Good Friday morning. We’re piloting our first discussion thread, a new feature to invite all readers into a conversation.
Ready or not, a fall like no other is here. After the triage and uncertainty of spring and summer, it presents opportunities to make some changes and set our intentions. What is one thing you want to experiment with this fall — personally and/or professionally? (A new practice in your virtual classroom, self-care strategy or spiritual practice, anti-racism or social justice work, changing up meetings or office hours, cocktail recipe or new hobby, etc)
For the class I am teaching, I am inviting some of my friends and colleagues to record conversations with me about the week's topic - this is something that I am excited about, but also nervous about! I think it will be great, though, and I am excited to bring more experiences and perspectives into the classroom!
My body and mind thrive on routines so all this uncertainty had me never feeling settled. Now that I know that I'll be working from home through January I'm looking to build a routine that includes time for movement, work, and quiet reflection and reading and less time in front of a screen. While it's easier to do this when it's nice outside to go for a walk or run I know building this now will help me as we get into winter and there are fewer daylight hours for outside time. Also, looking to use weekends for road trips to areas that I normally wouldn't see as vacation destinations just to get a change of scenery.
I am striving to be more creative in my student engagement planning--not simply doing the things that have always been done, but using this time & all of these circumstances to be creative, try new things, and try to be innovative. If we are adjusting things for a new environment anyway why not take it a step further and be really intentional about what we're doing? But at the same time giving myself & my team grace if all doesn't go as planned or we don't accomplish as much as we thought we would. Also, personally trying to settle into a weekday routine that includes time away from my desk! (phone meetings instead of zoom so I can move around while I talk, lunch breaks for exercise, etc.).
It's funny, Ben...I feel like my whole world is an experiment right now. All of the programming we are doing at The Clarice is virtual and it's new territory for me. Figuring out how to eat right, not drink too much, keep up the physical exercising, stay with my wee bit of Spanish instruction, read my big pile of anti-racism books...this is a time like no other. I can't name the one thing as it all feels like an adventure/experiment. I will say that the thing that is top of mind right now is figuring out how to maintain optimism while also being mindful of the risks that lie ahead with the return-to-work planning. I was thinking about creating a hand signal or some kind of movement to indicate to people I'm talking to that I'm smiling. With our faces covered, communication is challenging. So maybe that's my experiment...creating a way to indicate to others that I'm smiling. I'll let you know how it goes.
My self-care strategy as of yesterday is to delete all of my social media apps off my phone. I spend too much time engulfed in the news and daily happenings, that I become defeated and don't feel like there's a way out. For me, it's a balance of staying in the know but not getting sucked in. So I started last night by doing something nice for my wife and started painting. These are things, believe it or not, that I have lost motivation to do when I am on my phone all the time. I already feel better!
Less intensity with work. More enjoying life. Giving the Fall transition my intimate attention. Playing more with our new Kitten! Going on mid-day runs...
At work we're hoping to have the theme of our retreat be "Moving from Surviving to Thriving." Knowing that we'll likely be mostly virtual for the next 9+ months we want to think (individually, in small groups, and all together) about how we can help ourselves thrive in a work from home world. I already have a few small ideas like ending zoom calls 5-10 minutes early, figuring out a rotation to check in with folks in the office who I don't usually see, and moving a few new projects forward and I'd love to hear anyone else's suggestions too!
I want to work on integrating how the mind/body dichotomy inherent in a lot of Western thinking contributes to racism into my classes. While this separation can help us step back and see things from a distanced perspective, it also promotes the objectification of other. This could be other ethnics, but also non-human nature. The mind/body dichotomy alone has led to a lot of exploitation of other, often in the name of science. I guess I would like students to be able to appreciate this. But this is a difficult thing to point out because "objective" thinking has led to many advances. So learning how to balance different ways of knowing and using them as checks and balances against harmful othering is the ultimate goal.
More namaste, less negativity. But please check back after November 3
For the class I am teaching, I am inviting some of my friends and colleagues to record conversations with me about the week's topic - this is something that I am excited about, but also nervous about! I think it will be great, though, and I am excited to bring more experiences and perspectives into the classroom!
My body and mind thrive on routines so all this uncertainty had me never feeling settled. Now that I know that I'll be working from home through January I'm looking to build a routine that includes time for movement, work, and quiet reflection and reading and less time in front of a screen. While it's easier to do this when it's nice outside to go for a walk or run I know building this now will help me as we get into winter and there are fewer daylight hours for outside time. Also, looking to use weekends for road trips to areas that I normally wouldn't see as vacation destinations just to get a change of scenery.
I am striving to be more creative in my student engagement planning--not simply doing the things that have always been done, but using this time & all of these circumstances to be creative, try new things, and try to be innovative. If we are adjusting things for a new environment anyway why not take it a step further and be really intentional about what we're doing? But at the same time giving myself & my team grace if all doesn't go as planned or we don't accomplish as much as we thought we would. Also, personally trying to settle into a weekday routine that includes time away from my desk! (phone meetings instead of zoom so I can move around while I talk, lunch breaks for exercise, etc.).
It's funny, Ben...I feel like my whole world is an experiment right now. All of the programming we are doing at The Clarice is virtual and it's new territory for me. Figuring out how to eat right, not drink too much, keep up the physical exercising, stay with my wee bit of Spanish instruction, read my big pile of anti-racism books...this is a time like no other. I can't name the one thing as it all feels like an adventure/experiment. I will say that the thing that is top of mind right now is figuring out how to maintain optimism while also being mindful of the risks that lie ahead with the return-to-work planning. I was thinking about creating a hand signal or some kind of movement to indicate to people I'm talking to that I'm smiling. With our faces covered, communication is challenging. So maybe that's my experiment...creating a way to indicate to others that I'm smiling. I'll let you know how it goes.
My self-care strategy as of yesterday is to delete all of my social media apps off my phone. I spend too much time engulfed in the news and daily happenings, that I become defeated and don't feel like there's a way out. For me, it's a balance of staying in the know but not getting sucked in. So I started last night by doing something nice for my wife and started painting. These are things, believe it or not, that I have lost motivation to do when I am on my phone all the time. I already feel better!
Less intensity with work. More enjoying life. Giving the Fall transition my intimate attention. Playing more with our new Kitten! Going on mid-day runs...
At work we're hoping to have the theme of our retreat be "Moving from Surviving to Thriving." Knowing that we'll likely be mostly virtual for the next 9+ months we want to think (individually, in small groups, and all together) about how we can help ourselves thrive in a work from home world. I already have a few small ideas like ending zoom calls 5-10 minutes early, figuring out a rotation to check in with folks in the office who I don't usually see, and moving a few new projects forward and I'd love to hear anyone else's suggestions too!
I want to work on integrating how the mind/body dichotomy inherent in a lot of Western thinking contributes to racism into my classes. While this separation can help us step back and see things from a distanced perspective, it also promotes the objectification of other. This could be other ethnics, but also non-human nature. The mind/body dichotomy alone has led to a lot of exploitation of other, often in the name of science. I guess I would like students to be able to appreciate this. But this is a difficult thing to point out because "objective" thinking has led to many advances. So learning how to balance different ways of knowing and using them as checks and balances against harmful othering is the ultimate goal.