we are apollo 13

I woke up thinking about space flight.

It’s about 1 AM, and rather than sleeping, I am thinking about the Apollo 13 mission. Originally intended to fly to and land on the Moon, it never made it. It’s ancient history at this point—it happened in the last century. Why wake up thinking about it when it’s already over and done with and everyone made it back safely and got to be characters in a Ron Howard film?

Because, my friends, it’s a metaphor, and we are all on that rocket.

Can you imagine if Houston’s response to being told there’s a problem was to say, “Carry on, or we’ll never make it to the Moon”?

Leadership is not just about vision—it’s about responding to conditions as they occur. It’s about seeking feedback from the people who are living the experience of the decisions that are being made; ultimately, those are the people who can tell you whether or not the theoretical calculations and planning can be safely carried out in the real world. They are the ones who will live or die. It is irresponsible, reckless, and otherwise stupid not to seek out input from those on board and to adjust accordingly. Houston’s job is to assist, not to insist. Houston’s job is to listen.

There is a tendency these days, if listening does actually occur, to stick to the input of the engineers and theoreticians only rather than to listen to the astronauts flying the damned thing. God forbid, sometimes we only listen to the “gut” of some guy who insists he has expertise on all of it, despite never having flown or studied spacecraft. It’s easier. It’s autopilot. It’s nice and neat and everyone at Mission Control gets out in time to make it home for supper.

It’s also a recipe for disaster.

Houston, when we have a problem, we here on board need creativity, your ability to think critically, and an understanding of what tools are available to us—it is easier to be clearheaded when you’re not in immediate danger. What we don’t need is distance, detachment, and insistence on an unattainable goal at the cost of human lives.

I’d like for all of us to make it home in one piece.

on the walk to school

I go to school on Sundays.

No, not Sunday school. No, not to learn. To prepare for the week ahead.

I figured out several years ago that, while I can fly by the seat of my pants when it comes to my work as an educator, it’s not the best idea for me or for my anxiety. Most classroom teachers have a curriculum they can refer to —I don’t, and each of my students are working on very different skills at very different levels and have very different learning styles. I would say that they have very different interests, but a lot of them seem to enjoy Minecraft. Not all of them, though!

What I do with students requires me to be responsive, so there is a lot of improvisation that happens. A couple of years ago, though, I had an epiphany: if I spend a little time every Sunday preparing myself, my stress level goes down significantly.

Today was a typical Sunday.

The walk over was pleasant. It’s nice that the sun was out, even if the weather was cool. I had a series of videos I had to watch in order to check off a box by tomorrow —there are a lot of boxes to be checked off in the world of education. While I listened, I prepared communication books for teachers to use with their students. Currently, I have a fully-functioning printer and a laminator that a friend got me. I also invested in googly eyes and construction paper on Saturday in order to top up my supplies, so I was able to prepare for an activity that I know from experience all students love (puppets, anyone?).

It is amazing what having adequate resources will do for your mood. It is amazing what adequate preparation and having enough time will do for your mood. It is amazing what a bit of sunshine will do for your mood —I mean, let’s be honest.

What was the purpose of this blog? Nothing really. We’re just a couple of friends talking about what educators do with their weekends. There might be a little something in there pointing out the obvious —resources help people feel like they can manage their lives. No reason at all for this blog.

Have a great week.