"The mediocre teacher tells.
The good teacher explains.
The superior teacher demonstrates.
The great teacher inspires."
-- William Arthur Ward
In one way or another, I have been teaching all my life. As the oldest of five, I was thrust into this role at an early age. As a teacher, I have evolved through the levels as shown in the quote above. I learned from watching other teachers and how they did things and how people responded to them--especially how I responded to them. You see, as a teacher, I am also a life-long student. The more I know, the more I see there is to know.
Considering all the teachers I've seen, the ones I even remember well were inspiring. Oh, they taught the curriculum, but they did it in a way that had me owning it, immersing myself in it, and loving it. My aim was to inspire others as they inspired me.
What I learned was that inspiration is not a tool in a tool belt, like explaining, telling or demonstrating. It is more a gift that is given to others because you are inspired. I guess it takes one to know one. . .
I don't try to inspire people. I seek inspiration every day in every way that I can. I seek to be inspired. I think it comes from delight and wonder. I might see it in a scene in a movie, a line in a song, a guitar solo, words on a page, looking at nature, the joy of a photograph, or a hundred other ways. I seek it and am open to it and it just comes right in and I am delighted, and in awe of how that happened.
If I could teach anything well, I would love to teach people to be open to and even to seek out daily inspiration. It is life-transforming once you get hold of it. Inspiration is so much fun!
Close your eyes. Think of someone you totally love. Picture them in your mind. See their smiling face. See your love reflected back at you. Let that thought pour over you like a pitcher of it being poured over your head. You are immersed in it. Enjoy it for a few moments. You've just been inspired!
The next half hour will be AWESOME!!!
Inspire Yourself! You Know You Want To!
Spread Some Joy Today--Feel The Joy In Your Love To Others Being Reflected Back To You!
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