#Trust
Once a month I sit down in the chair of my incredible hair stylist and he says "so what are we doing?". Probably 90% or more of the time I say "whatever you want". Sometimes I have a suggestion or a general thought on the desired outcome, but I usually let him do his thing. In the year (give or take a couple of appointments) that I have been doing this (including color on several of those) I have never been disappointed. Sometimes I am a little surprised by the outcome, but never disappointed. Many of my friends often say I'm brave for doing this or maybe a little crazy, but the reality is I don't think I'm either. I like to play with my hair and while it's a great way to have fun, it's hair. It grows back, no matter what I do to it, it always grows back. (If that ever changes, I'll just wear more hats or paint my head.) I like my stylist. He really likes what he does and he's shown me that he's good at it. He understands what works for me (both with my physical features and my personality) so I trust him.
The administrator that I have worked with for 12 of the last 14 years of my teaching career falls into the category of people I trust. We haven't always seen eye to eye on every subject but he's always had my back. He's actually been known to tell people "you just have to trust Natalie. I don't always understand why she does what she does, but I've learned to trust it and it always seems to get the outcome we are looking for." That trust has gone both ways for years. This is something that is very important in my area of teaching because if my administrator is constantly second guessing everything I do it sends the message that I'm not the authority figure in the classroom and the kids pick up on that really quickly. Him trusting me means that he actively supports me so the kids do see me as the authority figure. The fact that I can trust him to take care of me (so to speak) means when he says "Why don't you go check on X?" I know he sees my need to step away from a situation. Sometimes I'm so in the situation, that I can't see I need to step away, but having someone I trust say "hey, take a minute" helps me recenter myself.
There are people in my life that I trust that are not as surprising. My brothers, sisters in law, husband, in laws, mother and so many other family members are obviously people that I can trust. I know that I can call on any of these people at any moment and they will be there for me. I know that they always have my best interest at heart and will tell me the truth (even if I really don't want to hear it) every time.
The number of friends I have met who have been there for me when I needed them is innumerable. People who have picked up my kids, driven me places and simply listened without judgement is amazing. Not all of these people are permanent in my life but all of them have made permanent marks on my life. They have taught me to trust and love others. That is not to say I have never been hurt by my desire to trust others, but more often then not, my trust has been reinforced by the behaviors of others.
Trust is a word that I think gets thrown around a lot. It's kind of like love and hate. People say it, but they don't always fully mean it because it's a big word. Trust is something that shouldn't be given lightly and it shouldn't be taken for granted. It's something that people should be able to stand behind. I have been extremely blessed with several people in my life that I can truly trust.
Recently I was talking with one of the incredible people I trust and she joked about the fact that I'm "still alive" even though I have so many people in my life that I trust. It made me think about the fact that maybe I am still alive because I trust, but not necessarily because I trust people. I mean, does trusting people really get us what we need in life or is it trusting God that gets us through.
The truth is, I can name hundreds of people that I trust, especially if I really think about it. Flawed, imperfect people who have proven to me that they are there for me. People with their own needs, own desires, own difficulties, but they have been there for me. They have shown me love (even when I'm hard to love - which, believe me, is pretty often). So if I can find it in me to trust these people, why would I not trust the God who created them. The One whose image they are made in.
My classroom is being moved to another school next year. This was not my plan. It was not what I thought would be happening. I had other plans, but this is what is happening. I'm not fighting it or arguing about it because God has a plan. He knows what I need. I'm not going to pretend that I'm not nervous because change is a little scary, no matter what the change is, it's a little scary. That's just a fact. I mean even my bravest, most risk taking friends get a little nervous at an unexpected change, but being nervous doesn't mean you can't trust that the change is for the best. Human beings have shown me time and time again that trust pays off, so it stands to reason that trusting God will always pay off.
So I will choose trust. I will choose faith. I will face the nervous, fearful moments knowing that I'm never alone because God has my back.
This is me with a fully packed room ready to move, in trust, to the next adventure that God has laid at my feet.
The administrator that I have worked with for 12 of the last 14 years of my teaching career falls into the category of people I trust. We haven't always seen eye to eye on every subject but he's always had my back. He's actually been known to tell people "you just have to trust Natalie. I don't always understand why she does what she does, but I've learned to trust it and it always seems to get the outcome we are looking for." That trust has gone both ways for years. This is something that is very important in my area of teaching because if my administrator is constantly second guessing everything I do it sends the message that I'm not the authority figure in the classroom and the kids pick up on that really quickly. Him trusting me means that he actively supports me so the kids do see me as the authority figure. The fact that I can trust him to take care of me (so to speak) means when he says "Why don't you go check on X?" I know he sees my need to step away from a situation. Sometimes I'm so in the situation, that I can't see I need to step away, but having someone I trust say "hey, take a minute" helps me recenter myself.
There are people in my life that I trust that are not as surprising. My brothers, sisters in law, husband, in laws, mother and so many other family members are obviously people that I can trust. I know that I can call on any of these people at any moment and they will be there for me. I know that they always have my best interest at heart and will tell me the truth (even if I really don't want to hear it) every time.
The number of friends I have met who have been there for me when I needed them is innumerable. People who have picked up my kids, driven me places and simply listened without judgement is amazing. Not all of these people are permanent in my life but all of them have made permanent marks on my life. They have taught me to trust and love others. That is not to say I have never been hurt by my desire to trust others, but more often then not, my trust has been reinforced by the behaviors of others.
Trust is a word that I think gets thrown around a lot. It's kind of like love and hate. People say it, but they don't always fully mean it because it's a big word. Trust is something that shouldn't be given lightly and it shouldn't be taken for granted. It's something that people should be able to stand behind. I have been extremely blessed with several people in my life that I can truly trust.
Recently I was talking with one of the incredible people I trust and she joked about the fact that I'm "still alive" even though I have so many people in my life that I trust. It made me think about the fact that maybe I am still alive because I trust, but not necessarily because I trust people. I mean, does trusting people really get us what we need in life or is it trusting God that gets us through.
The truth is, I can name hundreds of people that I trust, especially if I really think about it. Flawed, imperfect people who have proven to me that they are there for me. People with their own needs, own desires, own difficulties, but they have been there for me. They have shown me love (even when I'm hard to love - which, believe me, is pretty often). So if I can find it in me to trust these people, why would I not trust the God who created them. The One whose image they are made in.
My classroom is being moved to another school next year. This was not my plan. It was not what I thought would be happening. I had other plans, but this is what is happening. I'm not fighting it or arguing about it because God has a plan. He knows what I need. I'm not going to pretend that I'm not nervous because change is a little scary, no matter what the change is, it's a little scary. That's just a fact. I mean even my bravest, most risk taking friends get a little nervous at an unexpected change, but being nervous doesn't mean you can't trust that the change is for the best. Human beings have shown me time and time again that trust pays off, so it stands to reason that trusting God will always pay off.
So I will choose trust. I will choose faith. I will face the nervous, fearful moments knowing that I'm never alone because God has my back.
This is me with a fully packed room ready to move, in trust, to the next adventure that God has laid at my feet.
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