The Summer Of Our Disappointment

 The stereotypical Back To School exercise is to write a "What I Did This Summer" essay. I have followed many of my friends via social media as they traveled, partied, relaxed and overall seemingly had a great summer. My summer, my wife's summer, our summer has been anything but that. Not that it was a bad summer- are there ever really any bad summers? But our summer was a summer of disappointment.

For the past year, Stephanie and I have been debating back and forth whether to sell our house and upgrade, or stay where we are at least until the boys are out of school and then move. There were many pluses and minuses to both moving or staying. If we stayed we had a house that we were for the most part happy with, we had a house payment we could easily afford, we live within walking distance of Olde Town Arvada, the neighborhood is quiet and safe, our neighborhood was recently named the "Most Desirable Neighborhood in Denver", we have a very nice sized house (almost 2200 square feet), a really nice deck, and besides all of that moving is a real pain. 

If we chose to move we would get a house that had things that our current house does not have such a two car garage, more open design so we could easily have guests over for holiday dinners, BBQ's and Bronco games, a neighborhood where EVERYONE takes care of their yards and homes instead of just a few so we wouldn't be embarrassed when people came to our house and saw the weeds, dirt, and trash infested homes that dot our block. We wouldn't have a sixty-year-old house and the upkeep that a house in its sixth-decade demand. 

Steph and I went back and forth about moving for a year plus. Finally, we came to a decision after listening to the stories from friends who had recently moved. We heard horror stories of quickly selling their homes with multiple offers but having a difficult time finding a house to move to because of the lack of homes available on the market and those that were available usually were not very nice. We had friends who lost out multiple times on offers because another offer was a little bit better than theirs. Hearing and knowing all that, Steph and I decided to stay put in our nice sixty-year-old house in the Alta Vista neighborhood a mile and a half away from Olde Town Arvada.

Then, on the first Saturday of July, we went grocery shopping. As we were leaving our house we noticed there was an open house at a house across the street from Standley Lake. So on a whim, we went to the open house on our way to King Soopers. The house was amazing! It checked every box we wanted in a house. It was beautiful. Recently remodeled, with a large open space on the main level, large master bedroom with a walk-in closet and a large master bath. It had a beautiful Trex deck with built-in lighting and seating. A large fully finished basement with a pool table, a bar, and a full bath. Plus it was closer to the boys' schools than we are now. And best of all; it was in our price range!!!! Steph and I decided that if we were going to move, this was the house for us. So we made an offer and made arrangements to put our house up for sale. 

Unfortunately, there was another offer for the house as well and it was a little better than ours so we were out. We took another week to decide if we should still put ours on the market. While we were deciding to list our house the contract on the other house fell through and the listing agent on our "dream" house contacted our realtor and wanted to know if we were still interested. HECK YEAH WE WERE! This seemed like fate! Obviously, the Universe wanted us to have this house. Within a few days of this phone call, our house was on the market. Knowing we needed to get under contract quickly, we listed below market value for our house at $410,000. Other, similar houses in the neighborhood were currently listed from $430,000-475,000. Hours after our house was actively listed we had an offer on our house! And for $15,000 over asking! We were going to get the house we both wanted! Then the roller coaster ride began.

Two days after the offer was issued, the buyer and her agent wanted to tour the house again. Fine. No worries, right? That night the offer was rescinded. The reason? Well, they wanted to say based on inspection, but no inspection had been done so that didn't hold up. We later found out it was because the prospective buyer couldn't get financed because she had some problems paying her current bills. A real letdown, but we still had time to sell our house so we could move into our new house, so back on the market we went.

Literally hours after going back on the market, a person who had looked at the house the first night saw that it had been re-listed and asked to come to look at it again. Again, hours after hitting the open market we had another offer on our house. This offer was for $415,000. Not as good as the first one but still over asking. Furthermore, the offer stated that they wouldn't ask for anything to be fixed that was under $1000. Okay, that shouldn't be a real problem because we had taken fairly good care of our house. Our realtor did say he thought it was a bit odd because the loan was for 100% and he didn't think that was possible, but apparently for our neighborhood you could get a 100% loan. Now, Steph was not happy or satisfied with this offer at all and believed that there would be better offers to come along but reluctantly agreed to accept it understanding that having an offer in hand was better than hoping there were better out there that didn't exist at that point. So, we were under contract again and began to look forward to our new lives in our new home.

We did an inspection on the new house; no real problems there (it really was a great house). A few days later the inspection was done on our house and soon after we began to get the feeling this wasn't going to end well. First up they stated that the electrical service coming into the house was not up to code because the wires were too low. Well, when the house was built in 1958, it was up to code, remember this is a SIXTY-YEAR-OLD HOUSE! The top of the chimney was worn and would need to be addressed. Okay again, this is SIXTY-YEAR-OLD HOUSE! Then the kicker- they wanted a structural engineer to come to look at the house. Fine, understandable, bring him on.

The structural engineer showed up at the house, walked around the house with a flashlight, did some measurements on the main level and the upper level with a water level and then 20-30 minutes after arriving was gone. I asked him before he left for any feedback. The engineer said it was obvious that there had been some settling in the house because of some cracks in the walls and ceiling but it had to be taken into account that the house was 60 years old. After he left, I felt good.

Later that day I was at a "mandatory fun" bowling with teacher leaders when I got a phone call. The structural engineer told the buyer that the house had settled 2" and could cost a lot of money to fix it. The buyer was terminating the contract. It was a gut punch. Our realtor said a lot of stuff after that, but I don't really remember much of what he said. We were done. The house Steph and I had been making plans about where to put furniture, how to decorate it was not going to happen. We were not going to have people over for Thanksgiving or Christmas. There would not be any Bronco parties at our new house because we were not going to get a new house. The people in what was supposed to be our new house needed to close by the end of August. This was August 1st, there was no way were would meet that deadline. We were done. We would not be going anywhere. I slunk back into the "mandatory fun" bowling, but I was not having fun at that point, mandatory or otherwise. I wanted to go home.

