In the midst of sunflowers: embracing the power of the spirit in our life and work

In the midst of sunflowers: embracing the power of the spirit in our life and. $ Kindle Edition. To Speak of Love. $ Hardcover. Books by Katherine.
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Where do you find your creative home? How do you open it to those seeking freedom? This path is for artists in any and all mediums seeking to open the doors of an individual creative practice to one that supports our collective liberation. Explore what it means to practice art from an Afro-Indigenous ancestral frame--merging art with ritual and activism.

How do we utilize participatory, community-based strategies within social justice movements? How do we honor the resources, skills, and gifts within our hands to manifest our ancestors wildest dreams? Learn how art can be used to both challenge systems of oppression AND build creative alternatives.

RSVP by sending an email to che. You will receive an email the day of the call with instructions on how to join the Zoom video call. You can end any time after the first month- no catch! Want to get the most out of your Underground Railroad experience? Committing to at least three months is strongly encouraged to begin seeing results.

For real transformation and magik, months has shown to be the most conducive time frame for anchoring sustainable liberatory practices. Ready to sign up? They may not seem dangerous at first. In fact, some may appear to be good teachers — happy, social, well-organized. But here are some signs that you should keep your distance: Their take on the kids is negative. Their take on the administration is negative. Being around them makes you feel insecure, discouraged, overwhelmed, or embarrassed.

Avoid them whenever you can. Doing this may be a challenge: Your supervisor might be a walnut tree. You may be co-teaching with one. You might work on a whole team of walnut trees, spending hours with them every week. Touching base with your marigolds will help flush out the toxins that build up from contact with the walnut trees. On top of that, simply identifying certain co-workers as walnut trees can help dilute their power over you. Twenty-Page Tina , who sets impossibly high standards for her students and brags when kids fail.

You had your kids write a five-page paper? Your mid-term had fifty questions? The students say her exams are the only ones they ever have to study for. And Good-Old-Days Judy , who hates anything new and never fails to mention how much better things used to be. It will be the worst when the presenter asks you to perform some task — read student work, for example — in groups. The trees will slowly turn toward the center, leaves rustling, snarky comments dropping off their branches like walnuts whacking the table.

When this happens, recognize that you are surrounded, hold tight to your roots, and remember your marigolds. Your search for marigolds will yield imperfect results: Not everyone is all-marigold or all-walnut tree. There will be some in the building who just make you happy — go to them for a mood boost. Others will take care of you — encourage you to rest, slack off a little, not beat yourself up. And some who are intensely into the craft, who always have a great strategy on hand and keep up on current research — they can really help you stretch your abilities. Learn who has what marigold qualities and get what you can from each of them.

Finally, try to find some compassion for the walnut trees. Their toxicity comes from a place of real pain, and they themselves probably fell under the influence of the walnut trees who came before them. Inspiration , Working Together. I really had to look to find the right people to help me navigate through the toxic jungle!

I still remember the day in early November when I seriously thought I would walk out the door and never return. Brandy, I love that she knew intuitively that you needed it. I think a lot of first-year teachers are just afraid to ask for help, and they drown in that. There is definitely some merit in finding people with whom you can relate, and who are supportive. You do, however, have to be careful of being cliquish. This only encourages devision and resentment. We have to be careful about creating labels that categorize people as marigolds and walnuts.

I believe everyone on my staff brings something to the table. You may be labeling someone as a walnut, when it may be just a personality difference. Not everyone is easy to get along with, but we have to try to see the value in all around us. If we clique off, we potentially shut out the input and skills of others, and if you see them as a walnut rather than as someone with potential, then you have placed a permanent negative label upon them, leaving no room for redemption. My philosophy is never to form a clique. I speak to everyone and try to see the potential in all.

What can I do to prevent this in the future?

I do not create labels, and try to realize that I may have to work closely with anyone at any time. Labels do not help. It is a jungle sometimes, and negativity exists in all workplaces, but we should especially make the effort towards the negative Nellies to try to show them that life can be great if we all work together and respect one another. The next time you come across someone you have labelled as a walnut, try offering help or making a connection.

I have found that often, that is exactly what they need. Daniel, I think this is good advice for teachers who already have their feet under them, who have the confidence to recognize that a negative colleague may just need support and help. If someone had come along my first year and given me this advice, I would have done so much better.

