You know that excitement you get when things are just flowing?
Everything seems to be working just the way you envisioned it.
You remembered to do everything you were supposed to do.
You shifted smoothly from task to task.
You toggled seamlessly from Google Meet to Microsoft Teams meetings and back again.
Your to-do list for the day is done and you crossed all the t’s and dotted every i.
Your desk is a mess ‘cause you’ve been working so hard.
You’re about to call it quits for the night and then you decide to open up your email account from students. One. Last. Time.
And, then you see it.
The student you were supposed to meet with, the one you’ve been after for so long and who seems to be avoiding you, emails to tell you she was there, but you weren’t.
And you realize that being in the “flow” is not the same as being finished.
And that nothing is perfect.
And your work is truly never done.
And, had you known that critical tidbit of information before going into teaching, would you still have done it anyway?
And, of course, you know the answer to that question.
Because being a teacher is your life’s calling.
And, so you pick up the pieces that fell through the cracks and start all over again the next day.
You can’t remember everything ‘cause there are so many things to remember and so many things to do. So many.
So, you apologize.
You reschedule.
You forgive yourself.
Tomorrow is another day.
It’s time to put this one to bed.
Cross posted to The Two Writing Teachers Tuesday Slice of Life Story Challenge.
Elisa Waingort 
That’s tough! My brain is so full that I am forgetting things too. I have sticky notes everywhere and alarms in my phone or I’d never do any of the things I need to do. Some days I even set an alarm on my phone to remind me to take my phone with me when I leave school or leave the house! You’re right – we have to resolve to do better tomorrow and move on.
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Hey Lisa. Your comment made me chuckle. I usually set three alarms in the mornings just in case. I usually wake up without an alarm anyway, but the security makes me do it all over again the next day. LOL!
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Oh, Elisa, I may have had too many of those days. Teaching and keeping up with everything can be tough. I love that you forgave yourself. Hopefully your student will show you the same grace. You got this. One day at a time.
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Thank you, Donnetta. The thing is the kids are generally more forgiving of our mistakes than we are. We just need to be kind to ourselves more and learn from our students.
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I have had these days too. Glad you are gentle with yourself…it is SO much these days. More kindness…with ourselves, too.
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Thank you, Rebecca. Kindness all around, I think, could work wonders.
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One of my library professors checked in on me during my first year at the circulation desk and asked how I was doing. I said that my to-do list kept getting longer and longer…She wisely told me that if I ever crossed everything off of my list, I probably wasn’t doing my job properly–and she was right! There is always something else to do in our jobs as educators; we just need to learn to make peace with that. It sounds like you did. Hope your meeting with that student is joyous and productive.
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Thank you for your comment. Yes and yes. I literally have to make myself walk away from all of the items still waiting for me to tick them off the ever-growing to-do list. But I’m glad I’m finally learning to do that!
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Getting in the “flow” always creates such a giddiness, until you discover the one thing (or two, or three…) that got away. Sigh. The important thing is you forgave yourself and moved past it. It’s so easy to wallow in the things that didn’t get done while overlooking all of the things you did accomplish.
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Agreed, Alice. That’s why I’ve started a practice of writing down my wins for the day or the week. Some of the items read like a reverse to-do list. Highly recommend this practice. It makes you realize how much we actually get accomplished on a day-to-day basis.
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