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Because I can

It is with a clear mind that I step into school year 2019. 

A teacher again.  A target, a poem, a beauty queen or hag, A teacher again.

Brisk stride, again. It's mine.

Creating a space within a space. I don't need it all, the space, that is.

 I will accept compensation and keep my perimeter guarded, smiling.

I can post grades and nod my head, I can speak quietly in a room full of noisemakers and be heard,

I can connect or not connect,

whichever is best.

Considering the adequate remuneration, yes,

give me the name of Teacher, Again.

 

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Our First Grade Teacher

Mrs. Cole was our first grade teacher. There were plenty of others in town, but she had all five of us Ray kids, one right after the other. Although it has been 5 years since she passed away, this is a lovely article. You can almost smell her between the lines, all crisp and clean. I wonder if she wrote it.
As an aside, her husband was the judge who put his signature on Dave's and my marriage paperwork in 1983. The Coles sure made a difference to the Ray family!

 

Thank You Mrs. Cole!

Thank You Mrs. Cole!

Dorothy (Chapman) Cole (1922 - 2012)

Obituary

 

 

Born in Scranton, PA, Dorothy Chapman spent most of her formative years in upstate New York, where she had fond memories of her summers on Lake Chautauqua with her sisters, Jackie and Helen, and less fond memories of the monumental Buffalo winters. During WWII, she attended Connecticut College for Women in New London, CT., where she met Coast Guard, 90-day wonder attorney, William R. (Bob) Cole. The couple were married in Seattle, and promptly moved to Ellensburg in 1946 where the future Judge Cole opened a law office and was part-time Kittitas County Prosecuting Attorney. Dorothy immersed herself in the local community from the very beginning, forging strong bonds with people having a wide variety of interests. She became a charter member of the valley dog mafia, and could be spotted walking her cocker spaniels around Craig's Hill when the family lived on 3rd Street; and after moving to Brown Road, running her German Shorthaired pointers down Strande Road or around Ringer Park. Dorothy learned to ride at a US Cavalry stable on the East Coast, but wasn't able to have her own horse until she moved to Ellensburg, where it took little urging from her daughter, Robi, to purchase a bomb-proof bay kid horse; the first of many horses for the family. She spent hours in the dust and wind working with the Wranglerettes girls' mounted drill team, which included 50 riders in the mid-1960s. She not only knew the girls' vibrant personalities, but those of their horses as well. She and Bob were immensely proud of their children and attended innumerable sporting events and riding activities. Her one great trip was to visit her daughter during Robi's 4-year stay in France, exploring Normandy, Brittany and the Loire Valley, culminating in the Bastille Day fireworks in Paris. Dorothy taught 1st Grade initially at Lincoln, then at Mt. Stewart elementary schools. She was dedicated to providing a structured and nurturing learning environment for children and often stayed up until midnight meticulously correcting papers and preparing lessons. She never did anything half way. Her warmth towards children never ceased and it could be hard to get her out of her favorite Perkins' Restaurant without chatting with an eager little face, or for that matter, kidding the young staff. Her favorite time of the year was always Labor Day weekend and the Ellensburg Rodeo. She loved to sit high above the calf roping chutes because it was the best view of the horses, which she considered to be the consummate athletes. Dorothy was a bit of a renaissance person – knowledgeable in the arts, particularly literature, classical music, and word affairs, as well as nature. She taught several state biologists the correct way to save baby birds. She was also an accomplished trap and skeet shooter. A life member of the Yakima Kennel Club and active for over three decades, Dorothy was also chief ring steward for their annual June show for many years. The Sunday show this year will be dedicated to her honor. She could be reserved and very private, but had an inimitable wit and knew how to dish it out and take it with glee. If you visited Dorothy for any reason, you had to have her famous chocolate chip cookies and stay to visit. Neighbors could set their clocks by her morning and evening dog walks, which always made her day and helped keep her fit until the last 2 months of her life.
She passed peacefully surrounded by her loving family, friends, caregivers Missy, Maryanne, Rosalind and Boots, and of course, her animals. Preceded in death by her husband, Judge W.R. (Bob) Cole, Dorothy is survived by her three children, Rick Cole (Lee), Robin Cole Wilcox (Joe) and Mike Cole (Robin); sisters Jackie Naugle and Helen Hucker; grandchildren Kelly Cole O'Connell, Lindsay DeLaurenti, Brett Cole, Paul Cole, Sean Cole, John Perenic, Amanda Sakry and Sarah Cramer; and her close friend and companion, Norman Schoonover. For someone whose life revolved around dogs, Dorothy touched a lot of people. There will be a celebration of her life this summer when the sun and wind cooperate. A separate notice will be published for those who would like to attend. Although she loved flowers, Dorothy would prefer that those wishing to remember her consider donation to Friends of the Shelter, 1206 West Bender Road, Ellensburg, WA 98926.

