On Being A Teacher - Reasons 2B Cheerful

I did a lot of learning about self-development this year. Remember the Breakthrough posts I wrote about the course with Devorah Sisso Stieglitz? I still owe you (me?) a post for Breakthrough #6. I got stuck on visualizing a fabulous future for myself - my goals seemed to stop at getting through the week, cleaning the bathroom, and paying the bills. I'm going to work on it again over the holidays. Watch this space.

Meantime, In the interests of gratitude and the laws of attraction - both essential to leading your best life possible, here are my reasons 2B cheerful for this week. The linky is back with Michelle on Mummy from the Heat where a group of us gather to be thankful. It sounds soppy but actually it's vitalizing.

1
It ends
I was having a moan to a friend last week about how much there is to do at the end of the school and college year. I was writing reports, setting exams, grading exams, end of year parties (mine and DD's), I was given the task of organizing part of the end of year family outing for my school, prepping the summer course, packing up the English room as they need it over the holidays for something else, etc, etc, etc....

My friend sat there patiently while I got it all off my chest and then replied, "yes but in three weeks time it all comes to an end and you have two months off." I got it. I shut up.

2
Poor but safe
The foundation that pays part of my salary for one of my jobs only pays for 8 out of the 10 months of the school year. So at the end I am paid by the organization that pays the other half of my salary at that particular job. It comes out as much less at the end of the month as they each have different ways of calculating the pay. And, for this particular job, I get almost nothing over the summer. It's annoying but, otoh, I don't work there over the summer. Otoh, teachers still have to live and pay bills for that two-month period.

Last week a friend who had a high-flying position in hi-tech suddenly lost her job when the company reorganized and scrapped her whole department. I went to work that day and thanked God for every irritating thing about my school and for every difficult pupil. I am so lucky to have a job that helps me almost get to the end of the month in the black.

3
Finishing early
For the final two weeks of the year, the 6th graders who are leaving this year and are busy with their leaving events, get let out of school at 1 pm. So that's a 1 pm finish for me two out of three of my days at school, for the duration.

Patient friend who is regularly in her office till after 6 pm: "What time do you usually finish then?"
Me: 3 pm.
Friend: Oh.
Me. Oh.

4
July/August
I do teach a summer course over the summer but it's mostly online so I can do it at home. Thus, unlike most other parents, I will not be paying a fortune for summer camps and juggling child care with work obligations. If I were to get my full salary over the summer in return for working, it would all go in paying for summer programmes for DD. So in fact, being a teacher is the best thing to be.

5
Teaching
I actually enjoy teaching. I like being with my pupils and my students. Staff rooms are usually friendly and supportive places. I have fun. There I've said it.

  

Limiting And Empowering Beliefs - #Breakthrough 5

This was last week's Breakthrough session but I got a bit bogged down with it (and then it was Purim).

I'll explain. The session was about the ways in which we limit ourselves and thereby limit our lives. We are so sure of what we can't do and what can't possibly be, that it becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy. When I tried to do the homework an interesting thing happened.

The homework was in two parts. Part one was to write down all my strengths, capabilities, and all my successes. No problem. I know what I'm capable of but success in this big wide world mostly depends on other people playing along - that's where the doubts set in. I mean, I know I can write that great novel but someone has to agree to publish it right? I know I can teach another couple of courses at my college but they need to give me the hours. I know I could write great publicity posts for Filofax and Eilat hotels but they need to agree to collaborate with me.

OK, enough of that because the limitation comes when you don't knock on the doors, send the emails, do the diet, write the book, in the first place. If you are ready with the best product at the right time and you send enough emails, you'll eventually nail it. If you worry about if its worth starting you'll never have anything to sell.

Part two was to write a detailed description of the life you want to be living. I cannot tell you how hard this was. Every time I thought of something that I'd like I damped it down to be realistic in my limited way. For example, I kept writing about earning enough money to live comfortably in the way we live now. I can write anything I want so why write that I want to go on a real holiday once a year when I could write that we can go anywhere we want whenever we want - we're that rich. Why write about minor improvements to my apartment, a new sofa and new windows? Why not write that we buy a fantastic new place to live with a proper garden or a bigger balcony?

