Trying to be a better person

I know for those of you who know me pretty well, I'm a pretty good person. I try my best to accommodate everyone, I want all people to be successful, I want to instill solid morals and values into my kids and those I teach. I just try to be my best. Somehow when I reflect upon what I do and what I've done in the past I see there are still areas in which I still need to get better. I call stupid drivers idiots, I drive too fast, I have a habit of using my dining room table as my desk and dumping ground. I can't be bothered to put things away that are on the top of my dresser. I have a table at school that seriously needs cleaned off so when we come back from vacation we can get down to some serious reading. My desk is a mess. But to my own defense I read somewhere that a messy desk is a sign of a creative and imaginiative person. That I do feel is true.

But where this post is headed is in a rather new direction. I have been trying to cut down on my internet time and trying to figure out who I am and what do I want to do with my life. No I'm not talking about drastic changes. Well maybe I am. I think it has some to do with losing weight. I think that as I work to lighten up I want things around me to be less cluttered and more organized too. If I do this the right way then I may just become a bit more of a simple person. I have been trying to work on being more happy and appreciative of what I have and not to focus on what I used to think I want; I mean in a materialistic way. God has given me so much, I'm so blessed and now I have to make my life work within the bounderaries of what I already have.

So I know the changes must come from inside, but I can't help to also give a little bit of credit to an amazing person. I've been reading her blog off and on and as I've been digging into some of her archives I find that she not only inspires me want to be a little more creative in a more simplistic sort of way, but she has posted some incredible links to some organization and zen sites. I need to find a zen in which I can live in a more harmoniously with what I have, who I have in my life, and more in a way that God directs me.

If you haven't figured out just who has inspired me to just try to be a better person, I'll tell you, it is. It is Ali Edwards.

You can find some daily inspiration here at her blog. I can't believe all this lady does. She write, she creates, she travels, she's a mom, she's an advocate for autism, she teaches, she inspires, and she even has her ups and downs just like all the rest of us. She finds pleasure in simple things. I loved how she blogged about setting up a block castle where they bowl it over with a big green ball. There is something about her that is so creative, so inspiring, yet so down to earth. I don't want to be just like her, that's not the point of all of this. I am not her stalker, I just read her blog and her newsletter just as thousands of others do. I just find her style and her way with words speaks to my heart with a bit of optimism and passion. I find that she makes me want to be a bit more of a better person. Not to impress anyone, or to say look I do what Ali Edwards does; but for me to say look I'm just a bit more of a better person because I've been inspired to be.

I know this is a long, rambling blog post. Who knows, maybe it has to do with the fact that today's my graduation day, the day I'm recognized in public for being someone who's earned a master's degree. For someone in the field of education to be recognized as a life-long learner. For someone who has been given a gift from God to be able to teach others. For someone who has the potential to help students be better readers by being a reading specialist. For someone that has set goals and achieved them. For someone that I hope my own boys are proud to call mom.

With my winter holiday only 5 school days away, I am going to take that time to finish preparing for Christmas, to spend time with and enjoy my boys, to exercise, and to find a way to start to organize my dining room table and take back my space. It is my way to start to be a better person. So I close by saying a quick thank you to Ali Edwards for posting some amazing pearls of wisdom and zen links that have made me look inward to become a little better for everyone else who sees me from the outside.