There’s an old expression my family likes to say-“shoveling shit against the tide.”
Take a minute and think about that. Can you visualize how utterly maddening it would be to try to shovel shit against the tide?
There has been a lot of attention given to teacher burnout over the last two years. Teachers go from being superheroes to villains faster than Spider-Man can sling a web. I am fully aware that for some, there has always been and will always be a deep-rooted disdain for educators- “You only work 10 months out of the year, you have summers off, you have so much vacation time, all you have to do is babysit.” Of course more recently these comments have grown to include: “You union teachers don’t care about the kids, you just care about yourselves, you all just want to sit at home and teach over a computer, it’s safe to go to work, you’re making our kids wear masks, how dare you teach accurate American history, teachers should not be supportive of how their students’ identify….”
Public opinion has recently lead to the most idiotic, irrational and repulsive educational laws being proposed and actually passed. Laws that are going to trigger a mass exodus of the teachers who have been able to stick it out over the last two years. Laws that place ridiculous punitive demands on educators. Laws that deny actual historical truths. Laws that deny individuals to be their true selves. Laws dictated by ultra christian white conservatives, who are afraid their fragile hold on power will be disrupted or their archaic beliefs will be exposed to be just plain, gross racism and homophobia.
Last night after trying to explain my day in my substantially separate therapeutic program for elementary students with social/emotional/behavioral disorders, I just gave up speaking because the tears had started to fall too quickly. I couldn’t find the words to express how frustrated I was, not about my students, but about ignorance, poor decision making and my voice not being heard. All I could muster was, “I just feel like I’m shoveling shit against the tide.” Then I truly brokedown.
And my husband gently replied, “The tide eventually goes out.”
bean láidir 