Over the last couple of years, I’ve been doing a lot of teaching in the Main Frame. At first this was a frightening prospect for me, and I was quite insecure about it. As time has gone on and my confidence has grown, however, I’ve begun to enjoy it. I love witnessing the moment when a student learns something brand new…it’s almost as if a light goes on behind their eyes.
For me, one of the most interesting things about teaching is the way students also teach me valuable lessons. It seems like the very second I start to think that I have a subject figured out, one of our students shows me that I clearly do not.
This truth was illustrated for me again last month. During that class session, a Main Frame student named Ms. L kept using a phrase that stuck with me. She would say, “I just want to be the best me I can be.” There is a lot of wisdom in that statement. Ms. L was not concerned with what others thought of her or with what other people were doing. She focused all of her attention and energy on taking steps to better her situation by finding employment and appropriate housing. She recently found work as a caregiver for elderly adults and is simultaneously returning to school to complete her GED. There’s no doubt she’s blossoming into the best version of herself.
Despite Ms. L’s struggles-domestic abuse, homelessness, family illnesses, and unemployment, she has somehow managed to find a way to focus on what truly matters in the moment by asking questions like, “What can I do to improve myself right now?” “What can I learn?” “How can I grow?”
Over the past few weeks, when I begin to compare myself to others or worry about something going poorly, I try to remember that all I can do is be the best me I can be. Thank you for that lesson, Ms. L.