Saturday, November 19, 2016

Look in the Mirror!

It's everywhere! It's nearly impossible to miss.
Facebook
Instagram
YouTube
Articles/Blogs
Pinterest
Teachers Pay Teachers
Pictures of the perfect birthday party.
Pictures of the perfect classroom.
Pictures of the perfect decorations for your house.
Videos of amazing general music performances.
Plans and materials for the perfect lessons.
Articles and Blogs on how to be a good teacher/parent/spouse/friend/person.
Articles/Blogs about how you are ruining your students, kids, friends or marriage.
Articles/Blogs that tell you everything you are doing is wrong.

Social Media brings many benefits but it also inundates us with information and not all of this information is positive. I strongly believe that most people are doing the best they can with what they know and with their abilities. For every study that says X is the best thing to do there is another study that says it is the worst.

Look in the Mirror. Seriously, find a mirror. Ask yourself...

Are you happy? Is your family happy? Are you taking care of yourself? Is your family taken care of?

Stop worrying about what others think or see. What really matters is what you think and in yourself.

Look in a mirror...

You can put expensive windows and beautiful brick and make the outside of a house look amazing while the inside is nothing but studs and plywood. We make our appearance look good and we wear a smile. We post happy pictures on Facebook and we act organized and put together, but on the inside we feel lost or sad or incompetent or angry.  People say we look great or we are doing a great job so we feel like we should feel good.

Look in a mirror...

What do you see? How do you feel?

It is ok to not feel happy all the time. It is ok that your classroom is not Pinterest worthy. It is ok if your choir does not sound like The Vienna Boys Choir. It is ok if your kids birthday party is not worthy of a front page spread in a magazine. It is ok if the dishes don't get done tonight. It's ok if there are crumbs on the floor and something on the walls.

It is ok.

Be you. Work everyday to be the happiest and best version of you. Do things that fill your day with joy. Tell those you care about that you love them. Read a book. Take a nap. Go for a run or walk. Meditate. Do yoga. Go to church. Pray. Forget about the To Do List. Spend time with friends. Spend time with your family/spouse. Spend time with your God.  Give yourself grace.
Be happy with yourself and your situation for you are the one who has to get up everyday and see yourself in the mirror.  Stop comparing.

Look in a mirror.

Are you happy? Is your family happy? Are you taking care of yourself? Is your family taken care of?

If the answer is yes, don't worry about what social media and "the experts" say.

If the answer is no, talk to someone you trust and get help. You have to live your life, you need to be happy with it.