The Future is Brighter Than the Present

I am a big  history nerd, and have often wished I lived in other time periods. I have running jokes with my friends about this. I am realizing though, the more I work with kids, that they are more than capable of creating a world that will be better than the one we live in.

I am lucky to be able to work with kids, and I love what I do. I teach in an urban setting, at a great school of K1 (pre-Kindergerten) through 8th graders. Previously, I worked in a K-6 setting in another urban area.

Kids know how to make one's day, often without even trying.  They know how to lighten the mood when someone is tense. This week I covered for a kindergarten teacher, a class I spend two hours of every day with on a regular basis, and really enjoyed it, as I always do. On the most stressful day I can remember, where a lot was going on, a medical emergency took place of a staff member, and trying to help out in multiple ways, I was looking through the journals of the Kindergarten class. That day they were to draw and write about something that made them happy. One girl put in her journal that I made her happy, and it was the best feeling in the world. I tend to lose my voice a couple times a year, without fail, and it amazes me how the kids I have worked with seem to be on their best behavior at those times.  Not just with me, but with others. They sense that someone is not feeling well, and they don't take advantage of the situation.  These are among the hundreds of kids I have worked with over the past 6 years, and the ways that kids inspire me are innumerable. How often do adults say something, whether they mean it or not, so completely amazing when someone is in a stressful situation? How about on a normal day? Not many. I too am guilty of not doing this enough. Many adults that I know would gladly take advantage of someone when they are not feeling their best, but not many kids. Why is that? Maybe I have just been fortunate to work with amazing kids. These are kids though that much of society looks down on because of where they were born and their socioeconomic status. Yet they are more honorable than many adults in the world.

I do hope that I am able to see if the kids of today are able to build a better tomorrow. I think they can. I have more faith in the kids of today than the political leaders in office.  Is that a sad thing?