One bite at a time.
My mother used to tell me this when I was a kid and felt overwhelmed. Homework trouble. Sports trouble. Girl trouble. Whenever I felt down in the dumps, she always made me feel better by saying these words. (She is a remarkably strong, resilient woman. She has endured a lot in her life. She's eaten a lot of elephants.)
Earlier this week a student sat down in my office and expressed her frustration about all she had to do. "I feel so stressed. Country Day asks too much of me."
I gave her a bottle of water and we talked.
"What - specifically - is bothering you?" I asked.
"Three things," she remarked. "First, one of my teachers posted the wrong page numbers on the homework portal. Second, I'm sick and tired of carrying around my heavy backpack. Third, I never have time to get homework done at school and I'm forced to stay up all night. I just don't get enough sleep."
"Wow," I said. "It must be really tough."
"Yea," she said.
During our visit I encouraged her to talk directly with her teacher about the portal error. (The teacher indeed had the wrong pages posted. The teacher apologized.) I then reminded her that there's plenty of time between classes to drop off her books - during announcements, at lunch, as well as an afternoon break. I then suggested that she find a quiet carrel in the Moncrief Library to study. (We can get a lot done in 75 minutes!) She listened, smiled, then said, "I'll give it a try. Thanks."
Yesterday afternoon I checked on her and asked how things were going.
"Great! I love this place." She beamed.
We all feel overwhelmed sometimes. The key is to identify the specific stressors, find someone who can help us formulate a strategy...then attack each one in succession. One bite at a time.
Once we organize our busy lives, we feel better. We see the world through clearer eyes, and it's a pretty great world.
There is only one way to eat an elephant.
One bite at a time.
Dinner table question of the week:
Your classmate asks to copy your homework because they did not finish theirs. You know they were at the hospital late into the night with a sick friend.
Is it ethical to let someone copy your homework, even if they have had difficult personal circumstances?