Some of it is the Maeve Binchy Syndrome. I love Maeve Binchy. Simple feel-good books in which someone has a good idea for a business. They work hard, all the neighbours come together to help babysit and offer their relevant skills for free, and a few pages later they're successful, rich, and famous. This is also known as 'suspended disbelief' or the 'pinch of salt effect'. But could there be something in it?

I think it was Marisa Peer (not Miri Sapir as Israelis often mishear- a normal Israeli name) who said that if you ask for enough money to get by you'll get just that - enough money to get by. In other words you get what you ask for. Or rather you get what you aim for.

So why why why is it so hard not be so darn 'realistic'?

I'm still working on writing the life I want to be living. It's not all about money. It's also about health, happiness, and balance, I enjoy having time to potter. Pottering doesn't make money. But I'd prefer to have the time to potter than to be earning a fantastic amount of money and have no time in which to enjoy it.

One particular thing that Devorah said in this week's podcast that resonated with me is: Imagine if you had a an enormous amount of money in the bank or from passive income, so that you didn't have to go to work. Your children are grown up and you have no commitments on your time. What would do with your life? The thing you come up with when all obstacles are wiped out of the picture, is probably your life's calling.

Marching On With #Breakthrough 4

This week has been busy. I, who never go out in the evening, have two events this week. One I wrote about yesterday and one is tomorrow evening. Tomorrow will be a very late night out of town so my friend is coming for a sleep over with her 6 yo son. He and DD are great friends so they'll have fun. We've done this before when my friend has gone out for the evening but this time she'll be hanging out at my place while I go out.

Of course this means that I was supposed to clean the apartment today. She told me not to but I have my pride. However, I got home from school at 2 pm (today is my early day when I leave at 1 pm) and found some absolutely pressing things that needed seeing to on the computer. No, not watching you tube - sending in my payable hours for February, doing some light editing and translating that I'd promised a friend, answering some emails from college, etc...

Before I knew it, it was time to collect DD from school. Then I had to make supper because 1. my nephew was coming for supper and 2. I've made a new month resolution as part of the whole Breakthrough process that we sit down and eat a healthy supper at around 6 pm rather than remembering that I've not fed DD at 7.30 and she's been filling up on crisps and baby-belle cheeses from the fridge. (In fact I'm no longer buying crisps.)

That took us to 7 pm when nephew left and DD remembered a big chunk of Hebrew homework that's due tomorrow. That took almost an hour. Then it had to be hair-wash night because I'm going out tomorrow and we have our friends here. So now she's finishing off in the shower and I'm blogging.

I had to blog today. I'm still trying to claw my way back into the top 1,000 of the TOTS100 and this month my rank has risen by 139! I'm still 214 away from 999 but it made me happy. Another Breakthrough promise is to blog more consistently this year - I'm aiming for at least 10 posts a month. I only managed 9 in February. Well it's a short month isn't it?

I also have to wash my hair because I'm leaving home an hour after returning from work tomorrow. The dishes from supper are still in the sink and that's another resolution - they will not be left until tomorrow morning. And of course, I have to be in bed by 11 because sleep is essential for achieving everything else.

I don't know how this happened that I didn't get to do any cleaning tonight - although I will fold and put away the laundry on the spare bed and tidy up a bit. One good thing is that I'll definitely do that early morning thing tomorrow as I absolutely must do some cleaning before school. I can't call it a Miracle Morning as I won't be doing any meditating, visualizing or reading self-development material but it will be a miracle if I do it,

This week's Breakthrough session was about not being a child and expecting everything to fall in your lap without any effort on your part. It was a, "Just Do It!" message. Nothing new, but reinforcing the fact that we're more than half-way through the course and I'm still planning and writing but not doing very much yet. March 1st was a great opportunity to turn over a new leaf.

So I didn't clean my apartment but I taught all morning in school, I did some admin, I cooked us a healthy supper which we ate without resorting to snacks either before or after, DD's homework got done, she's hair-washed and ready for bed - I know it's 9 pm but that's par for us. (I'm trying to make her bedtime earlier but it rarely happens). We're going to read one chapter of Heidi now. Then I'm going to wash my hair, do the dishes and tidy up some. I'm satisfied with today.

