Embrace the Moment

I'm Brian Martin, a second grade teacher who find so much joy and fulfillment in what I do. Being in the classroom for almost 20 years, I know all about the time, effort and energy that you are continuously pouring into those you serve. That's why each week, I'm going to bring you an inspiring message to give you a little joy, and help fill your cup back up. Thank you for being here. And welcome to the teaching champions podcast. What's going on everybody, I hope this finds you striving and thriving and doing absolutely amazing. screws, you think we're already in the middle of July. It's amazing to me how fast time goes. Sometimes it feels like days become weeks, weeks become months, months become years. And as I'm getting older, I'm becoming more acutely aware of how precious time truly is. That's why this week, we're going to talk about being present, being in the moment, embracing what we have right here right now. And think about the world that we live in. Now. I might be showing my age here. And when I start talking about kids these days, but how often do you see groups of kids all sitting around, just staring at their phones. And the thing is, it's not just kids, there's so many adults that will do this as well. I'm guilty of it. Instead of being authentically engaged in our surroundings, we come distracted by meaningless distractions. And it's pretty amazing how often we can also end up wishing time away. Think about the school. How many times do you hear others, or maybe even yourself wishing in a way the week saying you can't wait to the weekend gets here, then, you know, the school year starts. And after the first few weeks, we start counting down the Thanksgiving break, then we return from that and we start counting down a winter break. And then the countdown the spring break comes. And then we start counting down to summer. Always counting down, we're always wishing time away. Another trap is we can also get caught up on focusing on things that have already happened. Living in that past, or we can get consumed about focusing on the future. And what happens is, we forget about the moment right here. And whether we're distracted by different things in our environment, wishing time away or consumed by the past or the future. What ends up happening in many cases, is we miss out on those beautiful moments that happened to us each and every single day. being present is something that I'm trying to make a priority in my life right now. And there's a ton of literature out there with tips and tricks on how to be more present. But here are three things that have helped me. And the first is the easiest, be mindful of your phone and other environmental distractions that are consuming your attention. This is a really sad story to me. I was out to eat with my wife, and we're sitting down having a nice meal in the table next to us set a father and the son who was probably about seven or eight. And he was a super well behaved young man's sitting right across from the gentlemen. And throughout the whole meal. This gentleman had his phone in his hand, his head down, just staring at the phone, the whole meal. Now, I don't know who this gentleman was. I don't know what was going on for him in that moment. So it's not right for me to judge. But what I do know is a young child ate a meal in silence while the adults stared at their phone, and my heart broke for this child. And I'm willing to bet that there was nothing on that phone that was more precious than having a conversation with the young man who sat with that moment was lost. And that's never going to return. being present with the people we're with and giving them our full attention. It's so important. And whatever's on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, those notifications that pop up, they're always going to be there. But those moments that we have with those were with, they won't be mindful of that technology. A second tip is savor the moment. You know, human nature. We always like the big moments, we're always thinking about the social events, sporting events, vacations, because they get us excited. But sometimes, it's the smallest daily moments that can be filled with so much joy. That first cup of coffee in a quiet house, that walk in nature, a simple conversation, family dinner, or maybe it's just a simple smile from someone you love. These moments, they're small, they're easily forgettable, but in some ways, the the most meaningful. And our days in the classroom, they're filled with these two, the morning greetings that we have with our students, those moments where you're with your student, and you just see it click, you see those lights come on. And that joy floods their face. How special are those moments, and they happen all the time. So cherish and savor those small moments. And the third tip is be mindful of where your attention is. Be conscious of it. Have you ever been involved in the conversation? And you notice your attention starts to sway? Have you ever been working on a project, and suddenly you realize that your mind is way off task? You know, I can't tell you how often this has happened to me. So make it a point. Be mindful, be attuned, recognize when you're not fully present, and recenter yourself. Now, these are just a few strategies that have worked for me. Think about your own, and what you do to fully be present. There are so many wonderful and amazing moments in our days. And we just want to make sure that we're present for that. Now I want to leave you with this story. It highlights the importance of valuing time. It is called Peter and the golden thread. And it's an excerpt from Robin Sharma. His book The monk Who Sold His Ferrari. Peter was a young boy who could never live in the moment. When he was in school. He dreamed of being outside plant. When he was outside playing. He dreamed of summer vacation. Peter, constantly daydreamed, never taking the time to savor the special moments that filled his days. One morning, Peter was out walking in a forest near his home. feeling tired, he decided to rest on a patch of grass and