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I want to demonstrate to my students that their worthiness does NOT depend on the grades they earn in my class. Of course, I want to give my C students the same attention that my A students get. But if I am really honest with myself, I have to admit I like talking to A students, because they “get it”... they already speak the same language. But what credit is it to me as a teacher, if I only affirm the students who already “get it”? It’s easy to affirm the student who asks great questions in class, but I must be thoughtful about how can I affirm the questions from a struggling student. Or the one who comes from a different cultural background. Or the one whose educational system didn’t provide them with the tools they need. How can I affirm these students? I like to tell them the struggle ... [Read more of this Awakin Reading...] Seed questions for reflection: How do you relate to the notion that grace is what makes hard conversations possible and productive between people? Can you share a personal story of a time you were able to affirm the dignity of someone who wasn't succeeding in their endeavor? What helps you honor the dignity of those who aren't doing well? |
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In a Bomb Shelter Under Kyiv, a Professor Taught Peace
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A Special Pay-It-Forward Drive in Fukushima Miki, an 11th grade student in Japan, started a giftivism club with her friends. Earlier this month, Miki went to Fukushima to hand out heart pins made by women in the slums of India. She shared the sweet story behind the pins and encouraged each recipient to gift the pin forward as a token of gratitude.
Click the image below to watch this brief, heart-warming video from Miki!  |
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My favorite life forms right now are dandelions and mushrooms—the resilience in these structures, which we think of as weeds and fungi, the incomprehensible scale, the clarity of identity, excites me. I love to see the way mushrooms can take substances we think of as toxic, and process them as food, or that dandelions spread not only themselves but their community structure, manifesting their essential qualities (which include healing and detoxifying the human body) to proliferate and thrive in a new environment. The resilience of these life forms is that they evolve while maintaining core practices that ensure their survival. A mushroom is a toxin-transformer, a dandelion is a community of healers waiting to spread… What are we as humans, what is our function in the universe? One thing I have observed: When we are engaged in acts of love, we humans are at our best and most resilient. The love in ... [Read more] Seed questions for reflection: What does organizing with love mean to you? Can you share a personal story of a time when the goal of your work was to increase the love instead of winning or dominating an opponent? What helps you go deeper in your relationships? |
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Xue Devand: On giving, receiving, and so much more 
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The Last Repair Shop |
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Chaz Howard: Heart of Laddership Recently, Chaz joined a ServiceSpace Laddership call where he spoke from the heart, regaling us with stories that illustrate what it means to be in laddership. Chaz, who serves as the youngest chaplain in history at the University of Pennsylvania, notes "the way up the ladder is down". Check out the full video of his inspiring talk below!
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Jac: On Wearing Both Lenses
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A clear glass orb floats above the cliff just off the edge representing our conscience, souls, and selves what if it shatters? becoming a puzzle of icy glass and then nothing at all? what if it disappears? what would we fight for? would we still know ourselves for the loving, backstabbing, beautiful, horrible, emotional, heartless, empathetic, shunning, wonderful people we are? could we go on without ourselves? without a foothold? step lightly, they say don’t leave your self like a scarf in the forest like a sandal on the beach tuck it in safe don’t free it don’t lose it don’t go without a railing but could we be more without the limits of our own selves? if we could take the risk would we end up not being in trouble after all? would we be freeing ourselves by letting go of our SELVES? we’d have identity of what we know and what we’ve learned but not the burden of the world. ... [Read more] Seed questions for reflection: What does freeing ourselves by letting go of our SELVES mean to you? Can you share a personal story of a time you took the risk of going beyond the limits of your own self? What helps you have an identity of what you have learned without the burden of the world? |
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Flourishing: An Awakin Call with Matthew Lee |
