We are all thankful for something. For some, it is frivolous thankfulness such as “I’m thankful I don’t live in Cleveland”, or “I’m thankful for long weekends and Netflix”. For others, their thankfulness is more heartfelt; “I’m thankful for having a job”, “I’m thankful I was able to provide food for my family this entire year”. I’m thankful for many, many things including the items I’ve mentioned above. As I began thinking about writing this blog post and what I’m truly thankful for this Thanksgiving, I wanted to go beyond the usual boring, boilerplate things everyone is thankful for: ‘I’m thankful for my family’, ‘I’m thankful for my health’, ‘I’m thankful for my friends’ (said in the dopiest of dopey voices). Nor did I want to trivialize what I’m thankful for: ‘I’m thankful for socks’, ‘I’m thankful for toothpaste’, ‘I’m thankful that the best part of waking up is Folgers in my cup’ (again said in the dopiest of dopey voices). No, I wanted to have unique, but honest things that I was truly thankful for. So, after a lot of thought, here are some of the things for which I am truly thankful.
Pomona High School
On June 12, 2015, everything I knew about my teaching career changed forever. It was on this date that I was told in no uncertain terms that I would not be returning to Arvada High School. A place I had spent literally half of my life as a student and a teacher. This move was the culmination of an idea that had been floating around for about 5 weeks prior to this. I had been asked would I consider leaving Arvada? If I had to leave, what would it take for me to agree to a move? Lots of questions like that. The reasons for the move revolved around the notion that myself and one of the other building union reps needed a “fresh start” as the school tried to reset itself. Finally, on the afternoon of June 12, 2015, I was told unequivocally I would not be coming back to the only school I had ever known. (sidenote: there are other elements involved in this story that many of you already know if you don’t and are curious just ask me. I’m very open about what happened and have nothing to hide or be ashamed of and I am more than willing to share the whole story if you are interested. I just didn’t think this forum or this post is the appropriate venue for the story) About a week later I was informed that I would be going to Pomona High School.
Honestly, I was really scared. That whole summer was nerve-wracking. I was very sad about leaving a school I cared deeply about and leaving so many great friends I had made, teachers I had immense respect and admiration for and students who meant the world to me. I was very nervous about going to a new school, with different students, different expectations, different culture, and different teachers. What scared me the most was how I would be accepted by Pomona. Or would I ever be accepted? After all, I was not chosen by them. In fact, they never had a choice about me. I was placed there. “Administrative Transfer” is the term used for this type of move. The district had to put me somewhere and this is where they sent me. I had been around long enough to know and understand how Administrative Transfers are viewed. These teachers tend to be viewed as outsiders or damaged goods, that there is something wrong with them. Either they are not very good teachers and this is just part of the ‘Dance of the Lemons’ or they are troublemakers who stir the pot and throw bombs everywhere they go. I didn’t believe that any of those applied to me, but I also knew that was how teachers in my situation are often viewed.
My first day at Pomona was...different. I arrived for the Back To School Staff meeting. For the first time, I didn’t know where to go for the meeting and had to wander around the school to find where the meeting was. I walked in and for the first time in 16 years, I didn’t know one single face in the meeting. For the first time, I didn’t have a "go-to table" at which to sit down and for the first time, I didn’t have a person to talk to before the meeting. It was just me. I sat down at the closest table- which I later found out was the table that administrators usually sit at for meetings. I looked around to find any familiar faces. Finally, I saw a few faces that I had worked with from Arvada and others that I had known from various district functions and meetings, but for the most part, they were all strangers to me. All of a sudden there was a very friendly looking guy who sat down next to me and asked me if I was Dale Munholland. I replied I was and he stuck out his hand and as I shook it he told me he was Brian Martin. He welcomed me to Pomona, he introduced himself as the department chair for Social Studies and he was glad to have me be part of the Social Studies team. Well, that was pretty cool, I thought. There was no hint of indifference or unfriendliness from Brian. That helped reduce my stress a little.
During the course of that first day, as I was setting up my room, there was a stream of Social Studies teachers as well as other teachers from the 2nd floor that came into my room to introduce themselves and to welcome me to Pomona. Some of them had heard something about my situation through the JeffCo grapevine and they asked about my journey to Pomona so I would share my story if they were curious. All of them seemed genuinely nice, gracious and welcoming. By the end of the first week, I felt very comfortable at Pomona. During the course of my first year at Pomona, I felt more and more comfortable as I got to know more and more teachers, I began to feel very much at home and welcomed. One of the best memories I’ve had since then happened last year when Brian and I happened to be walking up the stairs to our classrooms and Brian said to me ‘You know, it’s crazy. You’ve only been here for a couple of years but it seems like you’ve always been here. It’s almost like I can’t remember you not being here.’ That was awesome. I felt like I was truly home.
