I’m not even here to offer a helpful activity.
Today, I’m here simply to preach.
I’m here to say you’re special.
I’m here to say you’re a doing a good job.
I’m here to say that your work—the long hours, the frustrations, the false starts, the creativity, the hours spent in mindless meetings, and the thousand lesson plans a year—are all appreciated and are not taken for granted by the rest of us.
Your effort—day after day, year after year–is meaningful and it helps people.
You make a difference in your students’ lives in ways that neither you nor they nor even society may ever fully comprehend.
You do, indeed and in fact, touch the future.
The work you do in the classroom saves lives. And that’s no exaggeration.
So I’m here to say keep the faith.
I’m here to say that if you’re feeling burnt out, stop and rest.
Be still.
Reach out.
Ask for help.
Hang in there.
Because we need you in the profession.
It’s important that we keep the good ones.
What you’re doing is important and, yes, I know you don’t hear that nearly often enough.
So now that someone is saying it, I want you to listen.
You matter.
Dig in.
Make your mark.
Keep on keeping on.
And don’t stop doing what you’re doing.
Because it’s working. TZT