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Showing posts from May 21, 2017

Pushing beyond requirements.

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More. More. More. Sometimes that word "more" means something very good. I am very proud to say that many of my students this year really got the full good out of the meaning of more. Let me explain... I decided that even though in late spring, I likely could have gone into a retirement holding pattern this year and not pushed my students to do a second major advertising design presentation, I decided not to do that. Instead, I decided not to take the easy road at the end of my teaching career, but I decided "let's see if we can push a bit and do even  more! " I had given myself some options in my plans, just in case I felt that they were getting senioritis too badly and were "done", so to speak. I was very happy that not only were most of my students still willing to work hard, but there were also a whole lot of my upper level students who were (gasp!) voluntarily coming to me and asking if they could do a solo presentation that they were NOT r

How to cope.

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The ability to cope is learned. It is an understanding of the tricks to picking yourself up time and time again and learning to continue the fight. My niece, Stephanie with her brain surgeon, 2017. Me with my brothers, spring 2016. Scott passed away a few months later. So many people who I love endlessly, including my own nuclear family , have had to find ways to cope and continue to fight during this past year. In my own family, we have coped within the past 12 months with subjects such as an unexpected death (my precious younger brother Scott), major health challenges, and some other types of major life changes. Stephanie teaching yoga before her brain stem surgery. Photo credit: Ashley Gongora Some have been coping with real financial challenges as a result of the need for end of life coronary care, an emergency exploratory brain stem surgery and rehabilitation afterwards, and that particular person (my sweet niece Stephanie) has also been dealing with the loss of