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Moving Gracefully, by Cheryl Ray

It's THAT day.

The day before the day before the move.

Little sleep. Past the point of comfort in lifestyle. Getting a clear picture of how many MORE boxes I will need to finish the job.

Here's how it goes from now until the move is done:

 

Explitives fall out of the mouth followed by

meditative murmuring. ("everything is fine. It always works out fine, it is ok just like this for now, etc")

crying. Tiny tears sneak out the side. Not full on bawling. That's for babies.

work

work more

smile and say everything is going fine when people dare to ask,

which they generally don't, for fear you will ask them to help.

Human nature.

AND repeat these actions over and over again, for the next 48 hours.

I think I will name this stage so I can put it in my book.

Stage 9: The Day before the Day before.

The final boxes, a car I can afford, with the NRA sticker for good luck.

The final boxes, a car I can afford, with the NRA sticker for good luck.

 

 

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The International

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The International

Daddy’s International was rotting in Grandaddy’s pasture when I wrote this for an English class at Fort Steilacoom Community College in 1985. It made me sad to see it just rot away.

 

His body, once dignified, lays broken down and faded. Red paint now pink in the shade of the sturdy, ageless oak tree. His steel bed that once held 5 Ray children as they rode through town is ravaged now by cancer, leaving him weak. His value, gone.  Grandkids and great grandkids cannot resist the temptation to poke at his shell, bang on his hood to hear their song. His headlights, shattered, his flashy side mirrors gone forever. The past, passed.

 I am Happy to report, while most of him is buried in the car cemetery, granddaddy made his rear end into a trailer. This International is a useful, worthy piece of farm equipment, fulfilled again.

 I am Happy to report, while most of him is buried in the car cemetery, granddaddy made his rear end into a trailer. This International is a useful, worthy piece of farm equipment, fulfilled again.

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Your Feet

If you ever find yourself feeling put upon by what other people seem to expect of you, take a moment to do this important action.

LOOK DOWN AT YOUR FEET.

Those two body parts are controlled by one person, and one person only.  You and I are %100 responsible for what those feet are doing now, and will be doing in ten minutes, and even what they were doing two years ago when you were suffering in a bad relationship. Your feet.  Nobody controls them but you.   But the key is RIGHT NOW. What are you doing with them, and what are they doing with you?  This moment is the only one that you can really affect, really change, really make a different choice. This moment, right here.

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Define Yourself or Someone Else Will...

 And chances are, you won't be happy with the outcome.  

Every moment, you are defining yourself.  Whether you are aware of it, or not--notice what you are doing and add this phrase "I am a person who..." and don't sugarcoat it!  

Don't judge yourself. That's not what this is about.  EVALUATE your actions, decide if they are who you want to be, and then continue doing them, or do something differently, and move on.

We can all think of unpleasant, embarrassing ways to complete that sentence.  ( I am a person who gets up at midnight and eats a cheese sandwich)That's part of being human; however, if it is change you are looking for, then a clear look at yourself is the first  requirement. 

Define yourself, or someone else, less interested in your welfare, will define you.

 

 

 

 

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Hoarding

I imagine that the impulse to "hoard" is similar to any other dysfunctional human response to stress.   Some part of the mind just decided that there is safety in numbers.  So as a transition specialist, I come across this behavior from time to time. It is more common that I realized. What happened to that person that they feel like lots and lots of stuff will keep them safe?  I wonder if it is like me when I overeat.  It's eerily similar, isn't it.

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Your sphere of influence

is different than mine right now.  Find out what you can influence and test your boundries. It can only happen immediately though. Now. It's the only job we have, to expand our sphere of influence purposefully.  And every transition is proof of your sphere of influence.

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Diabetes

Can be controlled.  Never let yourself get it, and if you do, change everything.

Today, I am thankful the doctor said "pre-diabetes" to me and hounded me until I corrected it.  I am also thankful my brother and sister took it very seriously when they were diagnosed with type II diabetes.

They are healthy, I am grateful. 

In my transitioning others, I have seen diabetes at its worst, and I am trying to forget it but don't believe I will.

 

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A Transition Poem.

Motionless, directionless, focus-less

Fear grasps at polluted air--

Unless and until  focus, direction and motion

take hold. Then the relief through change.

Comes a transition every time you move--

which for a moment replaces fear,  who nevertheless

may call again soon.

