The 12 Days of Thanksgiving - Day Seven

On the Seventh Day of Thanksgiving:

I am thankful for good music. My musical tastes are both broad and eclectic, reflecting the many influences to which I've been exposed. Whether it was my parents (ABBA, John Denver, Dr. Hook, Beethoven), my friends (Rush, Yes, No Doubt, Roger Clyne and the Peacemakers), my teachers (Holst & Vaughan Williams, Glenn Miller), my brother (Cross Canadian Ragweed, Reckless Kelly, Corb Lund and the Hurtin' Albertans), the movies (Williams, Poledoris, Knopfler) or even my television set (Vangelis, Honhaness, Mancini), I've always been surrounded by music. I can sing a bit, and I could even play a couple of instruments (tuba, trombone, bass guitar) back in the day. But even when I'm not singing or playing, or even listening, I've always got music with me. It's a wonderful blessing. I'm thankful for the opportunity to learn as much about music as much as I have.

The Twelve Days of Thanksgiving - Day 6

On the Sixth Day of Thanksgiving:

I am grateful for laughter. I had an interesting day today. During the day, I went with a bunch of fellow teachers (and a few administrators) to tour two recently-built schools to get ideas for our upcoming rebuild. We took a school bus on the trip, which gave the lot of us some quality time to share experiences, jokes, and funny stories. After that was over, my wife and I joined her family for a movie and dinner. Again, there were plenty of jokes and funny stories shared. All in all, it was a good day for laughter. I'm grateful to have a good sense of humor, and to be surrounded by many others who also have a good sense of humor.

The 12 Days of Thanksgiving - Day Five

On the Fifth Day of Thanksgiving:

I am thankful for the beauty of nature. Rugged mountains and rushing rivers, blue skies and glittering stars, and the deep red-orange sunsets over the Great Salt Lake and the Oquirrh Mountains . . . I live in a beautiful place. We all do. The universe is truly amazing. I sometimes forget to look around and be amazed.

The Twelve Days of Thanksgiving - Day 4

On the Fourth Day of Thanksgiving:

I am thankful for my education. I went to a small high school—so small that we didn't have AP classes, in fact—but I had some really great teachers. My parents always placed a big emphasis on education and on doing well in school. I've always had a lot of encouragement to learn all that I could. I'm glad to live in a country and in a culture that places such value on learning and self-improvement. I have learned so much in so many different areas, and although it hasn't always been easy or pleasant, I'm glad to know all that I do. I look forward to continuing to learn throughout my life.

My only real regret in this regard is that so many people don't seem to see the value in learning. I suppose that's why I became a teacher myself: to have to opportunity to teach young people that they can be more and better and brighter than what they are.

The 12 Days of Thanksgiving - Day Three

On the Third Day of Thanksgiving:

I am thankful for our little apartment. We live in a great neighborhood. We love our neighbors, and we're close to so many neat things. There will come a time when we buy a house, and I don't think there's much chance we'll be able to afford to buy one here. But until then, I love where we live.

The Twelve Days of Thanksgiving: Day 2

On the Second Day of Thanksgiving:

I am thankful for modern medicine. We are expecting our first child in just over a month, and the medical care my wife and the offspring have received is amazing. Ultrasound technology, blood tests to screen for possible diseases (especially important since my wife's oldest sister had Down Syndrome), intravenous fluids to fight dehydration, anti-nausea medication . . . the list goes on and on. I'm so thankful to live in a place (and a time) where there's so much access to good medical care.

Side note: My wife had a friend who decided to go 'natural' for her baby's delivery. Halfway through, she changed her mind and told the nurses she wanted an epidural, only to be told, "We're sorry, it's too late for that. You'll have to finish without it." That's NOT going to happen with us. When asked if she wanted an epidural, my wife said, "Heck yes! I was born in a time with drugs for a reason!" My answer, had I been asked on her behalf would have been similar, if a little snarky: "What is this, the 17th century? Of course we want an epidural!")

Back again tomorrow for Day Three.

The 12 Days of Thanksgiving - Day One

One of my personal pet peeves is how little attention Thanksgiving gets compared to Christmas (or other December holiday of your choice). With all the attention given to Halloween and then to the holiday gift season, it seems like Thanksgiving gets passed over.

So this year I wanted to start a new personal celebration: The Twelve Days of Thanksgiving.

Each day between now and November 26th, which is Thanksgiving Day here in the U.S., I'll list one thing for which I'm thankful. Feel free to play along if you'd like. :)

On the First Day of Thanksgiving, I'm thankful for:

Good friends. I am surrounded by good people. Some I have known literally for decades, and some are new friends. Either way, I know I have people who are there for my in difficult times. For this, I am thankful.

Tune in tomorrow for more gratitude. And thanks for reading. If you're one of the people reading this, you're one of the people I was just talking about.

What I Wish I Had Said

During one of my classes today, one of my back-row students came up to me with his report card and said, "Mr. M, I think there's been a mistake." Knowing what was coming, I asked him what the problem was. He showed me his report card, on which he had a grade of A- (92.68%) for my Honors Chemistry class. He was, of course, wondering why he hadn't got an A, and asked if I'd be willing round up and change his grade for the previous quarter.

Naturally I told him no.

He then asked me about extra credit, if there was something he could do to bring that grade up. I reminded him that I'd given the class an extra credit assignment about two weeks before the end of the quarter. (Which was true, by the way, and which about 90% of the students had turned in.) I asked if he had done it.^‡ He said no, he hadn't thought he would need it at the time. I told him, more or less, that he'd missed his chance and that the A- would stay. He returned to his seat and I got back to the class activity.

After the bell rang, once again I saw this student coming up to plead for his A. He told me he had wanted to do the extra credit assignment, but that he'd been really busy right then and blah blah blah blah blah. I told him, again, that I'd given him the same chance that I'd given everyone else, and that I wasn't going to make a special exception just for him. Finally he just asked, "So you're not going to change my grade?", and I said, "No, I'm not." He left the room, head down, with this parting shot: "Aw, Mr. M, I thought we were pals."

This is what I wish I would have said to him:

"I think maybe that's part of the problem. Don't get me wrong, I hope that you do enjoy my class, but ultimately, that's not what I'm here for. I'm not here to be your pal. I'm not here to entertain you or to befriend you. I'm here to teach you, and not just about science. I'm here to make sure you learn. And you've learned something today: you've learned that life doesn't give you do-overs the way video games and middle school classes do. When you have an opportunity, you have to take it. If you don't, there are consequences. And that, as it turns out, is a science lesson. It's called Newton's Third Law. For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction—or in this case, a consequence. That's how it works."

I would love to have said something like this to him.

It's probably just as well that I didn't.


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^‡ Admittedly, this was kind of a loaded question. Had he said yes, I would have said, "Well, then you probably have an A- instead of a B+. I've already raised your grade." It was a no-win scenario. For him.

Scientist? You're No Scientist!

Cartoon from Cowbirds in Love.