After listening to Dr. Gerstenblatt talk about her delayed flight experience and the people she encountered, I have thought all week about my own personal derailments and how I am not often willing to look at them as growth but more as unwanted experiences. I had to ask myself if I was willing to learn and grow from many of the unexpected events in my life, would I be willing to engage with others in the midst of my frustrations. I found it quite interesting as she talked about her conversations with people in the airport and the connections that were formed because of a shared experience or a common interest.
Sometimes we have daily derailments and other times we may go weeks without bumps in the road. I have tried to live this week with the intention of being more aware of those minor or major interruptions to my well planned day/week.
This is what I learned and who I encountered this week from events that occurred that I had not expected and/or planned:
- Waiting to meet the realtor @ my boss's home, I had a chance to talk to the housekeeper at length and learn about her family, her new granddaughter, and her culture.
- Offering to take a friend to the airport @ 5:45 am even though I would have preferred to sleep, gave me the opportunity to hear a message on the radio regarding trusting ourselves and our circumstances. A much needed, timely and affirming piece!
- While housesitting for my neighbors, I had an unexpected and not necessarily welcomed interruption by their daughter which gave me insight into the organ donor program she works with. A fascinating, interesting and rewarding career and one I knew so little about.
I don't necessarily know how these interruptions/derailments will impact me in the future but what I learned is that if I will just stop and breathe and allow those minor and/or major interruptions, that truly annoy me, to impact me, then I can grow and gain insight into peoples lives. I truly desire to be that person who welcomes life's interruptions versus the one who is irritated beyond belief.
Which also led me to consider how can I apply this to my work at Holly Street and Martin Middle School? I can have a list of items to accomplish and goals to achieve; however, I have to be sensitive to those around me and their plans. I need to be flexible and look at the bigger picture and hope I will see the individuals involved and how I can be a conduit for change in their lives or possibly just a listening ear. My motto: Embrace derailment!
I cannot wait to see how this all develops in the work @ Martin Middle School!
I really liked what you had to say about the bumps in the road that come our way. I totally know what you mean when you say that the interruptions in life annoy you but I also want to be able to learn from them and not just see them as burdens that I complain about. Thank you for sharing I feel as though I always learn a little whenever I talk to you.
ReplyDeleteI often have a hard time looking at the bug picture because I get focused on the things I am interested it. But there are so many things that surround us thats it necessary to look around and not get caught in a bubble. But making lists help me manage that task because its easy to write things down and keep on expanding on that task until all the steps have been listed out. The hard part is checking off those boxes.
ReplyDelete-Vamsee