I came home and told Steph what had happened. We were sad and despondent. We lost a great house that, in our minds, we had already moved into. And on top of that, our house, the house we had spent the past nine years of our life, was junk. Steph and I sat on our bed, in our crumbling bedroom and looked at each other. We didn't say anything, we didn't have to. Our next, great house was gone. We would never get that back. Our house was about to collapse at any minute. We should have never bought this house. We were stuck in a house that was okay but not great and we were never going to be able to get out of here. Sadness is a powerful, debilitating feeling. We went to bed that night sad that we thought our house was good enough to raise our boys in and spend our holidays in and do work on and make so many good memories in but in the end none of those things seemed true. Our house was not good enough.

The next morning when I woke up, I walked around the house and looked at things. I mean really looked at things. Our floors creaked, there were some cracks in walls and ceilings, but the all the doors also opened and closed, as did the windows, the heating and cooling systems worked great. Olde Town Arvada was still a 20-minute walk away. The neighborhood was still quiet and safe. The more I looked and the more I thought the angrier I became. The more insulted I became. Two inches, some creaking floorboards and a few cracks in a sixty-year-old house are the reasons to drop the offer?! This person was getting a GREAT deal! $415,000 for a 2,200 square foot house in a hot neighborhood in Denver is a fantastic deal! What did this person want? If you want a perfect house go buy a new house, not a house built in 1958! Oh and good luck finding a new house for $415,000 in Denver! Or an older house as nice as ours! 2,200 square feet, four bedrooms, two full baths and one-half bath, a fully finished basement, plus a new roof in Olde Town Arvada for $415,000?!?!?!? Who do you think you are? This house isn't good enough for you? This house was good enough to live in for nine years! This house was good enough to raise my boys in! This house was good enough for me and my family! Yet, this person doesn't think this house is good enough for them?!?!?! They are wrong! You are not good enough for this house! You don't deserve this house! My house! I was not happy. This "buyer" really set me off. One, because they had caused us to lose a house Steph and I absolutely loved and two, because I really felt insulted that they would feel this way about a house that we had raised our family in. Perhaps that is irrational, but then anger and frustration have a way of making the irrational seem perfectly rational.

So, the question begs, "Now what?" Steph and I spoke for a long time about this very question. For now, we'll stay. We don't hate this house, actually we kind of like it- the look of the neighborhood, well that's a different issue. So we'll stay until Cameron is through or almost through high school. We're going to hire our own structural engineer to do a full survey on our house so we can get a full, true picture of the actual state of our house. And then, in a couple of years, put it up for sale again and move to our next "dream home". For now, we are content in our house as well as knowing the buyer is never going to find anything as charming or as nice for the price as our sixty-year-old house in Olde Town Arvada.

An Ending And Then A Beginning

Today, May 30th, is the last day of the school year for me. The students last day was last Thursday, the 24th. I’ve spent the last few days finishing grades (for the most part, they were good), cleaning my room (it’s amazing how messy things can get in nine months time), packing things up (it’s amazing how many things teachers accumulate over the course of twenty years), and attending meetings here and there (yuck!). Now I sit in an empty classroom looking at thirty empty desks that once were occupied by a total 124 students over the course of the day during the past school year, most of whom were reluctant to do much of anything beyond looking at their phones. Most of these students were willing to put aside the latest snapchat, or a game of Fortnight, or the text from their friends about where they were going to go for lunch if you asked them to and at least indulge your request that they learn about the Iranian Hostage Crisis or the nuances of the New Deal. I look at my classroom walls which are wallpapered in various historical photos, old newspapers with blaring headlines, political cartoons drawn for me by past students, and senior pictures of former students I’ve had over the past twenty years. For nine months out of the year, these walls contain almost constant noise of bustling students busily shuffling papers and excitedly talking with their friends, my yelling as I describe the horrors of trench warfare, the buzz of students as they work (or often times- not really work) in groups as they grapple with the complexities of the Great Depression, as well as my rap that I recite when another war is imminent. But now the walls contain silence save for the gentle tapping of my keyboard. The hallways outside my classroom walls, often a cacophony of sound as students hurrying- or not so much- to class or the bathroom is as silent as the grave with the occasional sounds of teachers walking by and the muffled laughter emanating from unknown classrooms as teachers trade humorous stories. Other than that, the only sound within the school is the constant low hum of the air conditioning that only seems to cool the air in the hallway of the second floor of the school and not the oven that the classrooms become.

I will spend my summer recharging from the sixty-plus hour work weeks I routinely put in during the school year. I will spend time with my family and in doing so, remember why my life is so good. I will read- a lot- so that I will have more stories and antidotes for my lessons next year. Shortly after my birthday in the middle of July, my thoughts will begin to turn to what is coming soon and I will begin planning for the 2018-2019 school year. Redesigning lessons, rearranging units, creating new approaches to old topics. Soon August will arrive and with it, the beginning of a new school year.

August brings both welcome and unwelcome changes to the summer routine. I do look forward to going back to school. I tend to get bored during the summer. I will become reacquainted with fellow teachers as we regale one another with our various summer adventures. I will meet and welcome new teachers either to the profession or the school. A new roster of new students will greet me as I open my Campus App on my computer. Copies will need to be made as a fresh new year approaches. These are the welcome changes. The unwelcome changes? Well, those are easy to point out; meetings, meetings, meetings, oh and did I mention meetings? Meetings outlining all of the great new stuff that will revolutionize education and rocket us forward in ways never thought possible. The greatest innovations in education… at least until next year when we will be informed that the old ways no longer worked and these new ways are the way to go. New teachers are eager and excited, hanging on every word and phrase, furiously taking notes they know will transform their teaching. "Experienced" teachers eyes glaze over from the new phraseology for old, tired tactics. They pensively look at other seasoned teachers as if to say 'Can the students come back today? Please?' Soon enough the hallways come alive again with the shouts and giggles of incoming Freshman who are hopelessly lost, Sophomores who are thankful they are no longer Freshmen, Juniors who are content they have lasted this long and know the end is around the corner, and Seniors who believe May can't get here soon enough. My empty desks will once again be filled with students who are all at once excited to be back in school with their friends and favorite teachers while at the same time upset that one of their last truly great summers has come to a close. The bell will ring and I will once again stand in front of fresh young students, glowingly bronzed from a summer of enjoyment and say to them "Welcome to American History. The story of how you and everything you know around you came to be." With that, a new school year will begin. And we will again be hurtling down a path that we can't predict or foresee except that it will once again end in silence and alone in our collective classrooms at the end of May.

