I have thought about blogging about my experiences teaching kindergarten for a little while. I finally started this back in early August and wrote a few sentences before abandoning the idea. Revisiting what I wrote back then has renewed my interest. Spring is just as good a time as any to get started!
In August 2015, my family and I had just returned from a short beach vacation. While enjoying the sights and sounds of the ocean, my two children (ages 5 and 7) brought me a handful of seashells. At first, when I looked at them, all I saw was that they were all broken. I couldn't even begin to identify what shell they started from. To me these broken shells represented the broken-ness that represented this summer when I lost my older sister to cancer. But, the smiles on my children's faces and their excitement of finding these broken pieces from the ocean made me smile inside and out. I kept these shells and have them in a jar.
So often we get caught up in wanting everything to be perfect that we forget the real beauty that is all around us. A broken shell found hidden in the sand or washing up on the shore should be just as exciting as finding a whole shell. What an exceptional journey these shells take to land here on the beach and into the hands of wonder and innocence!
Teaching kindergarten for many years helps to keep that feeling of wonder and innocence alive in my heart and mind. While the daily struggles might make me feel discouraged, or stressed, or burnt out, I am reminded by this little jar of broken shells that we are all just one small piece, taking an incredible journey, and by cherishing all these pieces, we are taking this spirit of kindergarten and setting it free to spread joy and hope to all those we encounter.
