Remember, the old saying, “sticks and stones may break my bones, but words can never hurt me.” After many personal and professional experiences, I definitely disagree. I have encountered others who have played a role in saying unkind words as I am sure you have too. A personal example, I have always struggled with my weight as long as I can remember from pre-teen to adult; I have been at odds with the BMI index. We are not on speaking terms. Once I was doing well; I was winning the weight battle by losing all the excess pounds and I was extremely proud of myself. (Let me preface this by saying I love my mother-in-law; she is a wonderful, God-fearing and God-loving woman.) Now let’s get back to the painful words, after I had lost the weight she said, “Tanya, do your students still listen to you in your classroom? I would think being a larger size helps keep them in control.”
I did not know what to say. Imagine that–I mean in all your teacher preparation classes, trainings, workshops, courses which of the strategies and methods encouraged you to ‘be fat’ so you can have good classroom management. Honestly, I do not recall what I told her, but that memory lives on today. Those words pierced my spirit like a stick hurtling through mid-air heading straight for my heart. Throughout many years of teaching and learning, I have faced a variety of challenges and hurt. But during the last few years, it has been extremely challenging. My stress levels have been through the roof, and needless to say the weight did eventually come back because of a lack of a self-care regimen.
The biggest challenge that severely affected my health and mental well-being involved me losing myself. After many years in the classroom, I went back to school for a Masters in School Library Information Science. Excited about leaving the traditional classroom and exploring the school wide classroom known as the library; many library professionals call it the ‘heart of the school’, and it is my firm belief that it is the heart of the school. However, if your natural organ does not receive its vital nourishments like proper flow of blood and oxygen then the body will die. The classroom and library have taught me that I
need to surround myself with colleagues and administrators that can provide the life-giving flow of words, not just any words but words that empower, words that create, and words that resonate with your passionate beliefs about who you are as an individual and as a professional. Do not lose yourself in your classroom or your library. If a school or district policy does not agree with your moral code of ethics, then you do have a choice.
As we prepare to go back-to-school let us commit to a life where we live of fullest moments caring, giving, and sharing, and if you are in an environment that does not
support your life’s work, how will your actions change the atmosphere? How will your words bring the light of hope to yourself first and others secondly? I made a change and you can too. Now, I help other educators like you to live your best library life. I trust you to know what your change entails; now is your time to consider what that change looks like and how
your actions will shine in your life and the life of others.
Lighting the way,
Fiya Librarian
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