I have an object hanging from my wall at school. Many people don't even notice it or consider why it might be a strange object to see in a building with a firm foundation on dry land. It is a ship's clinometer. A relic of my past days as an officer in the Navy. For me, it serves as a methaphore, a reminder each morning as I walk into the room. Before I became a teacher, I served for seven years as an officer in the Navy. During this time I spent many nights sleeping on board the ship while docked in port as the Command Duty Officer (CDO) while the Commanding Office (CO) was at home. A sort of "in loco parentis" responsibility to literally keep things afloat. Part of this responsibility was to report to the Commanding Officer as he arrived at the ship in the morning. One of the most visible indicators of a ship's health is it's trim. If it is listing to one side or the other you know that something is amiss. I knew that the CO was carefully scrutinizing the trim of the ship as he walked down the pier. If the ship was visibly listing, I knew the CO would want to know what was going on... and it probably wouldn't be a pleasant morning conversation. I have this clinometer on my wall for two reasons. The first is as a reminder to consider, what is really important today? What really needs to get done to keep things on an even keel and what are the things that could wait? What are my true priorities for the day both at work and at home? The second is as a reassurance during stressful times... everything is level and its going to be okay. A bit of self-care to maintain a positive attitude. A reminder to stay positive and find you marigold (if you haven't read this article, I highly recommend you pause now and do so). I guess there is a third reason to have this on my wall... it is a bit of a conversation piece and can spark some interesting discussions. How do you establish your priorities for the day, week or school year? How do you remember to focus your efforts on what you have influence over and let slide the things you have no control of?
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