grace in controlled chaos

controlled chaos.  a term i've heard used often to describe the magic that happens everyday in classrooms.  after finishing my first week as a principal, however, i have a whole new understanding of it on a macro-level.  let me explain.

while i am no longer the person immediately responsible for twenty-something pre-adolescents every minute of the day,  i am now ultimately responsible for two hundred-plus children- their overall well-being, the quality of the education they are receiving, their parents' satisfaction, etc.  i'm also responsible for the twenty-ish adults who work in the building- for their well-being, for their relative happiness and job satisfaction, etc.  i'm also responsible for a century-old building and all of the fun that accompanies it.


what this looks like on a daily basis is me constantly on the move.  there is no "typical day", but here is a glance at one of my days last week:
7:00  Daily Mass
7:30  Walk around outside, greeting students and parents, answering questions, etc.
7:45  Accompany pre-k and k classes inside in an attempt to minimize tears and clingy parents
8:00  Help students lead prayer over the intercom
8:10  Check in with secretary; make sure she's not totally overwhelmed yet
8:20  Make rounds, greet each class, check in with each teacher
9:00  Deal with kindergartener who is hiding in the coat closet and refusing to come out
9:15  Check back in with secretary; attempt to not act overwhelmed when she hands me six phone messages for people I need to call back; attempt to return said calls
10:00  Meet with parent who doesn't understand paperwork for lunch program
10:30  Meet with parent who needs additional financial aid
11:00  Attempt to check email while aforementioned kindergartener sits at table in my office because he refuses to go back to his classroom
11:15  FedEx delivery of more textbooks; unpack boxes, deliver books to classrooms
11:30  Check in with first round of students having lunch out in the hall
11:45  Speak briefly with pastor who stops by to check in
12:00  Check in with second round of lunch
12:30  Check in with final round of lunch
12:45  Get four new phone messages from secretary; too overwhelmed to call back, I sit down and try to eat at least part of my lunch before something else gets thrown my way
1:00  Take 7th graders over to church to practice for Mass they are leading next week
1:30  Pre-k teacher comes into office with two students who were biting each other; previous policy was that biters immediately went home, no questions asked.  Decide quickly that this isn't fair since we haven't informed parents of this yet this year.  Tell teacher to send home warning, add policy description to this week's newsletter.
1:45  Attempt to respond to a few emails (only get to 2 out of 17)
2:10  Help students lead closing prayer and announcements over the intercom
2:15 Go outside with pre-k and k classes to help with dismissal, speak to mother of aforementioned kindergartener about ideas to help him transition more easily
2:45  Get back inside to be attacked by 5 teachers in a row needing different things
3:00  Find out what needs to be done before tomorrow from secretary before she leaves for the day; begin getting said things done.
7:00  Head home


Here's the thing: I don't want to jinx it, but right now, I'm thriving on the constant bombardment of different things.  Not only is everyday different, but every minute is different.  I never know what's coming next, and I love it.  It's energizing.  And relatively speaking, I've been able to handle everything that's come my way so far, in a relatively controlled manner.  Let's hope that's not just beginner's luck.

grace after grace after grace

all day long.  thank God, some days are like that!

• driving to school on a beautiful clear morning, with the pinkish-orange sun coming up and reflecting on the charles (oh how i love thee, storrow drive!), windows down, hair drying in the breeze.

• as i'm pulling into town, i drive past the bus stop.  an extremely inebriated woman (at 6:30 am- yikes) yells out to me, "HEYYYYYY!!!"  i smiled and said hi back (what else to do?).  she yelled back, "God bless you, ma'am!  have a great day!"  what better way to start one's day?  i mean, really.
• went to daily mass before school.  message: our words must be kind and our actions must reflect our words.  solid.
• came out of mass to children and parents everywhere.  walked around introducing myself and welcoming the kids.  loved speaking spanish!
• got to help numerous kindergarten students find their classroom...soooo precious.  did i mention i have the cutest kids ever?
• led morning prayer over the intercom (yay for figuring out the intercom, which appears to be older than my grandma!) and met with a mother whose husband has recently lost his job and she begged for a scholarship.  it was so humbling.  she started crying in my office and said she'd do anything she could- even clean bathrooms.  there are few things more inspiring than parents who so desperately want their children to receive a catholic education that they are willing to scrub toilets.
• saw a friend of mine who used to teach gym at my old school...his daughter is at my new school.  he told me their commute is so long that they were planning to pull her out and put her in public schools there, but when they found out i was coming, they decided she had to stay.  yeah, i definitely almost started crying right then and there.
• went around to visit every classroom.  helped kindergarten take a "field trip" to the bathroom.  listened to a story with 2nd grade.  3rd grade was writing letters to Jesus.  it was so great it felt surreal.  too good to be true.
• two deliveries- a lucky bamboo plant from my amazing mentor from last year and 2 dozen roses from my parents for our foyer...so sweet!  and added to some beautiful cards i've received this week from dear friends...i am so blessed.
• at dismissal a little girl in 4th grade gave me a homemade card in an envelope that said, "welcome ms. k--we love you and are glad you're here!"  can i just say precious one last time?
• we had an awesome cpr training this afternoon, with the exception of one of my teachers getting really sick, feeling faint, and having an irregular heartbeat.  we called an ambulance and they're keeping her in the hospital overnight, but think she'll be fine.  it was really scary, but thank God there were plenty of people (including a trained emt) around who could help.  also, after she left, we all came together and prayed.  talk about getting thrown into the role of spiritual leader!
• pretty sure the day couldn't have been any better.  well, maybe if i had gotten home before 6pm.  but other than that, pretty perfect!