This week is American Education Week (November 16-20), and we thought we’d use this post to share some important teachings we have learned through a variety of sources. These sources qualify as teachers, though not each one is what one would consider a conventional view of a teacher. Our adventures this week acted as both reminders and reinforcements of simple and complex lessons, as well as memories of the teachers who brought these lessons to light for us.
“Teaching should be such that what is offered is perceived as a valuable gift and not as a hard duty.” –Albert Einstein
Nature, Life’s Teacher
Several of our adventures this week involved nature, which is one of my personal favorite teachers. Nature teaches us 24/7/365 without any compensation save for the gratification of getting through to her students. With sunrise at 7:12 AM and sunset at 5:00 PM, we don’t have as much daylight to view nature’s lessons, but one of the neat things about nature is it does not necessarily need the light to teach.
In the night sky, we have the moon, planets, and stars, as well as the clouds to help us find our way directionally. The myths and legends behind the constellations of the stars offer additional teachings to augment what nature shows us. The new moon (which is not visible to the naked eye) started off our week and each day has grown into a crescent shape. This weekend will mark the first quarter moon, visible as a sliver of light on the right side of the moon’s face. By the end of the month, the moon will be at its full stage, where the entire face appears lit.
The changes in the moon’s appearance occur because of the moon’s position relative to the earth. It takes approximately 29.5 days to go through all of the moon’s eight phases: new moon, waxing crescent, first quarter, waxing gibbous, full moon, waning gibbous, last quarter, and waning crescent. The term waxing indicates the lit portion of the moon is growing. Waning indicates the lit portion is shrinking. Gibbous refers to when more than half of the moon’s face is visible, and crescent refers to when less than half of the moon’s face is visible.
In addition to the moon, I had a special education lesson while running this past Sunday morning. It was very early, about 15 minutes before sunrise, so the skies were still dim. At one point I looked up and saw a streak of light. The light moved from west to east in the sky, then fizzled and faded. What I saw was a meteor, also known as a shooting star. Meteors occur when bits of debris in the atmosphere are vaporized. A portion of meteors or shooting stars seen are predictable, recurring year after year around the same date. These events are referred to as meteor showers and happen when the earth passes through the orbit of a bygone comet. What I saw was most likely a remnant of the Leonid meteor shower, which usually occurs around November 16th. Another well-known meteor shower is the Perseid meteor shower, which occurs in early August each year.
Yet another lesson came to us through chrysanthemums we had planted back in August. When we planted these flowers, they sported yellow blooms. After the plants bloomed, I cut the dead heads off and transplanted the plants with the hope of getting a few more months of growth. The plants did grow and even bloomed. However, the blooms were orange and rust colored.
This made me wonder what was going on with the plants. I realized that the plants were grown in a nursery in late spring and early summer when the days were much longer and temperatures were warmer. My dead heading and transplanting happened at the end of summer, so any growth occurred in cooler temperatures under less daylight. The end result was a pigment change in the blooms, which allowed more orange and red pigments to dominate the plant structure. So, we now have some very nice orange and rust colored chrysanthemums in our landscape beds to brighten our days.
“The most exciting happiness is the happiness generated by forces beyond your control.” –Ogden Nash
Change, the Teacher Within Nature
The above examples of nature’s teachings occur because of changes. Change is one aspect of life that is inevitable, and also a constant teacher. Often change is viewed in a negative light and not embraced for the wealth of knowledge it tries to convey. While not all changes are natural, most occur over time, which I think is nature’s way of trying to help us better accept what is to come.
Change is also a challenger of character and resolve, two factors that play a part in how teachers present lessons to us and how we in turn receive these lessons. Character and resolve are not visible aspects or assets, but rather invisible forces that can be seen through action and interaction. Our character and resolve often help define who we are to others.
Character and resolve create energy, which in turn stirs creativity and imagination. This movement within fosters the motion needed to learn and accept new notions and ideas. Whether these forces work for or against each other often depends on circumstances and environments. The mystery of these forces is they don’t need much room to work, only a hint or a spark is required to get things moving.
“Life begets life. Energy creates energy. It is by spending oneself that one becomes rich.” –Sarah Bernhardt
Faith, the Teacher in and Through Change
A number of our lessons this week came through the teaching of readings. These readings came from a variety of newspaper articles, scripture passages, short stories, textbook passages, and reflections written by others. A common theme among these readings was that of faith of varying origins.