I am so thankful for Pomona, not only because of how they accepted me and made me feel like they really appreciated me and wanted me, but also because of how stable it is. I don’t spend much of my planning time dealing with various issues around the building, as I did before. I have never had to battle with any member of the administration about anything. Things seem to make sense. I have never once thought to myself ‘What in the wide, wide world of sports is going on here’. I don’t always agree with or like all of the decisions, but at least I can understand them. Pomona is truly a special place. Now, don't get me wrong, I still miss things about Arvada. In particular some of the people there. I had students there that I still today consider members of my family. The staff I worked with at Arvada was such a spectacularly talented staff who worked miracles with the students. I miss those people. I don’t miss the other stuff. I was recently asked if I could would I go back to Arvada. My answer was immediate and unequivocal; “No way. Arvada will always have a place in my heart but I bleed black now. I love Pomona. My department, the staff, the students, the culture, and everything in between.” I am truly thankful for Pomona, in many ways Pomona saved my teaching career.
Not Living In An Echo Chamber
There are people who have a very warped view of the world. They live in a Black and White world. They don’t understand nuances or grey areas. They don’t get how people view the exact same situation differently than do they. These people tend to believe that those who don’t share the same worldview as theirs are somehow misguided, uneducated, unaware, or downright dumb. Usually for these people, when they fear they could be in danger of losing the moral or intellectual high ground in a discussion, they will very often attempt to shut down the other person by unleashing some torrent of name calling. Things such as ‘redneck’, ‘racist’, ‘snowflake’, ‘communist/socialist’ and other even more unsavory epithets. I believe the main reason for this type of behavior is that these people live in an echo chamber. Everyone they associate with, every news site they frequent, everything they read all have the same worldview as theirs, so they come to believe that everyone must have the same views and that these are somehow the “correct” views and if there is anyone else who views things differently then those people are just plain wrong or at the very least misinformed.
I am truly proud to say that I have a very diverse friend base with very diverse views. My friends range from rock-ribbed conservatives to ultra bleeding heart liberals. From Trumpites who believe in Trump now and forever, to people who would leave the country this minute if they had the resources to escape the government of Trump and his sycophants. I know people who want an authoritarian government to those who are anarchists. Men, women, gay, straight, bi, somewhere-in-between. White, Black, Asian, Hispanic, Native American, native-born and immigrants. Ultra-religious people to those who view religion as an opiate of the people, Jews, Catholics, Protestants, unaffiliated Christians, Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists, Atheists, and agnostics all make up my friend base. It is from my interactions with all of these people and the others I know that are somewhere in between that shape my view of the world.
I am truly interested in how all of these people view the world. I love to engage people about their views and opinions and more importantly why they hold the views they do. I purposely seek out as many diverse news outlets as I can find just to see what their take on events and stories are. Most important is the fact that I can do this without getting angry, worked up or frustrated. I just want to know what people think and why then I use all of that information to create my own views. Sometimes I agree with people thoughts, sometimes I don’t but I always listen because I want to know and understand their reasoning. Sometimes I listen to people or read things that are so bizarre and out there that I can only shake my head and think to myself ‘Wow! That is really, really weird and waaaaaaaay out there.’ But I always listen, especially to those ideas that are really out there because I want to know where they come up with some of their ideas and how they think the world should work.
I definitely have opinions, just ask me sometime. I have an opinion on just about everything and I am willing to share my opinions if anyone is interested. My ideas and opinions are formed from the way I see things as well as taking into account the way others see things. By doing this, I believe I can formulate a much more rounded and balanced view. I can empathize with other views and opinions so that when others disagree with me I am able to have a civilized discussion (at least from my end) about why I believe what I do as well as express that I understand their point and then use their point to explain how I arrived at mine. If I lived in an echo chamber I would only know what I hear and come in contact with and lose sight of the fact that my opinion is not the only valid one out there and be threatened and even angry when I encounter ideas, thoughts, and opinions that are counter to mine.
For the fact that I am able to come in contact with and even force myself to be exposed to as many diverse ideas and views as I can, I am truly thankful.
Closing
As I finish my Thanksgiving blog, I can honestly say that I am truly and honestly thankful to have been born in this country. It is not perfect. Not by any means. It hasn’t always done the right thing. In fact, our country has done some terrible things. But I do believe that this country and, more importantly, her people do generally strive to do the right thing and to make the world a better place and we never stop trying. We vote every year with the intention of making our world better and we always believe that tomorrow is always better than today. Not many places and not many people can say that. And for that unyielding sense of unbridled optimism, I am truly thankful.
And to all of the people in my life either at one time in the past or are now currently in my life. To those with whom I am very close to or those who are only people whose names and faces I recognize, I am thankful for all of you. Each and everyone one of you, whether you are aware of it or not, have made me a better person. And for that I am exceptionally and eternally thankful.
I wish you and yours a most happy and joyous Thanksgiving.
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