So this weekend I did a thing…I climbed a mountain…kind of. I went with my gym to go hike Old Rag Mountain. I knew it was going to be a rough climb but it ended up being way harder than I anticipated. There were a lot of rocks that I had to literally climb over. I never could have made it up the mountain if I hadn’t had my group with me. There were places where we had to lift each other up both figuratively and literally. We were so motivated though. We wanted to get to that summit and see that view. Then we wanted to get back to the car and off our feet. I used muscles I didn’t even know I had and I am still finding bruises. Walking is kind of a challenge too…like everything hurts.

It got me thinking about how this thing I am trying to do is kind of like that mountain. It is my own metaphorical mountain to climb. I am trying to do something incredibly challenging that I have never tried to do before. There is a summit above me that I am desperately trying to reach. Every day I have to use new muscles…actual muscles and willpower muscles. I have to find strength even when I am tired and stressed. My days may be long and some of them are really stressful but I have to find the positive in them. If I don’t then I am sabotaging myself. I can’t allow negativity to bring me down and allow me to find excuses.

Everyday I look for the great things that happened…a kid who opened up to me, a kid who finally understood what I was saying, a kid who finally had a great day after a week of bad days, a great moment with my fellow social studies teacher, a great moment with the science to my social studies, a compliment from my admin, cuddles from my dog, a great workout, a good conversation with my mom…this list goes on. I have so many good things going in my life it is time that I start using them as hand and footholds to climb my mountain.

I also need the support of my group. Just like this weekend, I need them to push me up and keep me motivated in the times that I stumble or get sore. This mountain is tall and steep. It is not going to be easy to climb. I am going to get tired and have bruises but that is no reason to stop. The people who keep me positive, who remind me of the great things that are happening are so important. I can see the summit in my head and I know that it will be so worth it. My cheerleaders keep me going. After all, it is not safe to climb a mountain alone.

I am off the ground but I still have plenty left to climb. So if you are climbing a mountain of your own, just know you are not alone. I am climbing with you. We can do it. The summit will be so worth it.