 

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A Lifetime Supply

You have been given a lifetime supply of that body in the mirror.  So literally, until you are dead, you are in charge of that! But WAIT.  Whose body do you see in the mirror?Well, you might answer--"MY body of course."    Who just said that? Who just claimed the body to belong to THEM?  The body is separate from the mind, and that is what I'm getting at.  

There is a YOU that is different than that changing body in the mirror.  You exist in more than your body.  There is greatness in you that lives on and on, unchanged while  the body does it's crazy growing, changing, dying thing. 

When you understand this, you know you have this current body for a limited time, and yet there is a wise, timeless self that is you, too, that can guide you well. So let's begin to enjoy this trip.  Be grateful you have a body to experience life through.

You get to decide....who will you love? What will you change, how will you live? Who gets to be a part of your world? Your choice! 

 

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Like Being Born

After we enter the world from inside our mother, we don't spend time worrying about "what if I should have stayed in there? I've never done this before, what if I can't do it?", and thank goodness!.  We just start breathing, and go from there. We learn, we grow, we survive, and I would like to see all of us take the next step above surviving, and THRIVE! 
 

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Use Transition Words

Read more at http://grammar.yourdictionary.com/style-and-usage/list-transition-words.html#lvWck0ixkSJYmYth.99

List of Transition Words

Anyone has ever received criticism about a written assignment has quite possibly been told to use more transition words, which is where a list of transition words come in handy.

List of Transition Words

While you do not want your paper or other written piece to sound like a long string of transition words, consider adding some of these suggestions from our list of transition words when appropriate in order to spice up your work and to make the sections flow more smoothly from one to another.

What follows is a list of transition words which you might want to use in your writing from time to time. Note that some of them are phrases and not singular words.

  • Therefore
  • However
  • Moreover
  • Lastly
  • Next
  • Also
  • Furthermore
  • In addition to
  • Similarly
  • Likewise
  • Accordingly
  • Hence
  • Consequently
  • As a result
  • Thereby
  • Otherwise
  • Subsequently
  • Thus
  • So then
  • Wherefore
  • Generally
  • Usually
  • For the most part
  • As a rule
  • Ordinarily
  • Regularly
  • In particular
  • For instance
  • Particularly
  • Especially
  • Such as
  • Including
  • Namely
  • For example
  • As an example
  • In this case
  • Above all
  • Singularly
  • Likewise
  • Coupled with
  • Compared to
  • In comparison to
  • Together with
  • Besides
  • In brief
  • In short
  • In conclusion
  • In the meantime
  • Soon
  • Later
  • In the meanwhile
  • Afterward
  • Earlier
  • In summary
  • To summarize
  • Finally
  • Before
  • After
  • By the way
  • Incidentally
  • As a result of
  • Accidentally
  • Here
  • There
  • Over there
  • Opposite
  • Under
  • Beyond
  • In the distance
  • To the left
  • To the right


 

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Ready?

I enjoyed this article and think you will, too. It has the TOP 5 things!!!

Ready For College? Why Some Students Are More Prepared Than Others

By Lisa Heffernan

http://www.nbcnews.com/feature/college-game-plan/ready-college-why-some-students-are-more-prepared-others-n531141

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I believe

Dear Students,

If you are doing what is right for you, you will be well.  So my advice to you is to find out what 'right ' means to you, and do that, every day.

And be well.

And I will do the same.  

xo

Ms. Ray


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Advice to the Unsure

This message, sometimes found on posters and self help books, may have been found in St. Paul's Church, Baltimore, dated 1692, I don't know for sure.  Imagine what nonesense it seemed to the Puritans that we have learned about in The Scarlet Letter.  Maybe it was a transcendentalist thinker evolving, daring to express a belief that did not follow the social norms.

Whatever it is, my Grandmother, Kathryn Steadham, typed it out and set it on her piano, and there it sat for as long as I can remember. Until she gave it to me.  It is timeless and I want to share it with you.

Advice to the Unsure (I've heard it called Desiderata, too)

GO PLACIDLY AMID THE NOISE AND HASTE AND REMEMBER WHAT PEACE THERE IS IN SILENCE. AS FAR AS POSSIBLE, WITHOUT SURRENDER, BE ON GOOD TERMS WITH ALL PERSONS.  SPEAK YOUR TRUTH QUIETLY AND CLEARLY; AND LISTEN TO OTHERS, EVEN THE DULL AND THE IGNORANT.  THEY TOO HAVE THEIR STORY.  AVOID LOUD AND AGGRESSIVE PERSONS, THEY ARE A VEXATION TO THE SPIRIT.

