Counselor’s Corner Issue 22

Friends,

While running errands last night, I listened as the radio DJs shared about that evening's events. They reflected on an unexpected staffing change when the manager had to call in sick due to her ill child. Thrown off guard, the DJs hurried to cover the unmanned role, taking on extra duties for their boss. Things were not going their way.

Simultaneously, while the office scrambled to keep things together, the boss juggled nursing a sick kiddo and her hungry family at home, hurriedly ordering McDonald's delivery for a "quickie" dinner. However, in her rush, she accidentally sent GrubHub to her workplace rather than her home address. Things were not going her way.

The result of this happy little accident? Those who had worked so hard to cover for their supervisor were unexpectedly rewarded with with free chicken nuggets of gratitude.

As I "push into" your classrooms on a regular basis, I am AMAZED at how you gracefully pivot from one unexpected event to the next. You selflessly scramble to cover all the duties of your role, juggling the unforseen demands that the 2020-2021 school year has brought your way. And, it's safe to say that this year things have just not gone our way.

Educator-specific research shows that finding gratitude in your profession will increase resiliency and decrease burn-out. But of course, that's easier said than done when the student birthday pizza is delivered an hour late. Or the school wifi crashed during full-remote learning. Or the four-foot snowfall forced you to call an unexpected snow day. It's in these moments that our intentionality to look for the "happy little accidents" pays off. Maybe it's that your class gets an impromptu school counselor lesson while they wait for Domino's delivery (true story). Or that your at-risk student gets the down-time she needs without the pressure of online learning (true story). Or that your ADHD student gets extra doggie play time and exercise (true story).

Finding the good in "happy little accidents" allow us to be on the receiving end of unexpected gratitude nuggets.

Grateful for you always,
Mindy