Education is very unique in that it is one of the few professions out there that has a very definite beginning and a very definite end. Often times those beginnings and endings are hectic, frustrating, stressful, and not-so-pretty. But I can honestly say that I have never not enjoyed either the beginning or the end. Both are exciting, fun and enjoyable for different reasons. And I absolutely love what takes place in between the beginning and the end. The summers are nice too, jus' sayin'... People have begun to ask me how much longer I have until retirement. Not sure what that means; do I look older than I really am? Are they secretly hoping that I'm close to retirement? Not sure. My response is always the same; "I have at least ten more years before I can retire. However, if, in ten years, I still enjoy what I'm doing and I still feel that I am effective in the classroom, then I may have another fifteen or twenty years left in me." I believe most teachers think the same way although they may not always feel that way.

For my non-educator friends, I want them to know that teachers do not go into education for June, July, and August. That really is not a consideration of most teachers. Most go into education because they are eternal optimists, who believe that the future is bright and that they can help mold and shape the future for the better. Teachers believe that what they do is important and that what they do matters. In pursuing those halcyon dreams, teachers are also willing to accept frustrations and resistance- trust me, it is often a herculean effort getting thirty kids to do something that they really would rather not.

For my educator friends, enjoy the silence and the solitude. Soon the noise and commotion will return.

Guns, Schools and Politics: An American After School (Not So) Special

Locks, lights, out of sight.

Former Denver conservative radio talk show host, Mike Rosen, used to demand of callers when they would call into his show that they tell him "where they sit before they tell him where they stand". So I will do just that. I am a registered Republican, always have been, although if you know me you also know that I feel I have been abandoned by my party. I am a conservative. I like and want small, limited government, however, I do understand the need for government to exist and have some presence in our lives in order to maintain order and prevent chaos from reigning as well as providing basic services for its citizens. I do support the 2nd Amendment and support the right of people to own guns. I myself own guns...plural, "guns". Although  I don't own and really don't have any desire to own one, I have had experience with an AR-15. I also believe the time has come to have a serious discussion about AR-15s, other assault rifles and guns in general in American society. My kids, my students, your kids are too important not to have this discussion.

The phrase I started this essay with is a phrase that is repeated in my classroom at least two times a year. In addition to the cursory fire drills, schools also practice active shooter in the building drills. When students hear "Locks, lights, out of sight" on the intercom they, unfortunately, know what that means; the door must be locked immediately, all lights must be shut off, shades must be drawn and they must get on the floor out of sight from any windows. Students are instructed they are to remain silent until told otherwise (this is an exceptionally hard thing for Freshmen as the boys can't seem to keep their hands off of each other and girls giggle about everything incessantly). We are not allowed to open the door for anybody, anything or any reason. Even if they are pounding on the door demanding, begging, pleading that we let them in. I have a Home Depot bucket in my room filled with kitty litter, a curtain and toilet paper in case the lockdown lasts a while and your bladder can't. I also have some snacks in there, just in case we get the urge to eat I guess. The sad part of this is that this is "normal" for schools. It shouldn't be, but it is. This is wrong and it should be. Schools should be about friends, recess, Prom, classes, cool teachers, mean teachers and grades, not drills for an active shooter. I can honestly say I can't remember any time I've heard about a school catching on fire during the school day and teachers or students saying that they were thankful they had done fire drills. But I have heard of school shootings and teachers, as well as students, talk about the drills they have done in preparation for one. This must stop. We must address the elephant in the room. We must actively find solutions to this now. It shouldn't be harder for people to get a drivers license than it is to get a gun. An 18-year kid can't buy beer, but that same kid can buy a gun. None of that makes sense. However, there are a plethora of reasons why people will say that any discussion on the availability to get guns is a non-starter. Allow me to address some of these reasons.

This Is A Mental Health Issue Not A Gun Issue
Arguing that this is a mental health issue is like arguing that water isn't wet. OF COURSE IT IS!!!!!! Anytime anyone for any reason kills another person, there is some sort of psych issue taking place. We should increase access and funding for mental health, we should also address the availability of weapons to people who have mental health issues. Normal, sane people don't just kill other people.

However, if this is your argument yet you supported the repeal of a law that made it very difficult for people with mental issues to get a hold of a weapon you are either a charlatan or a hypocrite. If you call for more access to health care to help "these people" but you also supported cutting funding for healthcare which would have granted access for "these people" to get mental health help, your credibility is at best questionable. Think before you act. Politicians are elected to represent all citizens, not just some. Do what is best for the people of this nation, rather than focus on your base.

Next!

We Could Prevent School Shootings By Placing Armed Veterans In Schools
A noble idea to be sure. I love veterans and support veterans 100%. But there are a few problems here. First, if we are really worried about becoming a police state, is the best way to prevent that by having armed people roaming the halls of our schools. Do we want our future decision makers to see having heavily armed people in their lives as normal? I've been in countries where it is very common to see heavily armed police and military personnel standing on street corners and along highways. It is very unnerving. Are things really that unsafe, that this is "normal"? That is not a society in which I would want to live.

Second, this takes money. How are these veterans going to be paid? Currently, there are about 140,000 schools in the country. Let's say that each school has an armed veteran in each school earning a salary of $45,000. This comes out to costing taxpayers over $6 Billion a year!!! And that's just salary. This doesn't include paying for equipment, benefits and other costs of employment. $6 billion a year!!!! I have to buy kleenex for my classroom out of my pocket because we don't have enough budget to buy kleenex! We have to worry about the number of copies we make because our copy budget is limited. But somehow we can come up with $6 billion a year to have heavily armed veterans walk the halls of our schools?

