Piute County School District,

Happy Thanksgiving! 

I’m grateful to work with such great people and I’m grateful for such meaningful work. From June 2013 to June 2015 the payscale.com website digitally promoted a nationwide survey about job satisfaction and meaning. They received over 2.7 million responses to the survey. They wanted to know what jobs were the most meaningful. Nearly every job in the top 10 was connected to the education and healthcare industries. English teachers, kindergarten teachers, and educational administrators all made the top ten. Some of the nation’s highest paying occupations were among the lowest in meaningfulness. Some even reported that they felt their job was making the world worse.

Once I had a teacher that every day in class he would try to come up with some reason why it was the most meaningful and important day of the year. With a great big smile he would say things like, “this is the last Tuesday we’ll be in classes this month, we should really appreciate how incredible that is.” or something to the effect of, “this is the last October 11th where you’ll get to come to my class, it’s a special day.”  Albert Einstein said, “There are only two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle.” The second way to live simply adds meaning, gratitude, and joy.

I’m grateful to be able to teach. It reinforces every day what a miracle every child is. Each one is so unique, so special, and so full of potential. Teaching is not easy, but that’s part of why it’s so meaningful and fulfilling. It’s a beautiful miracle everytime that struggling student turns in an assignment, it’s a miracle every time that shy student steps out of their comfort zone, and it’s a miracle every time a student gets excited about what they’re learning.

Have a miraculous and grateful week 15, 

Koby