I would have been able to identify those who seemed dead-set on discouraging me as trapped in their own negativity, rather than taking their words as gospel. It took me a loooong time to develop my own filter, and I think these labels although some may find them reductionist and insulting could make that process quicker for others. I think an effort to help teachers who have burned out or who have experienced too many soul-crushing mandates over the years is absolutely worthwhile, but in this post, my goal is to protect new teachers from burning out before they even get started.

I also agree that cliques can be just awful, further driving out teachers who are already heading into a negative spiral. I would encourage experienced teachers who are true marigolds to continue to reach out to those teachers, encourage them, and help them break out of those roles.

This is a wonderful article, Jennifer! I adore the metaphors used as marigolds are one of my favorite flowers! Going to share this article! Very well stated and I agree. As working adults, we should be able to pick those that bring out the best in us. Much like telling kids, choose your friends wisely as they can have a positive or negative effect on you. Who knows, as a new teacher, you could be the positive that changes the negative…. Daniel I think your response is spot on.

I think the teaching profession unfortunately breeds cliques and it usually starts from the top of the organization. I find the labeling of teachers to be a real issue with this article. Instead it will undermine trust and create clicks. All teachers work hard and should be appreciated for their gifts. Many teachers are willing to help.

Find Your Marigold: The One Essential Rule for New Teachers | Cult of Pedagogy

Even when they are tired and struggling with a rough year. And now there are more rough years than easy ones. This is spot on! It helps to be okay with that. I was very luck to be paired with a mentor during my student teaching and first year of teaching at the same school who as a marigold. She was always positive herself, but, more importantly, she taught me about being a team player. One morning, a teacher on our team had a sick child and called my marigold mentor. We drop everything and help each other. Now, a few years into my teaching and a team leader in another grade, I follow her example.

I have a first year teacher on my team. It took such a burden off of me. Put your phones up and stop posting how bored you are on Facebook. Trust me, they already know about teaching frustrations. I love that she taught you how to look out for other teachers. I also completely agree that hearing a complaint from someone who is usually positive is so different from hearing one from a generally negative person.

I tend to take it way more seriously when a positive person has a gripe — it seems more legitimate, somehow, not just part of their overall personality. Thanks so much for helping to build our community! I do think this applies outside of teaching, too. Everywhere, the people you surround yourself with can really impact your experiences. Making the decision to BE a marigold rather than just find one is an admirable step. I have met a few of the other teachers at this school, and they all have been so helpful and kind.

Thank you so much for your wisdom and peace provided through this post! A dear friend and teaching colleague sent me this link and the Marigold post resonated deeply.

One more step

I find that the Walnut trees are often very against trying something new. Change is a threat,and like their deep and knarled roots lying intertwined under the earth, their deep rooted fear of innovation has a impact on their students, as their natural curiosity is stunted. Detection is the secret! I loved this happy, optimistic post. Note to Retirement Dan: As any good author knows, the last chapters of your book should be your best chapters. SUCH a good reminder for any teacher as we walk back into our buildings in the days and weeks ahead!

I was a teacher for many years and am now in administration. This resonates with me and implan to use this as the opening to my back to school staff meeting. And will have little marigold seed packets or magnets to remind staff to be a marigold. I was thinking about posting something to my former students who are now educations, and this is perfect. I will be sharing this article with all my teacher friends, not just new teachers.

I strive to be a marigold in a world of walnut trees, and to nurture more marigolds! My friend sent this to me. I am getting ready to do a full year of student teaching at a pilot program for my university. I know the power of having good and bad co-workers, and honestly I am a little nervous about getting a walnut tree. I love kids and I love teaching so far , and my concern is that if I do get a walnut tree, then will I be strong enough to resist for an entire school year?

Now that I have read something that specifically calls out people for what they are and who to look for, I will most definitely be on the lookout for my own marigold. It really has inspired me to want to be a marigold- I can sadly identify with the not so positive descriptions- and being poisoned by the giant walnut tree of bureaucracy.

You put so much truth into words so well! Especially the types of walnut trees. Thank you for helping me try to name them in my head, of course. It seems that the bigger the school the higher percentage of walnut trees. I think they infect others so rapidly, they have more ability to spread in a larger staff. Sometimes there IS a bad Principal. I subbed for a number of years with the same school.

The bit about not knowing how to lead was a hard row to hoe for a Principal of a school on a military base — especially when half of the teachers either had experience as military or military spouses. It was a REALLY hard year on all of us, as teachers and parents I had two students in the school … After all those years with awesome Admin, it really left a sour taste in the mouth. Sometimes we can love our jobs, love our kids but our school district and board of ed can bring us so much b.

