Everyone Around Me is Doing Great Things

I've been doing this thing lately that I really don't like to do and know that I really shouldn't do: I've been comparing my life to the people around me.

Everyone around me is doing great things.

One of my sisters is graduating and getting her masters degree in social work! Two of my friends got promotions! One of my friends is starting grad school! My littlest sister wants to be a tattoo artist! My brother is going to college (and graduating soon) for physics! My husband is starting a business! My sister in law is getting her Ph.D.!  One of my sisters is graduating with some cool psychological experimental degree (that I obviously can't remember the real name for) :) ! And I teach 4k.

I know how important early childhood education is (I wish more people knew) and I am SO proud of my friends and family for their awesome accomplishments, but I just kept comparing. Not good, I know. I would think about how I shouldn't compare my life with other's but I would always come back to some thought about how everyone was doing something exciting, or furthering their education, or (my worst/silliest thought of all)  they were making a big difference in people's lives.

Then I had a meeting. It was a meeting about literacy standards for 4k and 5k teachers in the area. I sat at a table with teachers from pretty affluent schools. The teachers talked about how it can be so hard to teach things when kids can't recognize all of their upper case letters when they start school. I am celebrating some of my kids finally recognizing letters in their names! Most of the kids know most of the letters (upper and lowercase) now.  They talked about how it's sad that some of them don't know how to write their names when they start school. I am celebrating some of my kids recently learning how to write most of the letters in their names! Most of them can write their names now, but at the beginning of they year- no way.  They talked about how it can be hard when kids come to school lacking resources that other kids have, like iPads. Many of my kids have tablets. Many of my kids also come to school lacking resources like healthy food and safe homes. They talked about how many of their students go to high quality child care centers or preschools when they are 2 and 3 years old. Most of my kids did not go to such places. We got statistics about how kids from families with a high socio-economic status are talked to significantly more than kids from families with a low socio-economic status. Kids who are talked to more have a better vocabulary, become better readers, do better in school, etc. Most of my families qualify for breakfast and free/reduced lunch which means their SES is on the low end. My kids are doing awesome. They work so hard and are learning so much.

Last night and today I had parent teacher conferences. One of the dads was asking for suggestions on how he could get his daughter to clean up her things. He joked about how I should go to his house because not only can I get his daughter to clean up, but I can get an entire class of 4k-ers to clean up a messy classroom in about five minutes. A mom and I talked about how her son is really starting to understand that there are times to be silly and talkative and there are times to listen. She said she is noticing that at home and that school has been so good for him socially. A dad let me know the only teacher he really remembers from elementary school is his kindergarten teacher- he thinks his daughter will remember me forever too. A mom said she notices her daughter is learning so much and it is amazing to her. A little boy who was very sleepy and overtired-silly at the beginning of the school year is alert and learning. His mom and dad are so happy we worked as a team to help the boy be a better learner. A mom said, "We are really glad you are her teacher. You do such a good job."

I know I shouldn't compare my life to other's, but I know that sometimes I will. I also know that my days are exciting and that sometimes it's better when they are not.  I might not be in grad school or getting my Ph.D. right now, but that doesn't mean I can't. I can't be promoted to a new position with more responsibilities, but that's okay (I'll get more responsibilities, probably in the form of assessments, anyway haha). Most importantly, I am making a difference in at least 31 people's lives. Sometimes I just need to be reminded of that.