I have been reminiscing about my childhood and upbringing. Sigh…the past couple of weeks have been historical or memorable for many reasons. We are still in a global pandemic which has made it difficult sometimes for me to stay positive. What broke the straw on the camel’s back was the day that the Supreme Court Judge Ruth Bader Ginsburg passed away. As you know, I don’t include political subjects in my blog, so I hope that you can see my thoughts as what they are meant to be—a reflection on what it means to be infamous.
FIND A CONNECTION IN OTHERS EVEN IF IT SEEMS LIKE YOU ARE POLAR OPPOSITES
Many people, including myself, have referred to Ginsburg as the Notorious RBG; a nod towards the posthumous B.I.G. I heard a recorded interview where Ginsburg explains her connection to the famous rapper as fitting because of their common ground of being raised in Brooklyn. I appreciate her modeling how we can all get along by making human connections through common ground. It has not escaped me that Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s work, along with her peers, impacted my life and many others. I am thankful for her contribution and persistence to walk the path of a higher ground while fighting for gender equality.
ENCOURAGE OTHERS BECAUSE YOU NEVER KNOW WHAT THEY NEED TO HEAR RIGHT NOW
I recently shared some of my school experiences as a kid in a recent recording of the Teacher’s Pep Rally podcast. Fred, Leticia, Pete, and I started sharing who were influential educators for us growing up. I instantly thought of Coach Walsh. He was one of our middle school, physical education teachers. We lovingly called him Popeye because he was a gymnast with insane muscles that made him look like the famous cartoon sailor. This is not a hyperbole!
Anyways, I was an athletic kid and sports were a great outlet for my anxiety and social skills. I played team and independent sports. Every year, we had the Presidential Physical Fitness Test. I can remember the day we had to run a mile as part of the exam, and Coach Walsh ran through the required times to pass that section of the test. As a sign of the times, we were told that the boys had something like 6.5 minutes and the girls had 11 minutes. I raised my hand and asked why the girls had more time. That did not seem right in my little mind; I knew that I could run as fast as the boys. True to Walsh, he challenged me to set whatever goal I wanted for the 1-mile run. By the way, he said this with a smirk on his face because he KNEW I would take this challenge seriously. Lo and behold, I did end up crossing that finish line at 6 minutes. He always encouraged me to set goals and push myself, and I still do that today.
STEP OUT OF YOUR COMFORT ZONE AND DISCOVER WHAT LIFE OFFERS AND BEYOND
The other woman who indirectly had a hand in shaping the woman that I am today is Christa McAuliffe. She was the teacher who was selected to go into space with the astronauts of the Challenger Space Shuttle. One of my passions as a child, and still is today, is Science. Hello STEM/STEAM! Where were you when I was a child?
My dad is a retired airline pilot. Even though I know he was hoping I would follow in his footsteps, I had my sight set on the stars—I wanted to be an astronaut. I would sit out at night in our front yard and look at the stars for hours. My grandparents lived in Orlando, so I was lucky enough to watch in wonder from their backyard as the Space Shuttle took off into space. Plus, there was this movie called Space Camp that made it seem very exciting to be a space aviator.
I stayed home from school on January 28, 1986 to watch the Challenger’s ascent into outer space. There was so much excitement built around the fact that a teacher was going and that she would provide lessons from the Shuttle. My heart broke as I watched the rocket explode. In those few minutes, I knew that I couldn’t be an astronaut, not if it meant that this scenario could happen to me. Looking back, it seems ironic that I ended up becoming a teacher, and I hope that Christa would be proud of the fact that I love discovering new things and I push myself outside of my comfort zone to be and do better.
If you have not seen it already, Netflix released a 4-part docuseries about the Challenger and what caused the shuttle to explode. As I watched the series, I found myself feeling all of the heartache again over the loss of the brave crew members, but I left feeling proud that a teacher had such an impact on so many people even if she did not complete her perceived mission.
This kind of inspiration and gumption that RBG, Coach Walsh, and Christa McAuliffe exuded are the epitome of educators and mentors. I think that there will be boys and girls from 2020 who will look back and identify the people in their life who played such a notorious role in their lives that it shaped the very foundation of what they became in the future. Educators have a huge role to play right now and it can feel unfair or overwhelming, but don’t give up. You are planting the seed into the future for tomorrow.
See You Real Soon,
Erin
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