"If it doesn't make the world a better place, don't do it."

Hi, everyone!

I hope your weekend has been fantastic. I watched an exciting IU win with some of the greatest people I know, so I am feeling pretty good right now. :)

I have been thinking hard about my next topic, and what I keep coming back to is the power of what we put out into the world. What do I mean? There is power in positivity, kindness, and love.

I have always struggled trying to understand why people would choose to spew hate and negative energy. I don't get what pleasure can come from being mean and hurting others. Like it or not, almost every decision one makes directly and indirectly affects handfuls of others. It is imperative to scatter some joy, kindness, and compassion.

Since I am Baby Teacher, I can best use my students as the basis for my argument. This trimester, more than ever before, I have been persistent about being kind to others and trying to motivate them to find the joy in doing for others. I realize it is a huge passion of mine anyway, but when I speak of doing acts of kindness just because it is the right thing to do, they run with it. I have been amazed by the magnitude in which the students have responded and want to join me in making the world a better place. My 3rd hour looks forward to putting their "Kindness Campaign" into action every week. My journalism class is ecstatic about making a video for our favorite kindness culprit Kid President. My yearbook class, along with a fellow friend's newspaper class, is planning a day where we camp out in the middle of town and scatter some joy. It's a beautiful thing to see. Nothing makes me more proud.

Be someone who spreads some joy and kindness. It's contagious; I promise. There is so much death and hatred in this world. The only way to make a change is to start yourself. Will it ever be perfect? No. I know that, but why not give some effort to make it better. I want more for the future generations than I do for myself. Teach them the pure bliss of being someone who finds the good in the world and others. Model the joy in helping others. As Kid President says, "You were made to be awesome." Let's make a difference.

Go do good things,

BT

* This is my gift to you: a pep talk from Kid President. If this doesn't motivate you to do something, I don't know what will.

The Next Step...

Hi, everyone!

I will be heading off to Barnes and Noble soon to look for more inspiration for my quest to make a difference, but before I do, I think I have realized the next step for me.

Step two: Make others want to join you!

Duh, BT. Changing the world can not be a single person mission. That would be impossible unless my name was Ellen or Oprah. (Name change?) It hit me that I would need a little army of people who want to help me as well. The feeling one gets when doing something for someone else is incredible. I need to make others, if they don't know already, feel that, too. My co-teacher and I are trying to do that with one of our classes. We are doing a good deed every Friday for someone or a group of people in our school. After the students came back from giving their bags of fun school supplies away, one boy came up to my desk and said, "BT, I really liked that. It made her smile, and I felt really good doing that." *cue chorus and beams of light* Someone came down with the "giving bug." After they all trickled back in, they were consumed with trying to figure out what they wanted to do for the next week. Happy happy teacher.

This is my next mission. I want to round up any and all people who would be willing to do nice things for others and encourage them to start doing things more often. I want them eventually to help round up even more. I want our small baby steps to start to turn into a nice job before the end of the school year.

I know deep in my heart that this is possible. We all owe it to the people before us and the ones who will be here after us to leave a positive mark on this world. Please join me. It doesn't have to be anything big. I wrote a card to a struggling student. It was small, but it meant the world to her. Any little thing helps.

Go do good things,

BT

It All Starts With a Small Step...

Hi, everyone!

I thought I would take my blog and use it as my way to communicate my steps on making a difference. After a nice chat with a very special 16-year-old, I am ready to take the first step towards my desire of changing the world. :) That sounds so strange--"change the world"--but I can't get it out of my mind, so I must do something.

I was told to start small and work my way up, so that is what I plan on doing. Each week, I am going to pick one student who I feel is struggling or may need a little extra positive attention and do something nice for him/her. That something nice will be dependent on each kid, but I am bound and determined for him/her to crack a smile. My ultimate goal is for my students to realize that no matter what they have been through, have, know, etc, that they understand how important and special they are. Our past never has to define who we will be.

I would love for all of you who read this to join me. Pick one person a week who may need a little pat on the back, acknowledgement, or smile. Give them what they need. This doesn't have to be time consuming or expensive. This is something from the heart.  If we all take small little steps, imagine how far we can go. I realize there will always be sadness and negativity, but we can choose not to add to it. Let's all try a little kindness.