ENJOY YOUR ACHIEVEMENTS AS WELL AS YOUR PLANS. KEEP INTERESTED IN YOUR CAREER, HOWEVER HUMBLE, IT IS A REAL POSSESSION IN THE CHANGING FORTUNES OF TIME. EXERCISE CAUTION IN YOUR BUSINESS AFFAIRS FOR THE WORLD IS FULL OF TRICKERY.  BUT LET THIS NOT BLIND YOU TO WHAT VIRTUE THERE IS. MANY PERSONS STRIVE FOR HIGH IDEALS AND EVERYWHERE LIFE IS FULL OF HEROISM.

BE YOURSELF. ESPECIALLY DO NOT FEIGN AFFECTION. TAKE KINDLY THE COUNSEL OF THE YEARS, GRACEFULLY SURRENDERING THE THINGS OF YOUTH.  NURTURE STRENGTH OF SPIRIT TO SHIELD YOU IN SUDDEN MISFORTUNE.  BUT DO NOT DISTRESS YOURSELF WITH IMAGININGS.  MANY FEARS ARE BORN OF FATIGUE AND LONELINESS.  BEYOND A WHOLESOME DISCIPLINE BE GENTLE WITH YOURSELF.

YOU ARE A CHILD OF THE UNIVERSE, NO LESS THAN THE TREES AND THE STARS; YOU HAVE A RIGHT TO BE HERE. AND WHETHER OR NOT IT IS CLEAR TO YOU, THE UNIVERSE IS UNFOLDING AS IT SHOULD.  THEREFORE, BE AT PEACE WITH GOD, WHATEVER YOU CONCEIVE HIM TO BE.  AND WHATEVER YOUR LABORS AND ASPIRATIONS, IN THE NOISY CONFUSION OF LIFE, KEEP PEACE WITH YOUR SOUL. WITH ALL ITS SHAM, DRUDGERY AND BROKEN DREAMS IT IS STILL A BEAUTIFUL WORLD.

(Found in St Paul's Church, Batimore, Dated 1692)

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A Challenge

Today I want to challenge you.

Do something you don't really want to do, but you know it must be done, whether for your happiness or for the well being of the clan. It could be finally memorizing your mom's favorite poem to recite to her on New Year''s Day or giving the dog a bath.

And furthermore, try to do it without complaining or drawing attention to your greatness. :)

After you have done it, take note of how it made you feel.

 

That is my challenge for you today and I would be honored if you would share your experience with me! 

I will go first and tell you about it later.  Remember it will work best if you pick something that you know is helpful, right or good, but you wouldn't normally do by choice.

 

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Connect and get Reccomended

WE DID NOT PLAN THE BLUE SNOWFLAKE SWEATERS!

November 6, 2015

To Whom It May Concern:

Being an English teacher in the Puyallup School District for 20 years, I have written hundreds of letters of recommendations, but the quality of this student makes writing this letter the greatest honor of all. I am writing to recommend Kendahl Sugai for any position or program that will allow her to soar, because she must not be held back. My hope for her is that she will choose carefully from the offers she receives, as they will be copious.  In the three years that I have worked with her, as a facilitator of English in the Puyallup Online Academy (POA), she has been a standout student.  She has a striking, intelligence, independence, dedication, perseverance, and along with that, the rarest characteristics of all with these traits: humility and grace.

Kendahl carefully planned a balance between online and ‘brick and mortar’ school in order to get the most out of her education.   Here at POA, she volunteered her time to improve our offerings and her service was incredible.

Kendahl did the laborious and complex task of problem solving in fifteen different online English classes, and this was hard work. The level of critical thinking and computer proficiency required made this a student volunteer opportunity that only Kendahl could do.. She made suggestions, asked crucial questions, and discussed strategy with me with such capability and confidence, showing incredible patience.  This is a situation where she was not just helping, she was crucial to the success of the project.

Kendahl sets high standards for herself, she is reliable and responsible, and she has a sincere desire to create a better world. Wherever she goes, I know she will be an influential thinker, leader and a team player. You want her on your side, I promise!

Sincerely,

 

Cheryl L. Ray

Find an adult on whom you have made an impression. Ask them to write you a letter of recommendation. Portfolio time!

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If you fail to plan

you are planning to fail.

This is what a successful Orchardist from Mattawa once told me. Thank you Mr. Groenke! (And maybe Benjamin Franklin said it first, but I never met him)

Seniors, let us help you plan your success! Portfolio--start it with us before the Christmas break, you will be glad you did.

:)

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