Reading Around The Subject - #Breakthrough 3

When my parents downsized from the family house into a flat they found all our old school reports carefully filed in chronological order. We were each presented with a file on our next visit. I read mine once through and promptly destroyed the evidence.

One thing I remember from my sixth-form reports, the ones from when I was supposed to be studying for A' levels, is the comment - Rachel does not read round the subject, or, Rachel needs to read around the subject. The truth was that I was having trouble keeping up with the prescribed homework let alone giving myself more. Obviously I wasn't passionate about my subjects and of course there was no You Tube. (You Tube is the new reading doncha know.) This time I can tick both those boxes for my Breakthrough makeover.

Breakthrough Session 3 was about Making It Happen - getting off your backside and actually doing whatever it takes to get you to whoever it is you want to be. (Notice I said 'whoever' and not 'wherever' - see last week.) So first I did some procrastinating 'reading' around the subject.

I looked on You Tube for 'attracting the life you want' and similar phrases. There was a lot of Oprah on this subject. I'd read The Secret years ago but it scared the life out of me. I missed the bit about 'doing' and thought it was only about 'visualizing'. I got scared that if a tragic or negative picture popped into my mind then the Universe might make it happen. I totally missed the point. As the guy on Oprah said, "you can sit and visualize until they come and take your furniture away and repossess your house. Then you'll be visualizing on the curb." Makes sense.

I watched The Secret Full Movie.

The most interesting thing I found is that there are believers in this philosophy from every religion, whether you call it The Secret, Breakthrough, Miracle Morning, or whatever. I've heard that Moses, Jesus, and Mohammed all knew the secret. Well they must have known something to inspire millions of believers centuries later. There are equal numbers of secular followers turning to The Universe (forces of nature, etc.) as there are those who thank God for giving them everything. This is for everyone, it's not just for Jews or Christians.

I considered what it would take to be all the things I want. There is no getting away from the fact that you need to start early in the day. I joined Hal Elrod's Miracle Morning group on facebook. To be fair, I was sick last week so I've not got round to actually getting up early and doing some of it yet. And I will be aiming for a 6 a.m. start not a 5 a.m. start because you have to be realistic.

I prepared myself by buying beautiful new notebooks to use for the affirmations and planning my life. I changed my affirmations from last week as they were too wishy-washy. I wasn't ready to commit yet but I am now.

This morning I set the alarm for 6 a.m. but I couldn't make it out of bed until 7. I just couldn't. The Universe heard me and came to my rescue. The meeting at college that I thought was at 11 a.m is actually at 12. So I still have the five hours I'd planned for the morning. Thanks Universe, I owe you.

I get it now and I'm onto it. Sometime today I'll receive Session 4. Watch this space.

You Get What You Are - #Breakthrough 2

After the the first Breakthrough class with Devorah Sisso I kept up the commitment not to be angry, not to complain, and not to indulge in self-pity. It was fun and certainly a lot more pleasant than getting angry and complaining about things.

Lesson Two arrived on Sunday and I was excited. I loved this one. The first session was lots of theory which was fascinating, but this one was where the work started. I listened to the podcast, rapt. At one point Devorah said, "this is going to blow your mind!" And it did. It blew my mind. There was so much information that I couldn't possible take it all in and remember it all, even though I'd jotted down some notes.

On Monday I remembered that the lesson had blown my mind but I couldn't remember why. I listened to the whole thing again and took more notes. This time I got it.

The main message is that you don't get what you want, you get what you are. So it's not enough to tell the Universe (or God) that you want this, this and this. You have to be this, this, and this and you will attract more of the same like a magnet.

This is how I understood it (with my own examples).

For some obvious examples - if you want a loving family who enjoy spending time together then you must be a loving mother who enjoys spending time with her family (and actually spends the time). If you want to be a slim, healthy, beautiful woman you have to be the woman who eats healthy food in moderation and exercises. You didn't need a life coach to tell you these but if you're not practicing either of these examples then you don't really believe it or you're not really doing it. And you have to believe it and do it to be it.

Let's take it up a notch. You want a lot of money? You have to be rich. We're all rich in the hierarchy of wealth in the world but sometimes we don't feel rich. If you stop comparing yourself to others and start being grateful for how rich you are, you will attract more riches. I've not tried this one yet but it's part of this week's homework.