Next!

We Can Arm Our Teachers
You cannot be serious. I have known teachers my whole life. I am around teachers all the time. I do not want most of these people to have a gun, especially in a high-pressure situation as an active shooter. Many of these people are dangerous to be around when they have a marker in their hands and you want them to have a gun? C'mon! Seriously!

Also, many teachers, especially young teachers, don't make a lot of money. I personally know of teachers who have Masters Degrees but live in their parent's basement because their student loans are too high and they don't make enough money to live on their own. I just read an article that teachers in Oklahoma want four day weeks so they can go get a job at Wal-Mart just so they can make enough money to pay rent and eat. But you think they can afford to buy a gun? Seriously!

Next!

The 2nd Amendment

Do not lecture me about the 2nd Amendment. Trust me, I've spent my whole life studying and learning American history. It is not only my profession, it is my passion. One of my areas of emphasis is early American history (1700-1815), trust me I understand why the 2nd Amendment was added and all of the nuances far better than most. I also know that the last part of the 2nd Amendment states that people are to have guns in order to have a well-organized militia. If you can explain to me why that last statement was included in the 2nd Amendment, then we can continue to have a discussion. But if your understanding of the 2nd Amendment begins and ends with "It's my damn right to own guns! It's guaranteed by the Constitution!" Then you are not helping your cause any and only helping to perpetuate a stereotype. I don't think we should take away all guns. No president has ever advocated for that; no not even Obama. But I do think it is time that we discuss what is necessary and decent and what is not. Handguns, shotguns, rifles are fine. Most people would agree with this statement. You can use handguns for self-defense. Shotguns and rifles are used for hunting. I and most Americans would agree with and support these weapons. However, so-called assault rifles are not practical for either self-defense or hunting. They have one purpose; to kill or maim as many people in a short amount of time. Barry Goldwater, the father of modern American conservative thought and political icon for me once stated "I've been a member of the NRA, I collect, make and shoot guns. I've never used an automatic or semiautomatic for hunting. There's no need to. They have no place in anyone's arsenal. If any S.O.B. can't hit a deer with one shot, then he ought to quit shooting." I am not sure if assault weapons fit under the heading of a "well-regulated militia". I just don't.

Next!

It's UnAmerican
I find this a very curious statement. Since when is it unAmerican to try and protect our people? We have a plethora of laws on the books designed to do exactly that. In the early 1900's laws were passed to ensure the meat and medicine that we ingested was safe and wouldn't kill us. There are laws and regulations in place to ensure that our working conditions were safe. Laws were passed mandating an 8-hour workday and forbidding the use of child labor. It is against the law to bring a weapon to a park, government building, or school. When these laws were passed there were people who fought vigorously against them and warned that this was the first step towards Bolshevism. Well over a hundred years have passed and we are not addressing one another as Comrade or standing in line for toilet paper. However, our society is for the better because of these laws. We are safer now than we were then.

Many people who balk at any notion of any type of gun laws look upon the Old West with nostalgia. They see it as an idyllic time when men were men and justice was swift. However, what many of these people who look favorably upon this time don't realize or choose to ignore is that most of the towns in the Old West forbid anyone in town from carrying a weapon. If someone happened to be visiting the town, they were required to drop off their firearm at the local sheriff's office lest they be paid a visit by the sheriff so he could collect their gun during their stay. Indeed, this was one of the reasons that the infamous Gun Fight at the OK Corral took place in Tombstone, AZ. There is hardly anyplace that embodies the spirit and ideas of America than the Old West and they saw the safety of their citizens as the most American of ideals.

When the NRA was founded it had nothing to do with allowing people to own guns or an almost irrational defense of the 2nd Amendment. No, when it began shortly after the Civil War, its purpose and goal were much more limited and modest. Look it up if you don't believe me. At one time the NRA supported and worked with the American government in limiting access to guns. During the 1920's, the NRA proposed laws that mandated 5 years of additional prison time if a gun was used in the commission of a crime, forbid people from carrying weapons on their person, a one day waiting period before the possession of a gun could take place and local police had to be notified of all gun sales. With the increased violence of the Prohibition Era, Franklin Roosevelt proposed a series of new, tougher gun laws; the 1934 National Firearms Act and the 1938 Gun Control Act. These laws forbid the purchase of the so-called "Tommy Gun" (Thompson submachine gun) favored by the gangsters of the day, outlawed sawed-off shotguns and silencers, required all gun purchases to be registered with the federal government and forbid felons from buying guns. These laws were supported and advocated for by the NRA. In fact, the president of the NRA at the time, Karl T. Fredrick, testified in a congressional hearing on these laws stating, "I have never believed in the general practice of carrying weapons. I do not believe in the general promiscuous toting of guns. I think it should be sharply restricted and only under licenses."

Furthermore, during the 1980's when gang violence seemed to rule the streets in places like Los Angeles, Chicago, and New York, laws were passed, with the support of Conservative icon and one of my political idols Ronald Reagan, that outlawed the sale of "armor piercing bullets" for handguns. The reason for this was because so many police officers were being shot and killed. A justifiable reason as any for such a law. We do not want those protecting us to be killed in the course of doing their job. The death of law enforcement officials spurs many into action to ensure it doesn't happen again, and rightly so. The same should be true for the senseless killing of our students and school employees. It should not be unAmerican to want to protect our future from dying before their future has begun.

