This Is What It is All About: Generations, Teachers, Investments, Repurposing, Imagining, & Human Connectivity

One of the areas where I hope to achieve in my career and with education, is to help humans see the potential of other humans. Bring on 30 years of teaching, a doctorate, experience, and staying ahead of the curve on new research. Bring on Shamari Reid and self-care, and triple that with the self-love and historical brilliance of Yolanda Sealey-Ruiz, Gholdy Muhammad, and Betting Love.

Sprinkle this into youth and teacher communities and hold a conference, K-18, and allow students to attend, share, and take part, too. One of the high school kids told me at the end of yesterday, I wish we had more opportunities to learn alongside out teachers and equals, and not always as grade-grubbers. Shared professional development/workshopping brings us closer to our shared humanity and the fact that we're all learning. I'm not sure the 'dump it in another's brain" works anymore when we have all of us growing, sharing, and communicating so much on social media. Perhaps I've always had that philosophy: I know some things, you know some things, let's share what we know together.

The hierarchies are somewhat absurd: Yes, I love numerous individuals who have shaped who I am (see my poem "Nonagon"), but there are many who I forgot...usually showmen, know-it-alls and braggarts. I guess I've always wondered about authority and truth-telling. I prefer learning from listening to many.

Yesterday's They Call Us Writers: Humans That Teach was a success. We brought elementary students, high school students, college students, and teachers together to talk about art, voice, and shared humanity. Teachers left with resources. I left with wisdom of sharing with those who came.

One of the writing prompts from the day was putting forth the ideal classroom for tomorrow. I couldn't help but write that the last five weeks and this one's conference are the ideal classroom. I've recreated a semi-Brown School/LWP community at a University that is almost the antithesis of those values. Each summer, I have super diversity,  a community of scholars/teachers/students/youth working towards their own writing identities, and I get to study it. It's pretty amazing actually (and so is this blog, because I have daily evidence for the past decade...and then some...into how this all came to be).

Ah. but I'm hearing Abu, Shamari, and Beth. Self-care. Retreating. Resistance that comes from reclaiming my time. That is what I need to adjust in the weeks ahead, all while finding a more sane way of life that can have a larger impact without playing all the games that are out there.

Full Professorship = Done with Games. Period.

Perhaps this means I'll now figure out what it is I've always been trying to say.