The bottom line is that you have to become what you want. There was a fascinating lesson in quantum physics to explain why this works scientifically - all about the core of every atom in every cell being pure energy. The message is that you can change your very being by changing your energy.

It all starts with affirmations (yes these are mine).
- I am a slim, healthy, and radiantly beautiful woman who eats healthy food in moderation and exercises regularly.
- I am rich, Money comes easily to me and I will always have enough.
- I am an excellent writer and could definitely write a great novel.
- I am self disciplined and accomplish everything efficiently by blocking time, using the early mornings, and a 20 minute nighttime routine to pick up from the day before.

Of course you actually have to do all the things you affirm to. It's not just about 'ask and you will receive' (I knew it was too good to be true).

There's nothing new here in the things you have to do. The new, for me, was the explanation and the linking it all to Jewish and biblical sources. Devorah herself says she didn't make any of it up - it's all there in history, the Bible and other spiritual guides. Many great people have discovered the secrets of success and there are libraries of self-development material readily available. But if you're not doing it, or doing it only half heartedly, maybe you need it explained in a way that can break through to your brain and get you with the programme.

This course is not a cure all for every problem. Devorah explicitly says that her relationship advice is for normal relationships that can improve. If you are in an abusive relationship, don't try to change it - just run. Similarly, it's not going to take away all your life burdens instantly, but it might turn them into opportunities rather than burdens. And what you think you want isn't always what you need. If you have everything and you're still not happy, you won't be happy anywhere unless you change yourself from the inside. Finally, it's a valid affirmation to say, "Everything that is happening now is happening for my ultimate good. Though these times are difficult, they are only a short phase of life."

All Shuk Up - Reasons 2B Cheerful

35 books in Hebrew that we don't read - out!

The festive season has begun - the one that starts now and ends after the Jewish Holy-days some time in October. Tomorrow is Tu B'Shvat, otherwise known as the New Year for Trees.

1
Tree planting
Yesterday at work half the school was out planting trees with their Youth Movements. Notice I said Youth Movements with capitals, and not youth clubs? It's a strong tradition that most kids belong to something like Scouts, with differing ideologies, and the Movements have political clout all the way to the top. It's part of the the social system that the State is very involved in bringing up your children.

Obviously the kids in school were not in the mood to work. There was a lot cake making and chocolate creations. Rehearsals for a big event tomorrow night meant a fair bit of music, singing, and dancing. It was more like a party than a school.

We ended up watching Les Choristes (The Chorus) with Grade 6. Only it was in French with Hebrew subtitles. I sort of kept up but I need to find it on You Tube with English.

15 toys, puzzles and games that we've grown out of - out!

2
School Fair
DD's school is having a school shuk (market) today. You don't have to make a stall but loads of cupcakes, cookies, candies were being brought in so I reckon there will be a lot of food stalls. DD and her friend are doing a stall of toys, books, and games. I'm thrilled that we got to donate loads of items that we have grown out of out.

It's very sweet the way they're doing it. Everyone gives in 10 shekels (about 2 pounds) and in return they get 1,000 Gs (school money). This means that there is no real money lying around and the numbers are more realistic. You can charge 10 Gs for a cupcake which feels better than its actual price of 1 agorah (0.2p). All the fun of the fair without large sums of money involved.

I'm going back at 10 o'clock to help. I can feel my organizing hormones getting all excited already.

3
Breakthrough
I'm keeping up with my Breakthrough homework by not complaining or getting angry about anything. It really does make you more content and the days are just more pleasant.

I listened to my podcast of Session 1 again to make sure I'd internalized all the points. I also found Devorah Sisso Stieglitz on You Tube and listened to some of her other lectures. Devorah is an Orthodox (you could say ultra-Orthodox but these things are subjective) Jewish woman who primarily caters to other Orthodox Jewish women.

The lectures are peppered with Hebrew terms and her teachings are linked to the Torah (Old Testament) and Jewish sources. And whereas you can interpret God in whichever way is meaningful for you - a higher power, the energy of the universe, the forces of nature, etc... - Devorah talks about Him with a capital H.

