On Teaching
The Miracle of the Mundane
by Mark Goodson
1y ago
I continue to find new reasons to do what I do. Without returning to the question of why I teach, my profession would turn into a static transmission of knowledge: I would become a textbook, not a person. A student just last week confessed that he imagined teaching as this repetitive exercise, a dolling out of the same rehearsed knowledge every year. It sparked a good discussion. I told him that every year is wildly different because of the students. And the more I teach, the less I focus on the content. It’s not about what the teacher knows, anyway. It’s about what his students know. That is ..read more
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Green Clip-On
The Miracle of the Mundane
by Mark Goodson
1y ago
It all started with a child’s green clip-on tie. It was not your typical clip-on. It is the clip-on and the only clip-on that my son’s school accepts as part of its winter uniform. Purchasing it was the sort of special order that takes six weeks to arrive from a unique distributor. Enter a conscientious kid. One who doesn’t want to disappoint. Picture the very first Monday that tie is required. And it’s missing. “Where did you see it last?” I asked in between sips of bad coffee. The grind setting was accidentally on espresso which made the drip-coffee grainy and gross. I would have re-made som ..read more
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More than more
The Miracle of the Mundane
by Mark Goodson
1y ago
I’ve spent six months re-arranging my priorities. The hope has been to get more out of life. I don’t know exactly what prompted the change. But I became certain of the need to change things up after I biked and camped with my son for a week. That trip told me—again and again, mile after mile—that there is so much more out there for me to discover. I’ve put a lot less on my plate this year to find out what more exactly there is. Somehow, I knew I had to clear up space. What would take its place? That has been the mystery. Much of my more has involved my classroom work. I am doing my best teachi ..read more
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Proof
The Miracle of the Mundane
by Mark Goodson
1y ago
Whether you believe nature or nurture is more determinate of a child’s character, a parent doesn’t have an excuse. If nature determines who we are most than our genes offer with the best insight into the human beings our children will become. If how we nurture them determines who we are, than their actions become a product of our commitment to parenthood. I’ve been on both sides of this debate before. Experience tells me that alcoholism is in the family, for example. A large medical horde still search for the magic gene which produces alcoholism, and, with the help of modern science, hope to v ..read more
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Reap
The Miracle of the Mundane
by Mark Goodson
1y ago
Something profound happened on the week-long bike tour I took with my son. Enough to write a book, actually. I’ve written hundreds of thousands of words on this blog. And I’ve written hundreds of thousands more in other genres. Rough estimates place me close to a million words written to one genre or another. Many of those million have formed poetry, essays and short stories. They’ve formed complete collections, a novel and a children’s book. I’ve tried to have those volumes published in different ways to no avail. And now, I’m exploring a 12K word chapbook of sorts, chronicling just what was ..read more
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Crisis
The Miracle of the Mundane
by Mark Goodson
1y ago
A midlife crisis in men is usually associated with pony tails and sports cars. I grew a long and bushy beard. Not that anyone who knows me should be surprised to find me in such a transition. My life is beset by crises. My soul seems in constant riot. I don’t idle well. And I am vigilant about how comfort can falsely present itself as satisfaction. Was my getting sober a quarterlife crisis? Those are usually affiliated with twenty-somethings who have never taken the time to get to know themselves. Maybe that is a good description of me 15 years ago. The results of that crisis included a new ou ..read more
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Nurturing Your Nature
The Miracle of the Mundane
by Mark Goodson
1y ago
My sponsor told me something this month that has stuck in my head like a good pop song. “There is only one finish line in life.” It’s been my March mantra as I tackle each day’s whirlwind of work and responsibilities. There is only one end to suffering, and what a shame it will be when it ends. In the wrong frame of mind, this fatalistic thinking might could be troublesome. You mean to tell me that there is no end? No respite? No break? And, most certainly, in early sobriety, this line of thinking can be downright deadly. Sober for life? That thought nearly led me back to t ..read more
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Greatness
The Miracle of the Mundane
by Mark Goodson
1y ago
Teachers do more than just teach. The most teachable moments are not the ones on the lesson plan. Teaching is what occurs in between the lines of notes you make for the day, in the tangents and side conversations. How can that be true? Think about teenagers and reverse psychology. Moments become more teachable when you can deviate from the script, not stick to it. I have been approaching one situation in particular over the last few years: how to moderate the GOAT debate. You’ve heard it if you’ve spent anytime with teenagers over the past decade. Messi or Pele? Brady or Montana? James or Jord ..read more
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New Tricks
The Miracle of the Mundane
by Mark Goodson
2y ago
They say you can’t teach an old dog new tricks. The term is used to describe old people as often as it is used to describe dogs. Conventional wisdom tends to think that learning curves diminish with age. They might be right. But my elder dog, Riley, is proving that something else is true, too. An old dog can re-visit old habits. And I don’t mean sitting on command, here. I’ve witnessed a profound change in old Riley since we brought our new puppy home. She’s less aggressive with other dogs and people than she usually is, for one thing. We were worried she would relapse into aggressive behavior ..read more
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Christmas Routines
The Miracle of the Mundane
by Mark Goodson
2y ago
Here we are. The day after Christmas. And still, another Monday. Another start to the week. Mondays are when I schedule every post to deliver because they are the most mundane of the calendar week. It is the day that resets the routine. That is especially true on a day after Christmas. That is quite a reset. Christmas works so well because it is the antithesis of routine. What other calendar day are school children awake before their parents? When Monday comes we have nothing but a sugar hangover, clean up to do, and exhausted kids. The magic of the holidays has been winning me over as the yea ..read more
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