Photo Credit: Kitty Kaht/Creative Commons
Many years ago, our then five-year-old son trudged into the kitchen,
“I don’t wanna go back to school.” He dropped his Ninja Turtle backpack on the floor and crossed his tiny arms to emphasize the point. “Mrs. C doesn’t like questions and she doesn’t like teaching kids either.”
Surely, he’d misjudged Mrs. C. The teacher we’d just met at Open House a week earlier seemed warm, welcoming, and open to creative little spirits and their quandaries.
I knelt and met my child at eye level. “What makes you say that, honey?”
“’Cause if we wanna know something, she says ‘Not Now’ or ‘Go back to your seat.’ And…if we have a problem, she tells us to go write it on the problem board.”
Hmmm.
“Problem board? What’s that?”
“It’s that big board on wheels with lots of white paper.”
Ahhh…yes. The one at the front of the classroom. I remembered seeing it at Open House.
“Well, did you have a question you needed help with?”
“No. I had a problem.” My son’s face clouded. “Tommy took all my pencils and snapped them in two. When I tried to tell Mrs. C she said, ‘Go write it down on the problem board and then your problem will go away.”
Really? What kind of nonsense was that?
“And so what did you do?”
“I wrote my name on the problem board. And then Mrs. C laughed at me and said ‘You have a problem with yourself?’”
I cringed.
Even today, I still frown at the memory.
What I eventually deduced:
- Most five-year-olds might be able to write their name, but very few write in complete sentences yet. Therefore—blank space on Mrs. C’s problem board equaled—well—no problem! (Ever.)
- Mrs. C’s methodology for handling her classroom on a day-to-day basis was far different from what my husband and I observed at Open House.“I try to make things as easy for the students and myself as I can. The less complicated, the better,” she told a group of parents one day.
- By easy and less complicated she meant unencumbered by demands, decisions, and anything else that required more than marginal effort.
I found that mindset disturbing, and to this day, Mrs. C’s words and attitude still resonate. It was and is so heartbreaking.
God doesn’t grant us creativity to waste, but He does set the bar high. He expects us to use good judgment when using our talents.
For writers (and many other professionals), words like easy and uncomplicated rarely mesh with success.
Most of us know by now that with anything worth having (a long-held dream, goal, or career), there’s going to be work involved.
Ignoring “problems,” neglecting the obvious, and expending little energy aren’t endearing qualities. They invite complacency and undermine God’s plan for our lives.
It’s a tough climate for writers just now, but heaven help us if we come to think of our craft as not worth the effort!
If you’re new to the writing journey, or if you’ve been at the process awhile like me, I hope you’ve decided to dig in your heels and not settle for the uncomplicated.
I hope you’ll think through, rise above, and go beyond the “problem boards” of life, yet be confident enough to realize that’s where the real stories are.
NOW…
Get ready to tackle some white space.
Don’t be afraid to write on it!
Happy weekend, friends!
******
Can you think of a time you felt ignored or that your problem didn’t matter?
How did you handle it?
Anything you’re tackling on your problem board today?
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If you’ve ever felt like your problem didn’t matter, this may help (Click to Tweet)
Blessings Always,
Comments 6
Yeah I’m with you…I don’t think “easy” and “uncomplicated” were ever meant to describe our lives or how we handle problems or especially a writer’s journey! I believe God gives us peace in the midst of problems and really does help us (much more than that teacher apparently did, that’s for sure), but that doesn’t mean it’s suddenly easy. 🙂
Author
Melissa, so true. I understood the teacher’s concept, but unfortunately, I don’t think her motives were pure. I often wondered over the years if that’s how she dealt with her own problems.
And “easy” and “writers life” in the same breath should be a crime. Ha!
This is interesting for me – when I was learning the math needed for stuff like the theory of elasticity, and the design of shell structures, I had a feeling that there had to be a quick and easy way to learn it – that if I just discovered it I would breeze through the derivations I needed to produce.
But it wasn’t true, ever. The work required a painstaking mathematical cut-and-fill, building proofs step-on-step. It wasn’t easy, it wasn’t elegant, and it most certainly was not fun. But it was correct, and met the standards of mathematical rigor.
Taking a leap (and maybe kicking over a can of worms!) I find that the same is true in marriage. Men and women are so different to begin with, and trying to take two different sets of life experiences and expectations and melding them into a shared life…I’m sometimes surprised that anyone is brave enough to try!
It takes work and care and the infinite patience to be painstaking in consideration, on a daily basis…even when this effort is not reciprocated.
It’s a leap of faith. No wonder we need to bring God in!
Author
Andrew, tremendous examples of why hard work and dedication trump “easy.” Ultimately, it’s the committed mindset that will see the biggest pay-off.
As always, I appreciate your comments. You inspire me!
Wow, that was a tough experience for that little fellow.
I like the idea of a problem board though, I think I could use one of those.
Author
Patti, yes, it was an experience our (educator) son still recalls vividly to this day. Needless to say, he has a different M-O in his classroom.