Leveraging Learning

"I would always rather be happy than dignified." ~Charlotte Bronte (Jane Eyre) I've always liked this statement. Having spent my entire adult life with a tenuous grasp on dignity is part of the reason. But the other part is the joy that it invokes. Sometimes in life, you just have to ignore your dignity in favor of joy. This time of year, it is not difficult to find examples of people willing to choose happiness over dignity. Ugly sweater day, the mail carrier wearing a santa hat, bobbing for candy canes - these are not things that "dignified" people do, and yet they generate so much happiness. Technology increases our ability to abandon dignity for happiness. Check out my JibJab video as proof. Or go to Twitter for some some entertaining pics under #StarWarsTheForceAwakens. Pretty much everywhere you look, you can find digital examples folks willing to toss their dignity in exchange for a little happiness. In the next few days, whether you are at scho...

My son left Thursday morning for the 2015 Pennsylvania Thespian Conference. His school was honored to be asked to perform their production of Once On This Island on the Main Stage. It was a big deal. On Tuesday, the students held an open rehearsal for the hapless parents, as the Conference itself is only for students. I was blown away by the skill, talent and effort of all the students. This was my son's first high school musical production and compared with the middle school shows, it was "next level." I cried through most of the show - as is my embarrassing custom when students display such passion and commitment. The performance was impressive and reflective of the time and energy they put into learning the songs, accents and steps. When I dropped my son off on Thursday morning for the bus that would take him to the Conference, I had a feeling that he would not be in touch for the duration - most 14 year old boys aren't into texting their mom and so I prete...