Day 107- Powerfully Good Words and Randomly Wonderful Sunday

It must be adverb day!  Everything's coming up -ly!

My "donation" today is just that... a donation that, when spoken about, requires quotation fingers.  I have to throw a curveball in there every now and then to keep things a little interesting.  While this one doesn't involve any kind of exchange of money, I'm hoping that simply trying to put things out there in the world might make a difference in its own way.

The past few weeks we've been talking about words in my classes.  We've gone over vocab strategies and affixes and root words and details and all kinds of other wordy things.  I gave my kids homework one night that was simply to use their words in a powerfully good way.  I didn't ask them to write anything down or have anyone sign anything to hold them accountable.  I simply asked them to try it.  Honor system.

Our warm-up the next day was for them to write about what they had done.  I asked them to share what they had said, how others reacted, and how they thought things might be different if we all chose our words more carefully.  I graded the weekly warm-ups today with glee because their answers just blew me away!

I am not so naive as to think that they all really did this assignment or that every single one of them was telling the truth.  I get that.  However, for every student who did not take this seriously, I truly think that there was a student who did.  Their answers were heartfelt and warm and fuzzy and full of powerfully good things.  They complimented, they were nice to their siblings, they said kind words to their parents... and so much more.

I couldn't help but be proud.  I simply planted the seed, and I got to sit back and enjoy an entire garden of flowers.  I take my position as a possible role model for my students very seriously, and this is exactly the kind of thing that I want them to remember about my class.  I made a small donation of an idea into my students' minds, and they paid it forward.  I hope that the ripples from this are still going today.

Your challenge, which you will most certainly want to accept, is to make a donation of your own powerfully good words to someone else today.  You'll feel as good about it as they will, and I'll be smiling here just thinking about it.

******

I had an awesome predicament today.  I was trying to figure out how to pick just one of the many things that delighted me to the point of making my day today in order to write the blog.  I eventually realized that

a. this is not a problem at all and 
b. there is absolutely no reason to pick just one

If I want to write under the blanket title of "Randomly Wonderful Sunday" in order to include all the little things that make my world go round, then that's precisely what I will do.  Here goes...

  • I went to church and breakfast with my husband.  While this is a weekly occurence, I don't think of it as a routine. It is delightful each and every time it happens.    
  • I got a TON of grading done today.  This will greatly reduce my stress level this week.
  • The sun was shining all day long.  That should need no additional explanation.
  • Tom and I collaborated on tasty dinner of steaks, portabellas, salad, and zucchini bake (something scrumptious my mom taught me how to make way back when).  I'll get to enjoy this again tomorrow at lunch, and it will make me grin by reminding me of this great day.
  • At one point in the day, I noticed something out of the corner of my eye.  When I looked down, my little General man was snuggled up as close to me as he could get.  Warm and fuzzies.
  • I rediscovered two things that I ADORE today.  I watched "Love and Basketball," and love is absolutely right.  It's one of those movies where I find something else I love about it every time I see it.  I love the old classics as well.  Monica: I'll play you.  Quincy: For what?  Monica: Your heart.  Cheesy goosebumps.  I also listened to one of my favorite songs of all time on repeat for a little while.  "Everlong" by the Foo Fighters is a masterpiece and was treated as such in this household today. 
  • I wore a dress all day long.  This may seem ridiculous, but it makes me feel good about myself, so you can take that ridiculous off of me and put it somewhere else.  Hmph. :)
Amazingly enough, I feel as if I may even be forgetting something from this list.  An embarrassment of riches, it is!  I am so blessed.

Thank you, Randomly Wonderful Sunday, you made my day.

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