One article written by a local teacher talked about how his faith in his students is helping to foster a learning environment through the challenging circumstances of online education. Another article illustrated the character and resolve of communities brought about by faith in each other and in God’s guidance to face challenges of change. One reading spoke about thanks and praise even when the outcomes are not what was expected and how faith can help accept such outcomes while teaching valuable life lessons. One psalm from the Bible illustrated glory in and through faith through times of change.
“We will find grace to help us when we need it.” –Hebrews 4:16
Love, the Teacher in and of Moments
Yet another reading spoke about love and how it can take moments of varying circumstances and turn them into valuable life lessons. The reading was about two boys who met in eighth grade. The boys names were Max and Larry. Larry was new to town, so Max encouraged him to try out for the football team. Larry did so and promptly took Max’s spot on the team, winning the position fair and square. Max tried to be happy for Larry, but admitted it was hard. A few weeks into the season, Larry got hurt in an accident, and Max then got to play. Max tried to feel sorry for Larry, but again, this was hard. However, Max and Larry did their best to remain friends and in turn learned a deep lesson regarding love for others.
This reading brought back a fond memory and life lesson for me, one that I have carried for almost forty years now. The scene was second grade, and the teacher asked the class to be creative when coloring a hat and set of mittens that would be on display in our classroom over the winter months. There would also be a prize for the best effort. I thought I put a good deal of effort into my hat and mittens, trying to replicate a favorite team emblem with appropriately matching colors. The boy who sat in front of me in class and with whom I was friends diligently colored away long after I was done. He drew a simple zigzag pattern on his hat and mittens and used every color crayon in the box to fill in the zigzag pattern.
The teacher viewed each student’s work, taking her time to evaluate every hat and mitten. Many students did what I did to replicate a known design or emblem. Only the boy in front of me made up his own design. The teacher declared him the winner of the contest, and rightly so. I remember sitting there listening to the teacher explain why she chose the boy’s work as the winner—he had followed the instructions in a neat and creative manner.
Admittedly, I was disappointed in myself, yet I was happy for my friend. From that day forward, every time I was given an assignment that involved creativity, I thought back to that day in second grade. It was admittedly a hard lesson for a seven-year-old to learn, but it was a good lesson that helped me build character and resolve, which as the years went by helped me grow in faith and love. The neat part of this story is the boy went on to be a teacher by profession and has helped shape the minds of many students in his career now. I could not be happier for him or more thankful to him for the lesson he taught me all those years ago.
“You want to plumb the depths of your love for someone? How do you feel when that person succeeds?” –From Max Lucado’s A Love Worth Living and Grace for the Moment Volume II
Thanks and Grace, the Teachers Who Tie It All Together
November is one of those months in our household that is bittersweet. We have a number of anniversaries of life moments in the month, some of which are harder than others to accept. There are two anniversaries, however, that we truly celebrate, for they mark the beginning of two teaching careers that have left an indelible mark on life in a short time.
The anniversaries are the adoptions of Sadie and Leo, who just happen to be two of my greatest teachers in life. Like the dogs before them, they have managed to wrap their paws around my heart and mind, resulting in the stretching of my perspective, imagination, creativity, character, resolve, and love. This week we celebrate Leo’s fourth year with us, and on the 29th, we celebrate Sadie’s twelve years of influence in my life.
What have I learned from these two teachers? The lessons are more than I can count, but a few highlights include:
- It never, ever hurts to try, and trying more than once does not mean you have failed.
- Character comes in every shape and size imaginable and is a perpetual building project with no end.
- The art of love is to live your life to the fullest each day.
- The science of life is really art in the disguise of grace.
- Love carries with it many emotions, all of which sharpen and hone that love to a deeper depth.
- If you are thankful for what you have, you will never be in need.
- The good and the bad in life do even out, and in time blend together to create a deeper experience than one ever dreamed possible.
May we find it in our hearts to be thankful for the many teachers in life. May we learn to accept their lessons in time, and may we come to see grace through life’s teachings.
Life’s Teachings
Lisa A. Wisniewski
A Note of Thanks
Our thanks this week goes out to the many teachers we have had in and throughout our lives. From parents to siblings, neighbors to teachers by profession, and everyone in between, we say thank you for all you have helped us to learn along the journey.
Lisa, Sadie, and Leo
Natural Deltas 
In addition to all the fine words, wisdom and science lessons, I love the photos in this post.
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