Thirty Days of Christmas Joy: Growth Mindset in Action

I am not one to accept defeat easily.  I tend to pick myself up, brush off the dust, and try another approach.  So here goes . . .

My sister-in-law has asked me to photograph a couple of important occasions for her children, and in both instances, I experienced significant anxiety because of my camera's functioning and my lack of ability to make it work correctly.

So, after a session of trying to photograph her precious newborn grandchild, I determined to figure out not only the problem with my camera, but also how to master my camera so I can capture these special family moments with expertise and ease.

I've spent the better part of the last two weeks honing my craft: reading photography how-to blogs, fiddling with every dial and setting on my Nikon D7000, drooling over new lenses, and purchasing a MacBook Pro for editing.  I'm using a Nikkor AF-S 18-200mm 3.5-5.6G lense, with a mal-functioning autofocus, hence manual focus only.

As in any endeavor, practice is essential.  I've challenged myself to capture a Christmas-themed image each day for thirty days leading up to Christmas.  In doing so, I am using only Manual mode on my camera and learning to set the aperture, shutter speed, and ISO for various settings.  This challenge also is forcing me to step outside my comfort zone (translated: yes, I have introverted tendencies that I must overcome.)

All of that to say:  here are the products of the first week's efforts.  These are unedited, straight out of the camera images.  Correct exposure has been the goal.  In just these few days, I have managed to reduce the number of pictures it takes to get to correct exposure.

Day 1

natural morning indoor light with flash; Exposure ISO 100 f5.3 1/250 at 95mm

Time to get the Christmas dishes out of the cabinet.  With natural light streaming into my kitchen, I thought I could use it to light up these dishes. I just couldn't seem to get my settings figured out on this first morning of my Thirty Days of Christmas Joy challenge, so I finally settled for a flash photo, and forced myself to do some more reading to figure out how to let more light into my camera on a shot like this.

Exposure ISO 100 f/36 10 seconds at 112mm

Just for fun to see if I could . . . flashlight writing on a long exposure.

Day 2

outdoors with natural afternoon light . . . Exposure ISO 200 f4 1/200 at 24mm 

indoor nighttime with lamp light . . . Exposure ISO 2500 f/4.5 1/50 at 32mm

Day 3

Exposure ISO 200 f/5.3 1/40 at 105mm

Exposure ISO 200 f/5 1/100 at 36mm

Exposure ISO 100 f/36 20 seconds at 90mm

Practicing the twinkle light effect -- do you see it?

Day 4

Exposure ISO 800 f/22 2 seconds at 18mm, without tripod

Definitely learning some lessons:  must have a tripod!  Crank up the ISO a bit more & avoid using the focal length extremes.

Day 5

Expsosure ISO 1000  f/25 2 seconds  +3 exposure compensation at 26mm 

Exposure ISO 1000  f/25 1.6 seconds  +3 exposure compensation at 26mm

Getting smarter, working better & gaining confidence.

Day 6

cropped in camera; Exposure ISO 1600  f/22 1 second at 170mm

Day 7

Exposure ISO 320  f/8 1/80  +.7 exposure compensation at 48mm

Exposure ISO 320  f/8 1/60  -.3 exposure compensation at 42mm

And a few extras:  my helper and a Sunday afternoon practice excursion ... learning to work the dials in manual mode to create a properly exposed image.

Exposure ISO 100 f/7.1 1/640 at 105mm

Mirror image straight out of the camera! Exposure ISO 100 f/4.2 1/400 at 32mm

Exposure ISO 200 f/5.3 1/500 at 95mm

Exposure ISO 200 f/5.6 1/200 at 82mm

He Lets Me Rest

He lets me rest in green meadows; he leads me beside peaceful streams. He renews my strength. Psalm 23:2

"But you just had a whole summer to do nothing! You shouldn't need a break."  These are words we educators hear more often than not.

