You've got to be the change...

Ghandi said, "You've got to be the change you want to see in the world."
That statement really speaks to me as a person who works with little people on a daily basis and as someone who is trying to raise a little person. Preach and lecture all day long, but if you really want to see results, you have to be an example.
So, I've taken Ghandi's words to heart, but on a smaller scale. I'm working now to be the change I want to see in MY world. My classroom, my home, my family.
Last week I wrote about a dream I had that really shook me up. Not in a bad way. I sort of felt it was a "call to action". Ever since I had that dream I've made some changes.
First, I've been sorting our trash for recycling and bringing my own bags to the grocery store. Baby steps to make the world a little greener. In the past I've always been a "throw it all in the trash because once it leaves my house it isn't my problem anymore" kind of person. But now that I have a child it suddenly seems so important to teach him to take care of the earth as much as he can. I do this for him.
The next big change has been diet and exercise. I've been on a diet/exercise program for two weeks now and I have to say, I do feel tons better already! Not necessarily seeing the results I want on the scale yet, but I do have more energy and I feel better about myself. It isn't easy to overcome a lifetime of laziness, but it's important to me. I'm hoping that my enthusiasm about this will rub off on my husband... only time will tell.
Finally, I've been putting in extra effort at work. I've always done my job fairly well, but if I'm honest with myself I know that there are a lot of things I could improve upon. One problem I have always had in life that affects my work is that I lack focus and organizational skills. I tend to daydream and go off on tangents. I have a rather lackadaisical approach to life which, while it has always worked for me, it rubs off on my students and it isn't particularly helpful to them. Thre are things they need to know beyond the curriculum. Life skills, time management, responsibility...I've really been working hard this year to hold myself to a higher standard so that I can in turn hold them to a higher standard. Seems weird that I've been teaching ten years and I just now understand this.
So that's what I've been up to. One day at a time, being the change.

Prophetic Dreams

First of all let me say that today's nap was one of the best I've ever had! I was able to read a book in bed alone until I became drowsy and drifted off to sleep. If that sounds odd to you, you must not have children. My friends with children will understand that THIS NEVER HAPPENS!!! I feel so refreshed! And I must give props to my sweet husband who made it all possible.
OK, now to the most interesting part of my nap- the dream. I'll retell it in as much detail as I can remember.

I was going home to my apartment. I lived in an apartment, see. I was trying to get in, but I couldn't remember the code to unlock the gate. I tried all the important numbers in my life, but none of them worked. I had to wait for another resident to come home so I could follow them in the gate.
I finally get in the gate and make my way to my apartment. I hadn't been there in a while, maybe a couple of months. I don't know why exactly. That's one of the blanks the Sandman didn't fill in. Anyway, the important thing is that someone else had taken up residence in my apartment. It was a woman. She was a cook I think. Latino. I really don't think those details matter. What matters is she had moved all of her things in. Nothing in the apartment was mine anymore. I could still see fixtures where I had placed things when I was living there, but basically everything was different.
In my dream I told my friends about the squatter who was living in my apartment. Turns out she wasn't really a squatter, she had been invited there by one of my friends. The dream-friend couldn't understand why I was paying rent for an apartment I wasn't living in or caring for.
By the end of the dream I was taking over control of my place. I was moving my things back in and making it my own again.

Now for the interpretation. I'm a big believer in dreams and their meanings, but I don't own a dream dictionary. I feel that each person's dream and the "symbols" therein are unique to each individual based on personal experiences. Whatever. Here is what this dream means to me: I'm living my life "unconsciously". I'm not paying attention to myself or the things I do to myself. I'm eating poorly, not exercising. I'm feeling stressed out, I'm unfit and overweight. My dream is telling me I need to take back control of myself. If I don't, I'm opening the door for things like disease to take up residence in my body. Like in my dream where I was still paying rent for an apartment I no longer lived in, I pay the price when I don't take care of myself.
All in all I thought it was a pretty good dream to have. Time to start living "consciously".

(In an unrelated note, in the dream I was talking to my dream-friend, and we decided that I should take one romantic vacation with my husband and start trying for baby #2 afterward. We'll see about that ;) )