A Proposal

What I would propose would be more requirements and restrictions on gun ownership.  This is for the safety and protection of not only others but also the gun owner themselves. At one time anyone at any age could drive a car so long as they could reach the pedals and steering wheel. We, as a society, quickly realized this probably was not a good idea. There were numerous serious and deadly crashes and we could see that the problem would only get worse as more and more cars appeared on the roads. So we instituted laws to maintain safety for all. A driving age was instituted, a procedure was created to ensure that only people who knew the rules and could demonstrate they could safely operate a car could get a license. Amazingly, on a per capita basis, the number of deadly and serious accidents began to precipitously drop once these regulations began to be put in place. I've never heard anyone argue that people should be allowed to drive without proving they are capable. Never. In fact, many of the same people who would chafe under increased requirements to get a gun are the exact same people who willingly sign up for concealed carry classes and then brag about it! I would propose that people who wish to own a gun must pass a mental competency and background check, take and pass a gun safety course, then demonstrate some degree of proficiency with that gun in front of an instructor before they could be licensed and allowed to take ownership of a gun. No rights are being violated, anyone who wanted a gun could still own one. No one has a problem with this process for the privilege of driving a car, why would it be a problem with owning a gun? You cannot possess a live hand grenade, there are rules and regulations on owning tanks, cannons and anti-aircraft guns and no one seems to question those rules or argue that their rights are being violated.

Have an assault rifle? Fine, you can keep them, but you cannot sell them. And you must notify law enforcement of your ownership. That way if the police have to respond to a disturbance in your home they are aware of the possible risks and if you are ever convicted of a violent crime or felony they can confiscate that weapon. But from this point forward, no more assault weapons can be sold to the general public. I like my guns, I love my freedom but I care for my kids, my students, and your kids more.

Conclusion
In 2012 after the New Town shooting, President Obama called for an increase in gun control laws as he wiped tears from his eyes. Donald Trump, yes THAT Donald Trump, tweeted his approval stating that "President Obama spoke for me and every American in his remarks in #Newtown, Connecticut"Trump Newtown Tweet And yet all our politicians seem to be able to do is offer "thoughts and prayers" and little else. They seem to believe that "thoughts and prayers" will solve the problem. It doesn't. Thoughts and prayers ring more and more hollow with every senseless shooting. Such inept words do little to soothe the anguish of parents whose child died in a pool of blood on the floor of a classroom. Words may never hurt you, but they will do little to heal you.

This past week I was reminded of a conversation I had with a student in 2012 after the New Town shooting. We were discussing the tragedy and the heroic actions of the teachers who were killed while trying to shield and hide their students. The student asked me 'If that happened here would you do the same trying to protect students?' I stopped for a second and replied, 'Yeah, I'd like to think I would. I think I would do the same.' The student thought for a moment and looked off at the wall, then looked at me and said, 'But you shouldn't have to, your job is to teach us history and stuff like that. It's not to protect us from a shooter.'

The student was right, it's not my job to protect students from a shooter, it's not.

But, unfortunately, it is. 

Black and White and Hate and Hope

Hate and Hope.

Right and Wrong and In Between

My oldest son, Ayden, is a passionate soul. He’s passionate about normal teenage stuff; his phone, sleeping, football, girls, video games, his phone, girls, and sleeping. He’s passionate about learning new and different things about the world around him. Turning in his schoolwork on time or at all? He’s not so passionate about that. He’s passionate about music, he plays the guitar (and he’s quite good) and he sings (and he’s really good). He is also passionate about human rights, he’s passionate about the underdog and underclass, he’s passionate about social justice, and he’s passionate about righteousness and good triumphing over evil and bad. His passion for social justice and righteousness is so strong that he only sees things as right or wrong, he loses rationality and objectivity. This is not uncommon for teenagers who often only tend to see things as white or black. His political beliefs and mine don’t match up at all. In any aspect. This has led to many, many intense debates between he and I. One of our most frequent debates is over the issue of race and racism.

Both of us are in agreement that any type of racism against any race is wrong and unacceptable. Both of us are in agreement that any type of bigotry against anyone, any religion, and lifestyle, or any gender is intolerable. Where we differ is in our understanding of redemption and rehabilitation. I believe it is possible. Ayden, for the most part, does not.

We were recently watching a TV show, and a story came on about Daryl Davis, a black man who just couldn’t understand or comprehend the concept of racism. He could not wrap his head around the notion that someone could hate him if that person did not know him. So, Davis actively seeks out members of the KKK and goes to talk with them to find out why they hold the beliefs they do. He does this not just out of curiousness but he also does it because he wants to make friends with them. And often times he does and very often Davis gets the KKK member to give him their hood and robe as they disavow the KKK. Davis’ philosophy is simple; you can’t hate an entire group of people just because, and you can’t automatically hate someone if you don’t know them. During the interview, Davis said that he believed if you sat down with someone and just talked for five minutes you would find something you have in common with each other. Then you could talk about that commonality for ten more minutes and that would lead to other things you have in common and soon you would realize that you have a lot more in common than you do not. Davis’ philosophy was simple: You don’t have to like everything about a person but there is almost always something about every person that you can like. You just need to talk and interact with people.

This story launched Ayden and me into another discussion about racism and bigotry. Ayden tends to believe that once a person is a racist or bigot, that’s a tough stain to come back from. I tend to believe that people can change. Just because you once were a “bad” person doesn’t condemn you to always being a bad person. I choose not to associate with racists and bigots on a personal level. I certainly don’t condone their beliefs or lifestyle but I also believe that people can have an honest change of heart and redeem themselves to become productive and positive forces in society. As always happens when Ayden and I discuss this topic the conversation quickly turns to Nazi’s. Ayden harbors a special hatred for Nazi’s. I certainly strongly dislike them as well. But Ayden, he despises them. And when our conversation turns to Nazi’s that’s when our conversation steps up to a whole new level of discourse.