It's not going to appeal to everyone. However, the underlying principles of feeding your soul with healthy attitudes and actions are universal and I believe they do apply to everyone of any faith, race or creed. (What is creed anyway?)

I'm looking forward to the next session on Sunday although I realize from Devorah's other lectures, that it's not just going to be about opening up to let the Universe shower you with gifts. There's going to be a lot of work involved that will involve leaving one's comfort zone. I have trouble leaving my bed in the morning, let alone my comfort zone. But I've committed to the course so I'll be doing it.

So there are my R2BC for this week. I'm linking up to Becky at Lakes Single Mum who's hosting us this month.

The Beginning With #Breakthrough

As you will know from my previous post, I've been watching all sorts of inspirational videos on You Tube to try to get to a more comfortable place in my life. If you were following me a few years ago you'll know that things were financially quite scary in a way I never imagined possible until I had to deal with the time and energy constraints of being a single mother. Since then I've secured better employment and we can manage as in, we can get by. However, it's not always easy, I'm not totally happy in one place of work (should I expect to be?), there is no money for extras (like holidays, extra-curricular activities for DD, or babysitters), and there are things I'd rather be doing for a living.

One of the perks of writing a blog is that every so often you get offered something in return for writing about it. (I've got a couple of cookery books this way but I'm still waiting for my free Filofax and a holiday in Eilat.) Last week I was asked if I'd like to do Breakthrough with Devorah Sisso Steiglitz. I said I'd like. I don't know how much Breakthrough costs but I do know that some of the courses offered by other gurus (for want of a better word of less than 20 characters) ask many hundreds of dollars for their courses. There must be something more that they don't tell us on You Tube. I wanted to know what it is.

I have a good idea of what's involved to get everything you want from the universe - happiness, fulfillment, a free Filofax, etc... I even started to put some of it into practice over the weekend before Breakthrough began. I stopped complaining about the physical conditions of my school and instead focused on how lucky I was to be head-hunted for a job which allows me to finish the month in the black (well sometimes in the grey but only for a short while). I thought about how friendly the staff and students are rather than how cold the building is and the fact that I teach in a dungeon-cum-room of requirement for things that need to be hidden.

On Saturday night I received my introductory letter from Devorah. And on Sunday morning I got the first session. I was psyched and ready to open my mind, let go my fears and let the universe in. However, I had to go into college first and meet with students.

Here's what happened on Sunday morning at college. The book-keeper called me into her office to tell me they'd awarded me an extra hour/week of payment back-dated to last September. I'm not exactly sure what happened there but I think it's something to do with the fact that one of my courses is online so, because there are  no physical constraints on classroom size, I have bigger classes than anyone else. And they are spreading the payments for my summer courses over the year instead of me being broke in July and having to wait until the end of September to get a lump sum.

I was amazed. Could things be happening just because I'd started looking on the bright side? Before I'd even started listening to the course and doing the assignments?

I listened to Devorah's lecture on Sunday afternoon and did the assignment. The first page was the usual things you'd expect from any self-development course. You have to write down how you feel about various aspects of your life, presumably to acknowledge where you stand and to be able to see how much you change over the course of the sessions.

Part B was to commit to refraining from three poisons that you feed your soul. She gave as examples: stop complaining, stop feeling self-pity, and stop being angry. I couldn't think of any others so I committed to the examples, even though I'm not a big self-pityer.

On Monday morning the sun was shining, it was warm outside with a bright blue sky. (Yes I know everyone got that not just me.) I appreciated the beautiful scenery of the Jerusalem hills from the bus window. (Is this what they call mindfulness? It's a 40 minute bus ride.) At school I gladly gave up my free period to work with pupils who weren't involved in some rehearsal for something. I did shout a few times during other lessons but I didn't get angry. There's a subtle difference and I felt it. I smiled and was calm throughout the day. I didn't wear my coat even though it was a bit chilly - it wasn't freezing as last week was. I resisted all temptation to eat the bread that's always in the staff room. The day went like a breeze and I came home happy. (Btw, that doesn't mean I'm accepting the conditions for next year, just that I'll not suffer for the remainder of the winter this year.)

I think I might be turning into Pollyanna.