Frustrating Keys

     Have you ever come home at night and tried to unlock your door in the dark? You fumble with the keys a bit. Insert one key, it doesn't work so you try another. You insert another key and it gets stuck. All the while you wish you had left the porch light on or had at least picked out the right key while still in the car. This page of my journal is a Zentangle version of two keys. Here is the experience I had today that corresponds with the drawing. 

     I teach English to twenty-five teenage students for two hours, four days a week. Sometimes my students are studious and behaved, other times it seems like it is all I can do to stay a few steps ahead of their attitudes and classroom tricks. Today, in class, I was faced with a situation I have never had to deal with before. It came up suddenly and I was not prepared to take care of the incident. Later, as I was reflecting on what had happened, I began to wonder if my solution had been the most fair. I wished I had brainstormed all the possible problems to my particular classroom rule, and thought of solutions ahead of time. 

    I realized that the incident I had in class today could have been prevented with some fore thought. Just like every time I have tried to unlock a door in the dark I have wished I had left the light on or picked out the correct key. The lesson I learned? Take a moment to think things through ahead of time. Thinking ahead may prevent problems from forming or at least give you possible solutions to the problems. Thinking ahead may also prevent you from getting frustrated when you feel like you have tried every key on the ring and you still cannot find the right key!