balance the lack of creativity that comes with teaching to state mandated standards.


I decided in July that I would give myself a challenge; write everyday. I don't mean just blog everyday, but to also get back into the habit of journalling regularly.

I find that I need the daily discipline as much as I crave the creative outlet. I've have a deep desire to get all of the thoughts crowding my brain, clamoring for attention down on a page. It's a driving need that helps me stay balanced and sane.


So far, so good. I have blogged religiously for the last 22 days and I have recorded my thoughts in my journal, too.

I found a cool app that allows me to write a quick summary of my day, and I am exercising more (walking and yoga), and eating less.

Life is good. But now comes the tricky part-maintaining all these disciplines when the school year begins.

Wish me luck!

Aging Gracefully

"You get old when you stop being interested. You get old when you don’t create any more." - Della Reese

It's a slow and lazy Sunday morning. Slow because of how long it seems to take my body these days to stretch out all of the kinks and weird pains that seem to come from nowhere. I need a hefty shot of caffeine before my brain can engage. Welcome to the 50's!

I'm in my fiftieth year, which does not officially end until the tail end of December. I have been preparing to enter the next decade for the last few years; learning to say my age without wincing, and repeating the mantra, "you look damn good for your age."

When I got back into teaching after a 16 year hiatus, it was a slight shock to realize I was no longer one of the "young ones." Working with a staff of very young women (think fresh out of college), and a boss ten years my junior has an eye-opener, but also a blessing.

I have had to catch up on the newest trends in teaching, yet I do not feel the same pressure to "prove myself" that I had in my 20's. I am often the person that my boss has looked to for advice and support as we muddled through our first year.

But being older isn't the same as being old. I have continued to grow; to challenge myself to learn new things. I'm learning to accept my physical limitations and some mental ones too!

I am determined to age gracefully, but I refuse to grow old.