eventually dozed off. After only a few minutes of deep sleep, he heard someone calling his name. Peter pier came the shrill voice from above. As he slowly opened his eyes, he was startled to see a striking woman standing above him. She must have been over 100 years old, and her snow white hair dangled well below her shoulders, like a matted blanket of wool. In this woman's wrinkled hand was a magical little ball with a hole in the center, and out of the whole dangled a long golden thread. Peter, she said, this is the thread of your life. If you pull the thread just a bit, an hour will pass in seconds. If you pull harder, hold days will pass the minutes. And if you pull with all your mic months, even years will pass by and days. Peter was very excited about this new discovery. I like to have it if I may, he asked. The elderly woman quickly reached down and gave the ball with a magic thread to the young boy. The next day, Peter was sitting in the classroom feeling restless and bored. Suddenly, he remembered his new toy. As he pulled a little bit of the golden thread. He quickly found himself playing in the garden. Realizing the power of the magic thread, Peter soon grew tired of being the school boy and longed to be a teenager, with all the excitement that phase of life would bring. So again, he held the ball and pulled hard on the golden thread. Suddenly, he was a teenager with a very pretty girlfriend named Elise. But Peter still wasn't content. He had never learned to enjoy the moment and to explore the simple wonders of every stage of his life. Instead, he dreamed of being an adult. So again, he pulled hard on the threat Many years flew by in an instant. Now, he found that he was transformed into a middle aged adult. Elise was now his wife, and Peter was surrounded by a house full of kids. But Peter noticed something else is once jet black hair, it started to turn gray, and is wants you for mother, whom he loves so dearly had grown old and frail. Yet Peter still could not live in the moment. He had never learned to live in the now. So once again, he pulled on the magic thread and waited for the changes to appear. Peter now found that he was a 90 year old man, his thick dark hair had turned white as snow. In his beautiful young wife Elise had also grown old and had passed away a few years earlier. His wonderful children had grown up and left home to lead lives of their own. For the first time in his entire life, Peter realized they had not taken the time to embrace the wonders of living. He had never gone fishing with his kids or taking a moonlight stroll with Elise. He'd never planted a garden or read those wonderful books his mother loved to read. Instead, he hurried through life, never resting to see all that was good along the way. Peter became very sad this discovery, he decided to go out to the forest where he used to walk as a boy to clear his head and warm his spirit. As he entered the forest, he noticed that the little saplings of his childhood had grown into mighty Oaks. The forest itself had matured into a paradise of nature, he laid down on a small patch of grass, and fell into a deep slumber. After only a minute, he heard someone calling out to him. Peter, Peter, cried the voice. He looked up in astonishment to see that it was none other than the old woman who had given them the ball with a magic golden thread many years earlier. How have you enjoyed my special gift? she asked. And first, it was fun. But now I hate it. He responded bluntly. My whole life has passed before my eyes without giving me the chance to enjoy it. Sure, there would have been sad times as well as great times. But I haven't had the chance to experience either. I feel empty inside. I've missed the gift of living. You're very ungrateful, sad the a woman still I will give you one last wish. I like to go back to being a schoolboy and live my life over again. Peter quickly responded. He then returned to his deep sleep. Again, he heard someone calling his name and opened his eyes. Who could it be this time he wondered. When he opened his eyes. He was absolutely delighted to see his mother standing over his bedside. She looked young, healthy and radiant. Peter realized that the strange woman from the Force had indeed granted his wish, and he had returned to his former life. Hurry up, Peter, you sleep too much. Your dreams will make you late for school. If you don't get up right this minute, his mother admonished. Needless to say, Peter dashed out of his bed and began to live the way he had hoped. He went on to live a full life one rich with money delights, joys and triumphs. But it all started when he stopped sacrificing the present for the future, and began to live in the moment. This is a great illustration of the value of time. Live in the moments my friends, embrace it, cherish it, be fully present experience all that life has to offer. Time is one of the most precious gifts that we've been given. So take advantage of being blessed with another sunrise. Thank you so much for being part of the teaching champions community, we support, we encourage we lift each other up. And if you could leave a rating or review, I really appreciate it. It helps other educators see the podcast. And always remember, it doesn't matter if we're from rural America, to urban America, to Canada, to Spain to Bahrain. We're all on that same team. We're all on that same mission. And we're always better together. My challenge for you this week, is to do your best to be present. Consciously pay attention to where your thoughts and actions go. Are you fully in the moment? Are you disengaged with your attention going elsewhere? At the end of the day, take a second and think of at least one special moment when there was a simple conversation, that cup of coffee in a quiet house, that walk a family dinner or any other special moment that you had throughout the day. Think about that. Cherish that before we call it a day. Keep being amazing, my friends, as we go out into this week, may step into your strength may step into your shine, and let's build these champions up. Have a great week, everybody.