L-I-F-E

The adventure of life is to learn...

There is so much to be learned any given day, and it's not always learned from a textbook. As our principal pointed out this morning at the faculty meeting, our goal as teachers should be to first help the students learn valuable life lessons, such as how to deal with bullying issues, how to manage time for projects, etc. Then, the "book learning" will come. After all, as my dad always likes to remind me, "They won't care how much you know until they know how much you care."

The goal of life is to grow...

Think about it: children are always eager to see how much they have grown over a given time. Take my family, for example - we had a basketball pole at Grandma's house that we always measured ourselves on with sharpies and a kleenex box. But I think it's more than about (literally) growing taller. It's about growing in our abilities to learn new things, empathize with others, and participate in prayer.

The nature of life is to change...

Did you ever hear the phrase about how "the more things change, the more they stay the same"? No matter how we might fight it, change is inevitable. And, speaking as one who does not usually embrace change, it's important to recognize change as the potential for good. Without change, we stay safe. And while safe feels good, we're called to challenge ourselves and mix things up a bit.

The challenge of life is to overcome...

And what are we overcoming? Well, heck, there are challenges every day. But in order to overcome these challenges that come our way, we need to keep everything in perspective. It's not the end of the world. And we are not alone. (Remember that.)

The essence of life is to care...

There's really no point in living if you aren't doing it with and/or for others. We learn in communities. We pray in communities. Caring makes life more worth living.

The secret of life is to dare...
Risk failure - it's okay to make mistakes. That's a secret some people don't learn for a long time. (I'm personally trying to get my students to learn this very secret now. We'll see how it goes...)

The beauty of life is to give...
For it is in giving that we receive...

The joy of life is to love.

Some of my friends like the term "heart explosion" - and I think that's the perfect image for how much joy can be felt when we model our love after how Jesus loves us. Maybe the Beatles were right - "All you need is love..."

Now, let's add up all the pieces of this quote -->

“The adventure of life is to learn. The goal of life is to grow. The nature of life is to change. The challenge of life is to overcome. The essence of life is to care. The secret of life is to dare. The beauty of life is to give. The joy of life is to love!”

-William Arthur Ward

Have a blessed evening!