Go do good things,

BT

Dreaming Big

Hello, everyone!

I hope your weekend was fabulous and full of happiness. A few months ago I wrote a post on having dreams. It's still on my mind...

BT Advice: Dream big.

I was fortunate to grow up in a home where dreaming was encouraged. As a child, my parents told me that I could do anything if I really set my mind to it and was prepared to work hard for it. It's a crime for every child in this world not to receive the same. Every one of us should always always have a goal that we aspire to achieve no matter what age.

For the past few months, I have had this overwhelming urge to do something more than I am currently doing. I am not tired of teaching; I absolutely love it with every ounce of my being, but there is an aching inside of me to make a difference. I feel deep down in my heart my purpose in life is to help others. Each day this feeling consumes my thoughts. My brain is on constant overdrive trying to figure out how to do this and exactly what my channel for achieving this is. I just wish I knew what it was. Am I supposed to write? Am I supposed to travel around the country? I am supposed to start some group/organization? Or am I way off base? I am not sure, but I will find out. I won't be truly happy and content until I do.

I urge you all to dream big, too. All dreams and goals are different, so find something that fits you. Work tirelessly until you reach the finish line. If we are always content, we may never grow. Challenging ourselves is what makes us who we are. It takes strength, determination, discipline, and gumption to go after something that may result in failure or at the very least will be draining and challenging.

You've all heard it here first. I am going to fight for this elusive dream of mine. I want to be someone who makes a difference. I just have to. What about you?

Go do good things,

BT

Who is Helping at the Bottom?

Hi, all.

I hope you're settling comfortably into 2013 and that all finds you well. I learned or I guess had a valuable friendship lesson reinforced this week. It felt worthy of a post.

BT lesson: Notice who is helping when things are not going well.

It's so easy to be someone's friend and support them when all is going well. Riding their wave of happiness and success is often enjoyable. It's nice to laugh and have fun, and I am not sure that I could find anyone who'd argue that; however, we are human. Life isn't always sunshine and rainbows.

Things go wrong, and we have times when we are knocked on our butts. One of the most valuable things to take away from your moments at the bottom is who is helping you back up. Who is there for you when times are hard? Who is there for you and listen to you cry or grieve? Who will check on you or send you something to try and cheer you up? It's these people who are keepers. Oprah once said, "Everyone wants to ride with you in the limo, but what you want is someone who will ride with you when the limo breaks down." It so true.

The importance of these incredible people was reiterated to me this week. I had my "Go to friends" step up like they always do, but I had other people reach out who helped make all the difference as well. Please pay attention when this happens in your life. Turn on your mental notation and jot names down like crazy. These are the people whom you can count on. These are the ones who want to not only celebrate with you but help pick you up and dust you off during the hard times. These people are gems. It doesn't matter if they are 60 or 16. Each one is a treasure in our lives and should be valued.

Go do good things,

BT

***I would like to thank my friends for picking me up after losing my dog, Carlos. I had him since I was 12, and I loved the little guy more than anything. He was my buddy. Miss him a ton.

This Year is Going to be AWESOME!

Hi, all!

I normally have already resolved to lose weight or be organized, but I haven't done that this year. In fact, until tonight, I really have not made a resolution at all. Thanks to a wonderful student of mine, I started following the video posts of Soul Pancake. I watched a video by Kid President today that I will give you think link to below.

Kid President (video)

Anyway, this young man urges us to join him in his resolution to make this an AWESOME year for someone else. Ding ding! Why didn't I think of that? What if this year we all vowed to do something nice for someone else each day? Brilliant.

I have never been one who has enjoyed the whole "Me" concept. I'd much rather do for others than myself. I am not quite sure if I inherited some recessive gene, but I must admit that I am glad this is one of my personality traits. I truly feel there is no greater feeling one can get than doing something for someone else. 

I want you all to join me. Let's start scattering a little joy. I am not asking you to give all your money away to needy children. It can be small things like in the video. I am just asking you to do something...anything! You never know what your kind gesture can do. It can change a day or even a life. Maybe, just maybe, this could have a large ripple effect, causing others to pay it forward. I doubt anyone would argue with me that the world could use a little kindness. 

What do you say? Do you want to join me in making 2013 awesome? I am pumped.

Go do good things,

BT