The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil......
"...........is for good men to do nothing." Edmund Burke
I have thought about and spoken this quote many times over the past twenty two years. It is the one I pull out of my pocket most often when other references to the man himself have done little to solve the mystery of who, in fact, was Edmund Burke. They usually nod and and go "oh yeah, I've heard that quote before." Quickly moving on past British Parliament, I begin to brag about the institution itself. But, I digress. What I wanted to say is that when I have been thinking of this quote lately, what has come to mind for me is similar famous quotes: "You gotta know when to hold 'em and know when to fold 'em, If you aren't part of the solution, you are part of the problem, and anything you can do, I can do better!" Good lord Pam, where are you going with this? Stay with me. It has to do with passion, awareness and letting go of ego.
The journey:
When I started teaching at Burke in....wait for it..wait for it....1989, (yes, I was a child prodigy and no, that joke never gets old--to me!), I had just finished graduate school and never in a million years would I have thought that I would have stayed as long as I have. I mean, you aren't supposed to find a work place you like so much the first go around, right? To start a career at such a young age wasn't really looked at as being smart and fortunate; the pressure from my peers made it feel more like settling. You were supposed to go back to school or try other schools...keep growing. In fact, if I hadn't already gotten my Master's Degree, I would have left to do so. But I already had mine, so I stayed put and considered what was next. I would commit to two years and then decide...if I made it that long.
Now, I don't say that because there was anything wrong with Burke, but because it was so different from my educational and athletic experience I really didn't think I would last my first year! I went to a public high school and my graduating class was bigger than Burke itself. I had played competitive athletics in high school and college and had never even heard of a "no- cut policy." I grew up in the suburbs of Southern Maryland where we took school buses, rode mini-bikes and played outdoors....for hours and hours. I called teachers Mr. and Mrs, and my Physical Education classes were, well, physical.
I had just finished a Master's Degree in Exercise Physiology with an emphasis in adult fitness and was just dying to get in and share my knowledge with all of the eager children. I had an office and ideas. I was going to coach! My excitement could hardly be contained. I made lessons plans and practice plans. I designed wonderfully challenging fitness classes with body mass index tests and all. I had really cool ideas for bulletin boards; Athletes Feats, where a construction paper cut out of a foot listed the name of an athlete and what he or she had accomplished that week. It was 1989 and very clever for the time, so I thought. I was also charged with starting a Health curriculum to supplement their physical education program. Again, I was young and eager and full of knowledge. Bring it on, I thought. I love this stuff and so will they! Right? Right? Not so much. In fact, not so much at all.... "What do you mean you can't come to practice today? No, you can't participate in p.e. without shoes and put a bra under that tank top, will you? You have only jogged two laps--and this gym is the size of my living room, how could you possibly be tired? I don't care if your previous Health teacher never made you sit in a desk and discuss health, that is what we are going to do!" And the list went on and on. They called me Pam. I didn't know who I was or where I was. I was in another universe and wanted to go home. Instead, I went upstairs.
The Beauty of Burke (reason #2)-man there were some cool people upstairs. Dick and Jean, the co-founders of the school and cool in their own right, had a knack for hiring. The teachers and staff were caring, smart, authentic, engaged, engaging, interested and interesting. They were...cool. I liked them. Time after time over the next ten years when someone would leave and you would think "they will never be able to replace x," another smart, clever, caring and cool teacher would take their place. They were everywhere. They made working with the little people bearable. "Maybe they will grow on me," I thought. I mean, even though Johnny inappropriately flirts with me while calling me Pam, he does dress out for p.e. everyday and seems to like it. That's positive.
It just dawned on me that I have no idea where I am headed with this piece. I started off thinking that I was going to write about the top ten things I learned at Burke. Obviously, I didn't go that route! It is turning into a cathartic process for me. I don't even know if this is what people use Blogs for--but I don't really care because it is my Blog and I can do what I want, I think. So, if you care to keep reading, please join me again. I'll be back tomorrow.
For those of you that like to follow my Spiritual Warrior Blog but are completely lost and bored with my Burke Memoir and wondering if I will ever get back to Tucson updates or daily life, the answer is..............stay tuned and see. It's the journey, not the destination, right?
The journey:
When I started teaching at Burke in....wait for it..wait for it....1989, (yes, I was a child prodigy and no, that joke never gets old--to me!), I had just finished graduate school and never in a million years would I have thought that I would have stayed as long as I have. I mean, you aren't supposed to find a work place you like so much the first go around, right? To start a career at such a young age wasn't really looked at as being smart and fortunate; the pressure from my peers made it feel more like settling. You were supposed to go back to school or try other schools...keep growing. In fact, if I hadn't already gotten my Master's Degree, I would have left to do so. But I already had mine, so I stayed put and considered what was next. I would commit to two years and then decide...if I made it that long.
Now, I don't say that because there was anything wrong with Burke, but because it was so different from my educational and athletic experience I really didn't think I would last my first year! I went to a public high school and my graduating class was bigger than Burke itself. I had played competitive athletics in high school and college and had never even heard of a "no- cut policy." I grew up in the suburbs of Southern Maryland where we took school buses, rode mini-bikes and played outdoors....for hours and hours. I called teachers Mr. and Mrs, and my Physical Education classes were, well, physical.
I had just finished a Master's Degree in Exercise Physiology with an emphasis in adult fitness and was just dying to get in and share my knowledge with all of the eager children. I had an office and ideas. I was going to coach! My excitement could hardly be contained. I made lessons plans and practice plans. I designed wonderfully challenging fitness classes with body mass index tests and all. I had really cool ideas for bulletin boards; Athletes Feats, where a construction paper cut out of a foot listed the name of an athlete and what he or she had accomplished that week. It was 1989 and very clever for the time, so I thought. I was also charged with starting a Health curriculum to supplement their physical education program. Again, I was young and eager and full of knowledge. Bring it on, I thought. I love this stuff and so will they! Right? Right? Not so much. In fact, not so much at all.... "What do you mean you can't come to practice today? No, you can't participate in p.e. without shoes and put a bra under that tank top, will you? You have only jogged two laps--and this gym is the size of my living room, how could you possibly be tired? I don't care if your previous Health teacher never made you sit in a desk and discuss health, that is what we are going to do!" And the list went on and on. They called me Pam. I didn't know who I was or where I was. I was in another universe and wanted to go home. Instead, I went upstairs.
The Beauty of Burke (reason #2)-man there were some cool people upstairs. Dick and Jean, the co-founders of the school and cool in their own right, had a knack for hiring. The teachers and staff were caring, smart, authentic, engaged, engaging, interested and interesting. They were...cool. I liked them. Time after time over the next ten years when someone would leave and you would think "they will never be able to replace x," another smart, clever, caring and cool teacher would take their place. They were everywhere. They made working with the little people bearable. "Maybe they will grow on me," I thought. I mean, even though Johnny inappropriately flirts with me while calling me Pam, he does dress out for p.e. everyday and seems to like it. That's positive.
It just dawned on me that I have no idea where I am headed with this piece. I started off thinking that I was going to write about the top ten things I learned at Burke. Obviously, I didn't go that route! It is turning into a cathartic process for me. I don't even know if this is what people use Blogs for--but I don't really care because it is my Blog and I can do what I want, I think. So, if you care to keep reading, please join me again. I'll be back tomorrow.
For those of you that like to follow my Spiritual Warrior Blog but are completely lost and bored with my Burke Memoir and wondering if I will ever get back to Tucson updates or daily life, the answer is..............stay tuned and see. It's the journey, not the destination, right?
Comments
Post a Comment