When I first arrived in Newark, I decided to answer that call from that great American philosopher, Chris Rock, who said "Why is the most violent street in every city is named for the man that stood for non-violence?"
Newark had so many strong neighborhoods but I sought out one that was in struggle and found it on Martin Luther King Boulevard. It looked spectacularly troublesome to me. My eyes saw abandoned homes being used for drugs. My eyes saw violence. My eyes saw graffiti. But the first person I met, the tenant leader in high-rise projects that I would eventually move into, Miss Jones, she said to me, "Tell me again what you see. Describe what you see around you." And I described what I saw.
And she looked at me and she said, "Boy, if that's all you see, you can never help me." And I go, "What do you mean?" And she goes, "You need to understand something, that the world you see outside of you is a reflection of what you have inside of you. And, if you see only problems and darkness and despair, that's all there's ever gonna be. But, if you're one of those stubborn people who every time you open your eyes, you see hope, opportunity, possibility, love – even the face of God – then you can help me make a change." And I remember, after she said that, looking at her, scratching my head, and thinking to myself – OK, grasshopper, thus endeth the lesson.
I find the words of the tenant leader to be a fitting analogy used by Lucy Calkins to describe what we must do today in education...
Then, last Sunday, I finished the book The Book Thief. If you haven't read it, you should. It is a historical fiction story set during World War 2, and you can't help but fall in love with the characters. Without including any spoilers you should know the book is depressing at points. (It is a World War 2 story after all.) Horrible things happened. It is fiction, yes, but horrible things really did happen. I found myself asking, "Where is the light in this story? Where is the hope?"
After some pondering, I found my answer. The hope is in the characters. People who were good, truly good, despite their quirks and their humanness. Yes, they are made up characters, but the book made them very real to me. Mama sticks with her convictions. Ruby sees good in a world that is dark. Papa reacts with kindness-as an impulse. The neighbors love one another and stick together. They form friendships and they support one another, meeting others needs when they cannot meet their own. The hope in the story is the people.
The other place Leisel (the main character) finds hope is in the books she reads. She also shares the stories, her love of reading, and hope with those around her. How can a teacher not like that? I see children find hope in their reading all the time.
I then think of our school, which is like so many schools around the country. There are times when it is tough to see hope in the circumstances. Now a disclaimer, I will not venture to say that events at schools are as horrific as events in the book. It is not a perfect analogy. However, sometimes being a teacher does feel like an uphill battle. There are so many circumstances working against the things you know to be good and true. When it all seems a bit too much, I do find hope. The hope I see in my school can be found in the people. People who work tirelessly to improve student's lives. People who love and support one another when the chips are down. We have teachers who are committed to learning more, and who are eager to learn more. Teachers who, just like Papa in The Book Thief, commit acts of kindness as if it were a reflex. They put in more time then their students will ever know. The people are my source of hope. If anyone can change our school or education for the better -it is the people.
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