Every breakthrough I have ever made in teaching has come from a life-shifting chapter in my own experience. To be honest, these chapters might be better described as ‘ordeals’ — something long and hard and painful. Joy never quite registers… Read more ›
“You can’t think and feel at the same time.” I rejected this notion with a misplaced conviction that my attention acted as a gatekeeper for my senses. Want to feel something? Place your brain there to find it. I saw… Read more ›
A system is reliant on adherences to tradition. There is an underlying agreement that this is how things are done. Those the system served well (at least, perceptually) tend to place (or find) themselves in leadership positions that perpetuate… Read more ›
Alternative Title: When empathy feels like the greatest form of loving. We are all gifted time on this earth. We spend it in the ways that makes sense to us. We leave, we stay, we come back for.… Read more ›
That which is neglected has the utmost potential. For me, Physical Education (or PE) is that place and space, and a fairly reflective representation of myself. Take the time and interest to look closer, past the beige tinge and the… Read more ›
To cultivate is to note what is, and then steer what you notice toward a particular aesthetic or ambition. In a place that is not my own, or with people that I do not feel responsible for, I can linger… Read more ›
I’ve been teaching PE for twenty-three years. I’ve seen and survived a lot of things, just as my students have. The last five years have been particularly trying, both personally and professionally, culminating in a 2025 that rocked me to… Read more ›
I went to church today. It’s been a while. I was compelled to visit that Abbey that I took you to when you first visited me. We walked the ground and you confessed your sins. I keep a picture of… Read more ›
At the very beginning of the pandemic, I posted and article that asked, “How does one know what to do?” In it, I used the example of Kevin McCallister (via Home Alone) mimicking ‘adulting’ after his initial indulgence into… Read more ›
Three simple steps towards a state of satisfaction: 1. Get hurt. Physically, this is a no brainer. That skill or peak performance will not seem as important as getting out of pain. Mental-emotionally, this might be even more obvious.… Read more ›
To belong implies a selection was made. There was a choice and options. In my rugby years, making the Select Side was a sign of being elite. You were one of the best in your region. You were chosen from… Read more ›
Amongst other things, COVID-19 revealed how fragile the American educational system is, and how unadaptable it is to changing and evolving times. Designed to churn out compliant workers, it conflicts with the world around them — a burgeoning economy of… Read more ›
Part Three in a four-part series of relational examinations. Part One: Parents Part Two: Pets I never had any aspirations to be a teacher. I’d planned on becoming a physical therapist, but when it became clear that the training… Read more ›
Part Two in a four-part series of relational examinations. Part One: Parents I can think of no purer love than that of a dog for its person. They just want to be with, and play, and interact, and protect,… Read more ›
Part One in a four-part series of relational examinations. The family is your first introduction into relationships. They are the constant you are surrounded with, the base in which all other units are compared. The two people that set… Read more ›
Each of us resides in our own world. It may be one we created, one we filtered out from experience, or one that revolves around our investments in habit and attention. Once established and found comfortable, it becomes a prism… Read more ›
For a very long time, I blunted my sensitivity. It left me open to being hurt. I had to learn not to be responsive to being receptive. I adjusted my interactions with the world to protect me from it. My… Read more ›
The nature of hurt is a protective hardening. It heeds and is hypersensitive to perceived warnings of “don’t”, so much so that it often re-wires them as “can’t”. Doubt barricades them into safe worlds where they are capable and can… Read more ›
Knowing grounds us. It keeps us on firm footing, aligning our steps in certainty. We are familiar with the route and look at our phones along the way. This compass does not compel us. It is routine and habitual. Believing… Read more ›
The ego has many layers and interpretations. It can signify a sense of self, the definition of “I”, and/or the determination of esteem or importance. A psychoanalytical description fans this into, “the part of the mind that mediates between the conscious… Read more ›
I live a charmed existence. I get to play with kids and problem solve painful movement with adults. Familiar with the importance of each, I also teach teens about pain and guide adults toward rediscovering play. I step between the… Read more ›
Finding and being able to engage in what you’re passionate about is touted as the end all and be all of existence. Though loving what you do can lead to a love of self, it doesn’t quite translate into feeling… Read more ›