While it is true our work schedules are different from other professionals, our time on the job is intense: 

the responsibility of caring for others' children, 

for teaching rigorous content, 

for assessing & reporting, 

for remediating & enriching dozens of individuals, 

for growing ourselves as professionals

... and squeezing it all in to fewer than 190 days ... yes, it is intense!

There is no downtime, no slowing down or taking breaks during school. Even weekends and evenings are strategically planned for us teachers to grade  papers and create lesson plans.

It's easy to burn out, to run ourselves ragged.

We must take time to rest.  School holidays and long weekends help us de-stress and catch up on life outside of school.

In a Nutshell
I wouldn't change my chosen profession, but I am grateful for scattered opportunities throughout the school year for rest.

Gracious heavenly Father, You created rest. I am grateful You saw fit to allow rest to follow work.  Too often, I have failed to rest as you directed, and I have pushed myself to exhaustion and burnout. I am no good for You when I do this. Forgive me for my disobedience. Thank you for peaceful opportunities to relax and rest, for green meadows of stillness and solitude.  Thank you for peaceful waters that refresh and rejuvenate me. Thank you for renewing my strength to return to work and to serve You better. In the name of Jesus, Amen.

Utensils

If you keep yourself pure, you will be a special utensil for honorable use.  Your life will be clean, and you will be ready for the Master to use you for every good work.  2 Timothy 2:21

Mount Trashmore rises above the treeline near I-285, and the air is tainted with the stench of decomposition.

We live in such a disposable society that we not only have landfills, but we are building mountains with our discarded waste.

More and more, though, I prefer single-use items: cups, paper towels & plates, napkins, grocery sacks, bottles & cans, forks & spoons ... the list could go on.  

Partly for the convenience of portability,

partly because I'm lazy about washing, 

partly because it's just become a habit --  

Use it once and toss it.  

It can't be sanitized and re-used.

Growing up, we always used our stainless utensils (& on celebratory occasions, sterling), china plates and glassware for meals, and we took the trash bag out once or twice a week.  Now, it seems we fill a bag nearly every day or two. 

In a Nutshell
Our habits may have changed, but God hasn't changed.  I'm grateful that He doesn't see me as  a disposable, convenient plastic fork or paper plate, nor that He sees me as sterling silver to bless only on special occasions.

Father, I praise Your holy name.  You are my Master, ready to use me for every good work.  I have failed to keep myself pure, to live a clean life in obedience to You.  Forgive me for my failure, and cleanse my heart. Thank you for washing me clean instead of throwing me out with the garbage. Use me as Your special utensil to do good work as You pour out Your blessings on others.  In Jesus' name, Amen.

Ambassadors

So we are Christ's ambassadors. God is making his appeal through us. 2 Corinthians 5:20

Neatly tucked shirts emblazoned with our school logo, khaki pants, a belt, no caps, no frayed edges, no facial hair, no earrings on the boys, and haircuts above the collar, above the eyes & ears: our Blazer dress code sets our students apart from others.  This is "the look" required of a Blazer-- a student who represents BCCS. 

They are ambassadors for our school and are expected to dress and to behave in ways becoming of a Blazer. 

Our students, whether they intend to or not, will draw new people in, or we will turn them off.  They are Blazers: what they do, what they say, how they dress matters because they project an image of a collective whole.

In much the same way, we are ambassadors for Christ.  We will draw others to Him, or we will turn them away from Him by our words and actions. 

Anne Graham Lotz poses some powerful questions for self-reflection:

• Who has rejected God because of my behavior or conversation?
• Am I driving people away from Him or drawing them to Him by my behavior and attitude?
• Does the Light in my life shine so that others look at my character and my conduct and give genuine praise and thanks to the One who lives within me?
• Or is the Light so dim that they don't even notice any difference between myself and them?
• If all the churches in this nation were like me, would they be strong, vibrant Lighthouses pointing people to safety ...
• Or would they be to blame for the spiritual and moral darkness that has swept across our land?

