Silver Linings, and Yellow and Red Ones Too

Today I am grateful for safe travels and gorgeous weather this week, and for a good night's sleep back in my own bed.

I spent Wednesday through Friday on a field trip with forty-eight 7th graders and four colleagues who helped chaperone.  A big thank you to CeCe, Kelly, Aaron, and Trevor for helping make the trip a success and fun as well.

We had some challenges during the trip, but together we moved through them and stepped up in the ways that were needed. We came home exhausted, but appreciative of the silver linings of such a trip:

-absolutely stunning weather and fall beauty as our classrooms and offices for a couple of days
-reminders of the different energy and personalities that come out of our students when away from
      the typical educational setting
-laughter shared at various times, to save our sanity and strengthen the cohesion we felt
-our own opportunity to have a different perspective on our jobs

The silver lining of being out in nature can't be beat. The colors were vibrant. The sound of leaves rustling under our feet and swaying gently over our heads in the breeze had a calming effect just when it was needed.

Yellow was the dominant color by this time, but the reds were still exiting. Silver linings included the reds and yellows too:

It is a relief in many ways to be back home, to have all of the planning and the actual trip behind us for this year. But I will carry the silver linings, and the reds and yellows too, with me in gratitude over the next days.