When you teach in an elementary school, you tend to overhear a lot of conversations in the teacher’s lounge. Some topics stick out more than others, but there’s definitely one that I heard talked about more than any other. It didn’t seem to matter how old or young the teachers were, their genders, ethnicities, religions, or even how long they’d been teaching. For some reason, the topic of having time-off and vacation didn’t discriminate. In fact, I’ve heard that topic discussed by teachers way more often than by students.
It was the same thing every school year, and often every week, or sometimes every day. Many teachers would count down the number of days left in the school year, the number of days left until Friday when the work week would be over, the number of Mondays left in the year (Mondays seemed to be most teacher’s least-favorite day of the week), or the number of days left until the next three-day weekend or holiday break. Some teachers made a habit of announcing the number of days as if it was part of their job. Many teachers had calendars in their classrooms with giant X marks through days gone by as if it was some sort of accomplishment that they had survived that day.
As I sat in the lounge one morning on my lunch period, the usual chatter began at a nearby table. One teacher sighed and complained about how she couldn’t wait until Friday. She was almost instantly interrupted by another teacher who assured her not to worry because there were only seventeen more school days until spring break. Still another chimed in about how many days were left until June 26th—the last day of school. The conversation was getting exhausting—I had heard it many times before. But then something changed. Another teacher at a different table, just having finished a bite of her sandwich, looked up from the book she was reading, looked at the table of teachers having the conversation and said, “You know, you really shouldn’t wish your life away." Her words caught my attention immediately. I looked up from what I was doing and was eager to hear her explanation. She went on to tell the teachers her thoughts about how quickly time goes by and how someday they might end up wishing for those days back. She explained how time is precious and we should all be grateful for every day we’re given. The other teachers gave her the courteous responses, “Oh, I didn’t mean it like that,” “I was only kidding,” “I agree, but it’s just been a long year…”
The teachers quickly began new conversations, and the woman went back to reading her book—totally unaware that, in that instant, she had greatly impacted someone’s perspective. I’m sure she thought her unsolicited advice didn’t mean very much to those other teachers, but she had unknowingly taught me one of the greatest lessons I ever learned as a teacher. What she said resonated with me so much that I couldn’t stop thinking about it. I didn’t want to ever be guilty of rushing through my own life, constantly waiting for the next best thing, and, as a result, watching life pass me by. That teacher had no idea that her words were heard loud and clear by someone in the room—maybe just not any of the people she directed them to. That day I overheard the best advice I never received about realizing that each and every day is a gift and making sure not to wish my life away.
Don’t get me wrong, I love having leisure time where agendas and deadlines don’t exist. And I absolutely love being on vacation, especially if it involves traveling to a new place. I try to make the most of my time, embark on as many new adventures as possible, and explore as many new places as I can find. I think vacations are essential because we all need time to de-stress and take time for ourselves and our family and friends. It’s important to have those times to look forward to, enjoy every moment of, and then go back to work and our other responsibilities renewed, refreshed, and recharged. It’s necessary for our health!
I’ve never been one to sit around crossing days off calendars or counting down the number of months, weeks, or days waiting for those adventures and vacations. There’s nothing enticing to me about marking off every day on a calendar as if I just got another day over with or as if that day didn’t matter—as if it was any less important or special than any other day I’ve been blessed to experience. It’s not always easy and some days are definitely harder than others, but I do my best to appreciate each day for what it is—a gift. Every day presents me with a new opportunity to learn something new, create something new, or to meet new people. Each day also gives me more time to spend with the important people who are already in my life and not only do I want those times to be in great quantity, but I want the best quality out of them as well.
It’s crucial to have the right perspective when it comes to time. Instead of trying to get through every work day as quickly as possible, we should be grateful for the jobs we have and the opportunities that they give us. And if someone isn’t satisfied with their place of employment, that person should do everything possible to find a better job where they can find happiness doing something they love. Instead of being unhappy about having to work, people should be grateful that they are healthy enough to go to work every day. And, I cannot stress enough that if you’re a teacher, you should be thankful that you have the chance to influence people's live everyday, rather than count down the days until you don’t.
When she retired from her career as an elementary school teacher, I had the opportunity to tell that woman what a valuable lesson she had inadvertently taught me over twenty years before. Of course, she didn’t remember the exact conversation, but she couldn’t believe that her words meant so much to me and was humbled that they had made such an impact on me.
When we’re young, many of us tend to wish we were older, and when we’re older, we wish we could we young again. We need to stop checking days off our life calendars, knowing we can never get them back. We just have to slow down, enjoy the ride on our journey through life, and stop wishing our lives away.