Nazi’s, Rights, and Wrongs

Both Ayden and I have no use for Nazi’s and their abusive, destructive ideology. I don’t understand that level of hate. I don’t understand how you can believe you are better than another person simply because the color of your skin is different from another’s. I don’t understand how you can believe that someone is inferior to you simply because their religious beliefs are different than yours. None of that unfounded hatred makes any sense to me. On this point, Ayden and I agree. Beyond this, Ayden and I agree on very little when it comes to Nazi’s and unfettered hatred. Ayden believes that the way to defeat Nazi’s is through violence. Wherever Nazi’s are, they should be met with physical force. Attack and intimidation is the antidote to Nazism and those of their ilk according to my oldest. I disagree, violence only begets violence. When your entire philosophy is predicated upon violent confrontation, physical intimidation, and submission via force I believe you are only buttressing and validating their convictions by physically attacking them. Nazi’s and those of similar creeds relish physical confrontations. Iron sharpens iron. You cannot hope to defeat the ideologies that you detest if you engage in the same tactics that you abhor. When combating racism, bigotry, and hatred in all its forms and creations you will always win the intellectual and moral arguments. Hatred, racism, and bigotry hold no high ground in any principled discussion. Physically attacking those with whom you vehemently disagree only lowers you to their level. Nazi’s and Fascists did exactly this in Germany and Italy when they were coming to power by employing young men to assault on sight those who were opposed to their philosophies and intimidating their opponents into submission and the shadows of society. I do believe, however, if you are attacked or physically threatened by these troglodytes, then, by all means, fight with a violent will and be merciless, but do not attack with the only provocation being the mere sight of these people. On this point, Ayden and I go around and around with each other.

Another point of strong contention between Ayden and I is over the “rights” of these people and their freedom of speech. Ayden once asked me if I thought people had the right to be bigots, racists, or belong to the KKK or be a Nazi. This was an interesting question I thought. Not sure right is the correct term here. Usually, when I think of a “right” I think in terms of people believing in or subscribing to beliefs and ideologies that have some basis of rationalism and reality- you can understand why people would support those ideas even if you don’t. For instance, I don’t believe in any way, shape or form with Communism, but I can understand why it would be appealing to some people. I don’t subscribe to Atheism, but I can see why some people would. But when it comes to being a racist or bigot, I don’t understand how people can hold those views. To me people are people and that’s all. Some are good people and some are not but the color of their skin, their religion, their lifestyle or their gender does not determine if they are good or bad. So, with that understanding of a “right” I’m not sure that being a racist or bigot fits that description. Do people have the “right” to be a racist or bigot? I suppose they do although I really don’t understand how they can have those beliefs. Do people have the “right” to belong to the KKK or be a Nazi? Again, I suppose they do although I don’t understand how they can choose to belong to such groups. I believe those “rights” are protected by the First Amendment. Free Speech is tricky, often uncomfortable thing and often forces us to protect and defend things we find enormously offensive or repugnant. Where their rights end is when they seek to impose their will or thought on others in a violent fashion. Ayden vehemently disagrees with this argument. No one he argues has the “right” to be racist or a bigot. No one, he believes, has the right to belong to the KKK or the Nazi’s. When I ask him how he would prevent people from being like that, he really doesn’t have an answer which I guess circles back to my beliefs: You can’t prevent people from believing racist ideology or belonging to various groups. Nor would I really want to. As much as I abhor and detest people like that, I don’t want to begin passing laws against it. That is a slippery slope. How do you determine which groups or thoughts are okay and which are not? Who gets to determine that? What is the punishment for offenses? Why is that the punishment? Who gets to determine the punishment? Why do those people get to determine the punishment? And then once we feel satisfied that we have squashed out the groups we feel repugnant do we then begin to go after the Republicans or the Democrats because some of the people from the “subversive” groups migrated to those parties? Do we go after the Boy Scouts because they only allow boys and at one time would not allow homosexuals? Where does the cleansing end? Is this a society we want to live in? For me, it is not.

So, do people have the “right” to be racist, bigoted and belong to organizations that promote their ideas? For me, yeah, I suppose they do. Would I defend their “rights”? I would defend their rights to hold those beliefs, to write about their beliefs, to publish and promote their beliefs. But I could not and would not ever defend their beliefs or promote their beliefs. Defending their right to think and say what they do is very different from defending their beliefs. Ayden disagrees, in his mind defending their right to think things is the same as defending their beliefs. And that comes back to my understanding of “rights”. I understand how my son arrives at this belief. I can, when I look at it from his perspective, get where he is coming from. But I don’t agree with his perception, but I will defend his right to hold that belief.

Teenage Vision, Hate, and Hope

All of this brings me back to my earlier point at the beginning of this essay; Can people change their ideas and redeem themselves when they have previously held socially destructive, divisive and repugnant ideas or belonged to hateful groups and organizations? Ayden, for the most part, believes they can’t. He doesn’t believe he could ever like someone who at one time held hateful ideas or belonged to socially divisive organizations. Once a bigot, always a bigot. Once a racist you will always have racist thoughts in Ayden’s eyes. I believe the opposite. People have a change of heart all the time. People can see the error of their ways and rebuild their standing within their community and repair any relationships they may have damaged because of their beliefs. People can always become better, people can always become good. Even when they were the worst of the worst. People are just people.

I believe that over time Ayden’s views on humanity and the world will change. Probably not radically, he’ll always retain his core values. But, I do believe that he will begin to see the nuances of issues and people, he will begin to begin to see the grey and less black and white. It happens to all of us. When we were teenagers, we were sure we knew the world and how to fix it because we could see with such clarity the right and wrongs and we couldn’t understand how the older generations had such blurred vision when it came to the world. As we grew older, we’ve come to realize that it was us, as teenagers, who had the blurred vision because we saw things in such stark contrasts. We’ve come to realize the world is not black and white, it is not good and bad. In fact, there is more in the middle than there is anywhere else. Ayden will come to see that as well as he gets older I’m sure. As for me, I can’t hate people, certainly not people that I don’t know or have ever met. I can’t hate people because I disagree with their politics, their religion, their lifestyle, or their core beliefs. I have to meet people and get to know them before I can dislike them. And even then, hating them is hard. Hating takes too much time, effort and energy to sustain and the people who you would hate are not worth that type of effort. I can say that every time I meet someone, I can always find something about them that I like or admire. That is the point that I am trying to teach to Ayden. Before you hate a person, you have to know that person. Once you know that person, you will realize there is hope.

