Not a "gem" of a day

After correcting two sets of quizzes and spending another emotionally exhausting day at school, I'm ready to collapse into bed. I am saving all my positive quotes to re-read; this one seems to fit my life lately:

The gem cannot be polished without friction, nor man perfected
without trials.

-- Chinese proverb

Ashley is having up and down days with trials too. She misses the companionship of her male "friends" and the closeness of sharing ideas and emotions. School seems to be harder this quarter; that WAS what she said she wanted though...(be careful what you wish for?)Tonight she e-mailed me that her evening had been lots of fun--both at dinner talking to people, and later at her evening French class. As for Alison, she shared with me that she starting shaking when the school announced that there had been a fatal accident on the street that she knows I drive on at about that time, right by the junior high where I work. Being young, she doesn't sympathize with anyone who would just run into the road in front of a car; she also showed me the girl's My Space, which I'm hoping her parents NEVER see. It was vile, and what the girl had to say about her parents was unconscionable. It reminds me yet again to be careful about what I put in print. It will outlive me, so I want it to truly reflect my character and personality. I may not be perfect, but I do try to be the best person I can. Today I get a mixed grade on my success with that. C'est la vie.

Comments

[ally bean]

I like your postitive quote. It reminds me of one from Italy that is something about the same fire that burns the straw refines the gold.

I like thinking of myself as gold. (<==== so shallow, but happy)

Hang in there, Friday's a-coming.

[Alison]

That is a great proverb.

And I try to remember that someone once said "Don't put anything in print that you wouldn't want to have read at your own funeral."

...Or something along those lines.

Then again, that young woman was probably feeling some growing pains. Parents are an easy target for that age group. I am sure she did love them.

Sigh. It is Friday. I hope you have a good weekend.

[FB]

Yes, the MySpace thing is a shocker if you are a parent. It opens your eyes to just what teen angst might be, X 10, and with the benefit of all the internet has to offer.

Sometimes just plugging along with the boring routine helps to get us out of the funk we are in, keep grading those quizzes, red pen baby, red pen!

[Jim]

My daughter and I have read each other's online journals for almost ten years now without any problems. However, there are a few of her friends whose journals I avoid because I do not want to know some of the things they write.

[Allan]

Yes, have a great weekend, Margaret.

[Eileen]

Well, remember that the girl was a young teenager. I had huge fights with my mom during my high school years, but loved her so much. I don't know where you find the time to blog. As you have noticed, I haven't blogged for almost 2 weeks.

[bonnie]

You get an A+ in my book every day, Margaret. Move to the head of the class!

Tip from Ma Ingalls-

If wisdom’s ways you wisely seek,
Five things observe with care.
To whom you speak,
Of whom you speak,
And how, and when, and where.

Caroline Ingalls
Nov 1881

[old horsetail snake]

Your character and personality come through right well. I giving you high marks -- probably higher than you would, but that's because I'm right and you're wrong.

[Laura]

We stumbled across my neice's MySpace.....ugh....what a disaster....I wish I didnt look.

[debby]

Some things are better left unseen.. (although I read my kids' MYspace daily..so shoot me)

[violetismycolor]

I do wonder at what some teens put up on their blogs. I know one girl in Bonnie's class that talked about cutting herself and that she was angry when the school nurse told her parents...then she wrote about telling her parents she was one place when she was running off with some guy. Wasn't she afraid that her parents would find it? Then, the is a girl in Ross's class who writes mean things about her mom all the time...and her mom is a friend of mine. I would never tell her, though. She would probably be devastated!

[clickmom]

I read my 12 year old diary as an adult and was embarrassed over what I wrote and how I sounded that I burned them. I turned out pretty good, despite a...umm.... "challenging" puberty.

[Tonya]

I remember writing bad things about my mom when I was a teen (I kept diaries and journals). But never ONCE did I even consider that those words might be my lasting legacy. As teens, we are immortal, you know, which I'm sure this girl even thought while she was running across the road in front of a van. I'm sure Nate has written (and said) nasty things about me, as well, but I do KNOW he loves me, and I always have known that. Hopefully her parents knew she loved them, too.

And maybe this will be an eye-opener to other teens. MySpace is so very popular -- Nate has even shown me his site. (Lots of naughty words, but otherwise OK). Maybe a small ripple will occur that will get kids to thinking about what they write. At least for a while.

[Karan]

I like the proverb. It reminds me too that the diamond is formed under lots of pressure. Maybe we're on our way to gemdom!

I found the girl's blog too and compared to others...not so bad. Like my own daughter, she seemed to be trying on different ways of being. I found both of my kids' myspace places and I've been checking them out now and then...just to see what they are up to in that oh so private place shared with 2 million other searching teens and young adults.

That said...you're advice is sound...be very careful about what you leave behind....because long after those who remember you and knew the daily you, the words lose that personal connection will stand on their own and become you.

I need to remind my kids of that right now. I need to remind myself of that.

[pops]

About 30 years ago Gore Vidal wondered aloud about why the only Americans who kept diaries were the ones who intened to perform large scale very public criminal acts. Therefore it would be interesting to get his take on blogging. Obviously his first stop would have to be myspace.com.