I have had 11 principals in 15 years and admit I have been most of these at one time or another but each and every year I work on my attitude, my teaching spirit and my relationships with fellow teachers. I liked it on a personal level as well. I do tend to make disparaging remarks about our principal who cares seems to care nothing about me or art…. I will watch my remarks this year! I love, love, love this post. We can all find ourselves being influenced by walnuts! Keep strong and find the marigolds! What a great article. We blogged about a similar topic after an experience with walnut tree.

This is such good advice for all teachers. Thanks so much for sharing. Jennifer, this is so well written and explained! I love having this article ready to share with the many new teachers I come across in my line of work. I know firsthand how many talented teachers we lose because they were among walNUTs instead of the the beautiful Marigolds. I try to offer a Marigold presence with my current undergraduate college teaching. Thanks for a great resource, Jennifer! A friend and coworker posted this on our school email and I am so glad that she did! I have run into many walnut trees thru the years and sometimes catch myself growing a few roots every now and then.

There have been many times in the past 5 years nearly 20 years in all that I have wanted to seek more enriched soil and plant myself closer to the highlands and thrive there among the heather. I drop my head every now and then and allow a few seeds to fall …but, when the sun comes out I reach for the sky, find my strength once again, talk to my fellow marigolds and all is well.

At the risk of sounding like a walnut tree, I would like to express a concern about this article, which was presented at a school PD today. We are trying to build a better staff community, especially since almost half of our staff is made up of new teachers this year. So our administration began with this article. Thank you for this. But as a new teacher, I let people like that make me feel just awful, like I was doing a terrible job, like I was naive and clueless, and most importantly, ignorant for not disliking students as much as they did.

I wrote this with the intent of helping new teachers understand that it is not THEM, the new teachers, who are deficient.

Find Your Marigold: The One Essential Rule for New Teachers

My hope was that by creating the labels, it would help the teachers who look for positivity learn to spot toxic personalities more easily, and by spotting them, be ready for what comes next: By labeling them, I hope to take some of their power away. Because they can be incredibly powerful. Still, your point is well taken, and in the two years since I wrote this, I have often thought I needed to write a follow-up piece on the different kinds of marigolds. Marigolds come in so many shades, and each type nurtures other teachers in different ways. Jesus gave this example: And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand: The strain of adversity impacts relationships.

Hard times reveal if people want to get or to give. True, lasting friendship is described in the Biblical account of David and Jonathan.


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Instead, he remained a faithful friend to David until the end of his life. Jonathan befriended, encouraged, warned, and protected David, accepting him as the one who would be the king of Israel in his place.

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When Jonathan died, David was deeply grieved. We need to rely on God and receive His grace. God works within the Christian in a mighty way, making him dead to sin and alive in Christ and enabling him to walk in the power of the Holy Spirit rather than according to fleshly desires. Suffering brings pain, but it is not an end in itself.

So then death worketh in us, but life in you. Like Paul and Silas, we need to be praising God when troubles, trials and tribulations come our way. Christ suffered beyond what we can imagine We, too, can claim such victories over sin in our lives.

Bringing Life to Your Still Lifes - Sunflowers in a Glass Vase Acrylic Painting for Beginners

Yes, we may suffer some even greatly , while here, but our time on this earth is so minute when compared to an eternity in heaven, we should rejoice and rejoice greatly. Adversity helps us to keep on our toes and highlights the fact that we must always be in prayer This is a wholesome treatise on the subject of suffering. Thank God, I read it. Now, joy and peace shall be my greatest weapons against oppression big or small.


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  7. Skip to main content. Adversity gets our attention. Adversity reminds us of our weaknesses. Adversity motivates us to cry out to God. We are to cry out to God with our voice. We can cry out to God for mercy each day. We are to cry out to God in humility. We are to cry out to God with a pure heart. Adversity motivates us to fear the Lord. Adversity strengthens our hatred for sin. Adversity is a call for self-examination. The following verses are examples of the connection between our actions and the circumstances in our lives: The sin of pride is the source of many difficulties, as the following Scriptures point out: Adversity is evidence of spiritual warfare.

    Adversity is a reminder to pray for our authorities. Adversity is a signal to reevaluate priorities. Adversity reveals if our work will last. Adversity tests our friendships. Adversity invites us to experience the power of God. Adversity prepares us to comfort others.