Blue Skies Shining

When the phone rang, I was feeling pretty blue, but I rallied when I heard the familiar voice of an Optimist Club member. We talk this time every year--he sponsors a speech contest for our area's youth.

This year's prompt: “Discovering the Optimism within Me”

It can be challenging to convince adolescents to see the world through a positive lens. Some might argue it's a sign of the times--the world has turned to shit because of climate change, increased violence, hate crimes, and the headlines that shock us into submission on the daily. Thirty years ago, though, if someone asked me about optimsim within me--depending on their age--I'm just not sure what I would do either. 

On Friday, a colleague asked me to cover her afternoon class. Only one was a former student, and the rest were my present and future kids. She proudly told her classmates that her best writing of all time was her speech. I'll never forget her journey. She filled about six pages with a personal experience she was still processing. Several writing sessions later with a few friends cheering her on, she threaded the needle, stitched scenes together, and tied an unbreakable knot at the end. The day she stood at the podium, her peers praised her bravery. She didn't win the contest, but it didn't seem to matter.

So I'm going in, folks. This week, I'll invite students to look on the bright side. I have a feeling it will go really well.