Hope always beats hate.

Tis The Season

‘Tis the season.

Since this is my December blog I thought I should do something a little holidayish. My blogs have been about my views on education issues or my far-flung opinions on politics but for this one, since it is that time of year I thought I would write about Christmas itself. Growing up Catholic with a mom who adored Christmas so much that it was HER that found it hard to sleep on Christmas night and was usually the one getting the family up on Christmas morning, I too, have a strong affinity for Christmas. My wife tells people that I have accumulated so many Christmas decorations over the past 45 years that our house looks like it “threw-up Christmas”. Well, it is true. I do love Christmas and everything that comes with it- even the hustle and bustle of the season. So, with my passion for Christmas plus my almost insatiable appetite for anything and all things history, it just made sense to me to write a post about how the Christmas we know today came to be. Hope you enjoy.

The Reason for The Season

We’ve heard it before, “Jesus is the Reason for The Season”. Indeed, the very word “CHRISTMAS” comes from the high mass of the Catholic Church celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ. It was the Mass of Christ, hence the name Christmas. So, is December 25^th the day that Jesus Christ was born? Honestly, we don’t know. The Bible, while having several stories in it concerning the birth of Christ, never gives a date for his birth. Employing historical thinking skills (see history is useful) we can make an educated guess, assuming the Bible stories are fairly accurate in their description of the time, that he was born sometime in the spring. The Bible tells of shepherds sleeping under the stars tending their flock and caring for their newborn lambs. We know that the desert would be too cold for shepherds to sleep under the stars at night in the winter and that lambs are born in the spring, not in the winter. Furthermore, according to the Bible, Joseph and Mary were on their way to Bethlehem to take place in the Roman census, since Roman law required the man to return to the place of his birth when a census was being conducted. The Roman Empire conducted a census every five years and was done in either late summer/early Fall or in the Spring so as to not interfere with the harvest and the census was never conducted in the Winter because travel was often difficult during that time of year. Therefore, using the stories in the Bible about the birth of Christ, we can reasonably assume that he was born in the spring as opposed to December 25^th. So, the question begs; How did December 25^th come to celebrated as the birthday of Jesus Christ?

The Pagans and the Christians

As with many of the cherished traditions of the Christmas season that we now view as being unquestionable “Christmas”, most have been adopted from pagan traditions and incorporated into the Christian faith and holiday. The reason for this is very simple and pragmatic. As the Christians were trying to convert the European continent from their pagan religions to Christianity the Christian missionaries kept running into a very vexing problem. They found that in many cases the pagans were more than willing to adopt the new Christian religion but were unwilling to give up many of their pagan traditions and holidays. It seems that pagans found early Christianity a bit drab and boring. So, to overcome this obstacle, the Christian missionaries simply found a way to incorporate these pagan traditions and holidays into Christianity. December 25^th is one of the earliest and best examples of this.

The European pagan religions had always held some sort of Winter Solstice celebration full of drink and great feasts and gatherings. In the Roman Empire, they would celebrate the Roman God Saturn during a weeklong celebration known as “Saturnalia”. This week of festive reveling and feasting would begin on December 21^st  and featured elite Romans giving gifts of charity to the less fortunate as well as bestowing gifts and gratitude among each other. In ancient Persia, the pagans there celebrated the birth of their Sun God Mithra on the 25^th of December. They also called the day he was born as the “Day of The Sun” hence the day SUNDAY was born.

Being well aware of these celebrations and how important and enjoyable they were to pagans, but also finding that many were willing to convert to Christianity if only there were some incentive, Christian missionaries began to adopt these pagan traditions into Christianity.

For the European pagans and Romans, the Christians adopted the great gatherings and feasts that were so prominent and important to these people in late December during the Winter Solstice. However, instead of celebrating the Winter Solstice and Saturn, these feasts and gatherings would celebrate the birth of the Christian savior, Jesus Christ. Gift giving was still encouraged and welcome, however, this would be in remembrance of the gifts bestowed upon Christ by the Three Wise Men rather than in celebration of a pagan god. Charity towards the less fortunate was encouraged because this is a reflection of Christ’s life work rather than an offering to Saturn. To convert the Persian pagans, Christian missionaries chose December 25^th was the day of the birth of the Christian messiah, not the birthday of the Sun God Mithra. The Bible never gives a date for the birth of Jesus which means it is entirely possible that it could very well have been on the 25^th of December. You can continue to celebrate that day as you normally would do, the Persians were told, but now you would be celebrating the birth of Christ. All of these adoptions and incorporations worked exceedingly well as Christianity began to rapidly sweep across Europe and the Roman Empire as well as making significant inroads into the Persian world. Christianity began to flourish.

Greenery and Lights

As Christianity pushed further north into Europe it began to encounter new pagan groups who were, all at once, suspicious, interested and hostile towards this new religion. Again, as a way to overcome these obstacles, Christian missionaries began to adopt many of these pagan traditions into Christianity and one of its holiest days.

These Germanic tribes also observed the Winter Solstice and celebrated mightily in late December. However, these tribes would go into the forest and cut down an evergreen tree as well as other greenery and bring it into their lodges and homes as a reminder that spring would soon be here to chase away the darkness of winter. They would decorate the branches of the tree with various trinkets and offerings hoping to please the gods and thus bring about an early end to winter. These tribes would also frequently attach candles to the branches of the trees so as to chase away the demons that accompanied the darkness of winter. Often times a Yule Log would be a centerpiece at this time for these Germanic tribes. A Yule Log was a large log that had been blessed by a pagan priest to be placed into the fireplace and be burned continuously over the course of several days to illuminate the dark and chase away the evil spirits. All of these traditions were important to the pagan people in North-Central Europe and proved to be an obstacle to converting many of them to Christianity. Understanding how well it worked before to adopt traditions into Christianity rather than try to quash these traditions, Christians looked for ways to adopt these traditions as symbols of the faith.

