I have been dropping hints for weeks about what I wanted this Mothers Day.
It was simple.
No trip to the store required.
Amazon purchase optional.
Really simple.
Just two things.
Wish #1.
I would love for dishes to find their way from the sink TO the dishwasher.
It's not far away. It's easy to open. The whole process takes less than a minute if you do it when you are at the sink.
I also know this should be easy. Train my children. Use some praise and watch it all happen. Isn't that what is supposed to happen when we teach people to do something?
I've done that.
Nada.
I know I could monetize this task, although I don't really see why I should have to! I could use "the stick" instead of "a carrot", but it doesn't seem big enough to reinforce that aggressively.
So I wait. I hope. I hint. I encourage. I comment in a funny way. I hint again. Maybe on Mother's Day.
Wish #2
My car is covered with dirt! I don't know how a vehicle gets that dirty during quarantine when we are rarely driving, but it does!
My daughter's promise for Mother's Day was that she had to say yes to everything I asked. I'll take it! Say yes to a good vehicle scrub, my dear! I'd like to see out of my windows again!
Did my hinting work? Well, sort of.
I had a lovely breakfast made by my kids.
I had a delicious barbecue dinner made by my husband and cleaned by my kids.
My kids showered me with hugs and cards, including a Starbucks gift card (the real way to this mom's heart!)
And there were far less eye rolls from "the teenager" than usual!
As for dishes in the sink, most got to the dishwasher! AND there were four extra hands during clean up of the dinner meal!
As for clean car, it looks much better! I can see out of the windows again! And we had fun doing it.
Did I help with these tasks during Mother's Day?
Yes.
Yes, I did.
Did that take away from the joy of having my kids pitch in to help with these tasks?
Nope. Not at all.
Turns out, this is what I actually wanted.
I didn't really desire less work for myself, just more "doing it together".
It's not that I hate loading the dishwasher or cleaning my car, or many of the other tasks I do.
I just don't like doing them alone.
It's far more fun working together.
I think this lesson might apply to quarantine, too. I've read and heard from many educators that say they are working so much harder now. There are longer hours, more stress, crazy learning curve and home issues at the same time.
I get it.
It's all new.
It requires remaking everything.
We find barriers that we don't know how to move, yet.
And we do this alone.
So very alone.
So I guess I have another wish.
Not for Mother's Day, but for education.
Wish #3 - Together
If we end up in a similar scenario again (second wave, etc), I believe we need to get better at working together. We do it in school. We walk across the hall, talk at the copier, sit down for lunch and chat (Why are you laughing? It happens every month or two). The point is, we talk, we share, we learn.
It's harder from a distance, for sure.
It has to be more formal, with a time set and a platform determined.
But if we need to move forward in this again, if we need to provide distance options, if we find ourselves HERE again, we need to move forward together.
All together.
All sharing the load.
All bringing our talents to the table.
There is no better group than this one!
You are creative.
You love your students.
You are able to collaborate to engage kids.
You know your curriculum and can easily choose the essentials.
You can think outside the box.
We each have our strengths. If we do more together, share the load together, use our talents to the benefit of our team and our students, it will pay.
Together, we will find clarity in objectives and how to move forward.
Together, we will create engaging online content for all.
Together, we will find ways around the barriers our students face.
Together, we will find support and expertise.
Together, we might even have a little fun!
Working together, we can take on whatever next year throws at us!
Together we can finish this year stronger than ever.
Start today.
Share.
Collaborate.
Learn.
Be well.
Kim
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