Back to School...instead of Back to Paris

Well, how I wish I was headed back to Paris, but, unfortunately, I am not. Instead, I am headed back to the air conditioning that keeps breaking, less people doing more work, lesson-planning, grading, and making snap decisions, the meeting of new students, the reaquainting with old students, and all the rest that goes along with that time known as Back to School. However, to cope, in my head I have found myself frequently drifting back to that place that always seems magical and rose-colored (even in the dead of winter, which was when I visited it last)...Paris. Yes, Paris has imperfections, but they always seem overshadowed by something amazing. The city's smoke and smog are blotted out by the Chartres cathedral and village...the mind-numbing cold and wind are traded for glasses of wine and cups of French roast coffee in a warm, snug cafe...the colors of gypsies and other members of the city's poor extinguished by the warm, welcoming light inside of Notre Dame or the Louvre. It is remembering this- that the farther I get away from my trip, the more I realize the true lessons learned are ones that can apply to life wherever I am. So, right now, in order to help get through what I know will be a whirlwind couple of weeks, are the thoughts I will try to have to overshadow the possible negative thinking that can overwhelm me at the start of the school year. To the air conditioning that doesn't work, I think of the water weight I am losing by sweating it out in my classroom...to the budget cuts and the loss of valuable teachers and staff, I remember that I am grateful for my job and that there might be bigger and better opportunities found in trimming budgets, and maybe it'll give me a chance to learn something new!...to the lesson-planning, grading, and decision-making, I know that the more I do it, the easier, better organized, and more efficient I become...to the new students, I know that there will be wonderful young people who I can help, encourage, and show something new and exciting in the world...to my old students, I am excited to continue on our journey together, and hope we can all grow like we did last year.