In a Nutshell
Am I living so that God can use me to bring others to Him? 

Almighty Father, thank you for role models, for ambassadors, both in scripture and in our present lives.  So many times, Father, my words and actions have pushed people away from You. Forgive me.  Use me as Your ambassador to make Your appeal through me that my co-workers  and students might come to know You.  Amen.

Attractive Conversation

Let your conversation be gracious and attractive so that you will have the right response for everyone. Colossians 4:6

Social media has a way drawing out the worst in some of us.  The latest comment or meme or news story can draw ire and outrage from dozens of people in a moment.  Before we even have time to think, we jump into the fray.

But they are words, and once published, just like words once said, they don't go away.  We can hit the delete button, but that doesn't take them away any more than words said verbally will go away.  The damage is done.

As fleeting as our thoughts and words may be to us, they are not fleeting to others. Other people remember what we say far better than we ourselves remember, and that's how their perspective of us is formed.

In a Nutshell
Our witness for Jesus is furthered or hindered by our words and actions.

Heavenly Father, Your Word is gracious and attractive. Thank you for Your gift of scripture that I might learn to know You better through Your Word.  Forgive me for having conversation that is ungodly. Lead me, Father, to think before I speak or write, that every word may be gracious and attractive, and that I might have a right response for everyone today. In the holy name of Jesus I pray. Amen.

Customer Service

If you think you are too important to help someone, you are only fooling yourself.  You are not that important.  Galatians 6:3

Busy, and frustrated, I dropped the phone in its cradle, and noise of  "Don't Bother Me" resounded in my office.

Not exactly the Blazer Spirit I wish to exemplify.

Chic-Fil-A may the best local example of what customer service can be.  CFA employees speak with an upbeat tone when they welcome you to their register, and as they hand you your order, they invite you back tomorrow.

As a school, we, too, are in the customer service business.

I often have to stop and check myself: am I welcoming my students and their families as eagerly as CFA welcomes their customers?  Am I inviting them to return day after day?  The answer is no.  I get so caught up in my busy-ness that sometimes my frustration shows when I deal with other people.

I want our students and their parents to want to come to our school, to feel welcome and appreciated, all the time, not just when it's convenient for me.

In a Nutshell
My tone and my response send a clear message to others.

Father, You are never too busy or too frustrated to hear my pleas.  I thank you for being on-call for me 24/7.  You are never more than a whisper away.  Forgive me for acting as if I am too busy or too frustrated to do the same for others.  Thank you for reminding me in Your Word that I am not too important to help others.  Amen.

The Roots are Holy

... For if the roots of the tree are holy, the branches will be, too.  Romans 11:16

What a privilege it is to work under the leadership of a godly person, one who prays for her people and for her organization!  

This isn't something new.

As I reflect on this portion of scripture, I am reminded of an essay on leadership I wrote during graduate school at Liberty University, words which continue to hold true:

This writer has been fortunate to observe a school Administrator demonstrate leadership characteristics similar to those of Nehemiah.  From envisioning a better community with a local school, garnering the support of local and state officials, and gathering supplies (including facilities), to casting the vision for parents, students and teachers, organizing them to accomplish the vision, and enveloping the entire operation in prayer, the Administrator of Baconton Community Charter School has set an example of godly leadership and continues to develop leadership characteristics in her followers.

In a Nutshell
We are deeply rooted, and for that I am grateful.

Gracious Father, You are the root of all that is good.  What a privilege you have granted us to work under the leadership of an anointed Administrator, one whose faith is deeply rooted in You!  Thank you for her example; thank you for her willingness to cover us in prayer.  Thank you for her vision and her stamina to carry out that vision.  Forgive me, Father, for not having been a holy branch, for falling short because of my own stubbornness. Help me to become a holy branch on this tree that you have planted in our community.  Show me your way that I might be a light to others.  In the precious name of Jesus, Amen.