Continue to bring the evergreens into your house during the Winter Solstice, these Germanic tribes were told, as it represents the eternal life of Jesus Christ. For just as these trees do not die in the depths and darkness of winter, neither does the life or teachings of Jesus Christ. Continue to decorate the trees with ornaments as it represents the gifts to mankind and the everlasting goodness of the Christian God. Continue to illuminate and warm your homes with the Yule Log and candles as it is a representation of the Light of God. And yes, of course, continue to feast, revel and drink as you have always done for it celebrate the goodness of Christianity and honor God who gave his only son to us. And Christianity continued to flourish.

Interestingly enough, the “Christmas Tree” remained very much a German tradition until the 1840’s. It was during this time that the husband of Queen Victoria, Prince Albert, who was born and raised in Germany introduced the Christmas tree to England, putting one in the royal palace in London. A postcard was circulated showing the beloved royal family gathered around the tree and a tradition was born. The tradition reached the US in the 1850’s when the same postcard was circulated, but without any depiction of the royal family so that the concept would look “American”. Huh! Isn’t history fascinating?

Saint Nicholas

Of all the traditions and imagery of Christmas, this one may be the only one that is truly, uniquely and wholly Christian without any rooting in pagan traditions.

St. Nicholas was a Christian missionary from present-day Turkey during the 4^th century. His parents were very wealthy and died while he was fairly young. Nicholas was a very devout Christian and used his family’s enormous wealth to benefit those in need. One of our most cherished Christmas traditions is firmly rooted in the most famous tale of St. Nicholas’ kindness. It seems as though there was a very poor man with three daughters who wished to get married, however, this man being very poor, could not offer any dowry thus meaning that his daughters could not get married. One night St. Nicholas, being from a very wealthy family, dropped a bag of gold down this man’s chimney so that he could have a dowry to marry off one of his daughters. This bag of gold happened to land into the sock which had been hung by the fire to dry. No one knew for sure where the gold had come from but most suspected it was from St. Nicholas. Henceforth, during the early days of Christianity, it became very popular among Christians to leave food and small playthings beside the fireside for children to find on Christmas morning. The explanation for the gifts being that St. Nicholas must have visited during the night.

With the Reformation in the 16^th century, the stories of St. Nicholas fell out of favor, after all, no good God-fearing Protestant could ever honor any Catholic person or tradition, no matter how appealing they may be. However, the problem persisted, the children still needed gifts delivered on Christmas morning. So, the British created their own version of St. Nicholas; Father Christmas. The Germans created the child “Christkind” who apparently at some point and time grew up to become “Kris Kringle”. The Dutch created “Sinterklaas” Eventually the Dutch version of Sinterklaas became Americanized into our modern-day Santa Claus. And a legend was born.

Early on, this gift-bearer for children was depicted as a rather tall, skinny raggedy man, almost like a beggar, roaming the countryside distributing gifts. However, the 1823 poem “A Visit From St. Nick” re-imagined this bedraggled legendary man as a plump, jolly elf. The most prominent and influential political cartoonist of all time, Thomas Nast, gave us our first true definitive visual of our modern-day Santa Claus and in the early 1900’s Coca-Cola refined the image even more. And now this home invading, cookie eating behemoth visits every mall in the western world during the month of December and is to small children what Taylor Swift is to 12 and 13-year-old girls.

Puritans, The New World and Christmas
Christmas had a very rough beginning in what would become the United States. In the 1600's as the Puritans and Pilgrims (they are two very different groups and neither really appreciated the other) began to populate the New England area with various settlements. Both also had a very stern anti-Christmas view of this now well established European holiday. So much so, that they passed laws expressly forbidding the celebration of Christmas.

Puritans and Pilgrims sought to live very simply and live as closely to the tenets of the Bible as possible. Anything beyond what was contained in the Bible was sinful and against the word of God, in fact, it may very well be the work of Satan on Earth! Since the Bible never gave a date for the birth of Christ and it certainly never suggested that this date should be celebrated in any way, then Christmas obviously was ungodly and evil. Any recognition would not and could not be tolerated. It was obvious, in their eyes, that any revelry was the work of Satan as a way to draw you from the word of God towards evil, especially a "fake" celebration such as the fictitious birthdate of Jesus Christ. Merriment led to sin, sin led to eternal hell and damnation. Scary stuff.

So to avoid sin, damnation and the welcoming of the Devil into their lives and communities, early Puritans and Pilgrim settlements passed laws against the recognition or celebration of Christmas. The punishments for violating this holy law varied from being placed in the stocks for a period of time, to banishment from the community to hanging in severe cases (although there are no records of anyone receiving that sentence for celebrating Christmas). Puritans and Pilgrims were a rather morose bunch.

Over time, fewer and fewer young people wanted to be a Puritan or Pilgrim. Most young people found their beliefs too restrictive, too judgmental, too preachy, too boring and just not very appealing in general. Their numbers began to steadily drop as the 1700's approached, their laws and beliefs became less restrictive and judgmental. One of the first things to change was the recognition of Christmas. Young people have always enjoyed a good party and fun while children enjoy the prospect of receiving presents. Christmas was no longer taboo in the New World but was now in fact warmly and enthusiastically embraced. 

So, there you have it. A brief history of the Christmas that we all know and (for the most part) enjoy at this time of year. While it is ostensibly a Christian holiday, much of how Christmas looks have been cobbled together from many pagan traditions and repackaged into Christian representations. Many different traditions, cultures, and beliefs were combined into one holiday and perhaps that is what makes this the greatest holiday of them all. It can be all things to all people. For Christians, it is the celebration of the birth of the central figure in the Christian religion. For the non-Christian or simply the non-religious it is a day of good cheer and fellowship. For all, it is an opportunity to come together and celebrate our relationships as well as the opportunity to show our gratitude and love for one another. Yes, Christmas is a wondrous, wonderful day indeed.

God bless us all, everyone.

Merry Christmas.

Beyond Turkey, Stuffing and Cranberries

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.