To the brave and the gracious

First off, I am sorry I skipped last week. I am realizing how important it is for me to keep up with this blog and the positivity associated with it. Last week, I was unable and unwilling to see beauty in most things, and my generally crabby mood perpetuated the problem. There has been a lot going on in my life lately, and I am not really handling it all very well. I know that negative thoughts lead us to negative events, and I am a firm believer that we have the power to transform our outlook and attract positive things to us. However, this takes effort, which most of us simply do not feel we have the energy or patience to exert. So this morning, I started thinking back on all the people I encountered over the week, even if it was only for a moment. I was surprised to see that I had actually passed a lot of beauty right on by, without so much as a 'hello'.

As most of you are aware, I teach at a school. This is a high school to be more specific, and it is filled with... we will call them "interesting" people. Over the past week, we had a bomb threat, and a riot. Our dean was assaulted by several students and there was mass pandemonium for almost an hour and a half. Despite all of this, some people managed to pick up the pieces and put a smile on their face. So this is to several of those people, merged into one letter.

Dear Risk-Taking, Level-Headed, Beautiful employee of the school,

While this letter is about several of you, believe me when I say, you are each a unique form of beauty. I need to start by thanking you for your reassurance, kindness, generosity, and wisdom after what became an amazingly trying, and traumatic event. Your smiles made the day easier, and your abundant positivity about the days to come helped me to find some good in a seemingly hopeless situation. The camaraderie and laughs we shared after the trauma of the day made your beauty shine through with abundance. Your smile dispelled my trepidation about the unknown of tomorrow. How special that kind of beauty is!

Thank you, also, for easing some of my pain and burden with your generosity. I know how risky it can be to give assistance to someone when you work in a school, and your exuberant kindness is truly appreciated. The fact that you are concerned for the well-being of someone who you see rarely, displays a true inner beauty and a quality I wish I could practice more. So thank you for that.

Lastly, to those of you who didn't say a word, just shared your smile. That was truly beautiful. The effects of a smile are countless, and generally positive. Therefore, thank you, to all of you beautiful, risk-taking, hard-working, brave, generous individuals who have the gumption and verve to work in an imperfect place and strive to make it better.

--Me