Ringing Like a Bell

This past week was Spirit Week at my school -- a big deal. It's fun, especially since I like to dress up. I've been Mrs. Claus, a Ninja Turtle, and Hermoine Granger all in the space of a few days. Our students really love it, too. I teach in a community with a strong sense of unity and tradition. Not everyone is dedicated to those things, but almost everyone is. In the past few years I've caught that spirit myself. It's irresistible, like a virus. When good things are happening, you just want to join in. At least that's how it is for me. I could tell you lots of things about this past week: face paint, pop songs, cheers, tractors, football, seeing former students, and jumping on trampolines. Instead I'd like to tell you about a few moments yesterday afternoon, moments that made me so proud to be a part of my community and to work at my school. Earlier this year,  a new teacher on our staff decided to sponsor a Project Unify group at our school. Th...

My husband is a sports fanatic. If it's a sport, we've watched it on TV. Unless you're reading this from somewhere in Siberia, and even then, you know that we are in the last few days of the thirtieth Olympiad. I've seen it all in the last several days: swimming, table tennis, gymnastics, beach volleyball, and diving. I even saw some guys playing a sport I can't name and have never seen before. For my husband sport is  serious business. We watched the latest May/Walsh victory over the Chinese beach volleyball team, and it was a close one. My husband said, "Well we won, but I swear I just lost three months of my life." He gets that into anything competitive. My response to his comment? "Well, at least it's the three months at the end." My husband has held his breath watching the light-weight sculls. On the other hand, the thing that has impacted me most about the Olympics is not the sport but the heart behind it. I love the inspirational s...