Saturday's Storyteller: Positivity Wall
Yesterday, in my introspection, I focused on how I was recently absorbing a lot of negative energy, thoughts, and feelings when it came to who I was, how I behaved, and how others perceived me. Since then, a few people have reached out to check on me and show their support, and I'm truly grateful for their kindness.
One thing I want to work on, as a next step, is allowing myself to be kind and positive to myself. It is so easy to remember the good I have in my life: A loving wife, a caring family, a beautiful condo in a beautiful town, a fulfilling job, wonderful friends, and the freedom to continue to keep writing and creating music and art. I am aware of all of these gifts and privileges, and I have never lost sight of them, even if I don't always think I deserve them. However, being thankful for the things and people around me is different than acknowledging the good qualities that I exhibit as an individual.
This also goes for my specific talents or skills. It's usually quite easy for me to recognize what I'm good at, as in: I'm a decent writer, or I'm a good singer, or I'm a good actor (according to Arden, sometimes I'm too good at acting), or I'm a good cook, or I can play a mean game of badminton. How I succeed at my hobbies and passions is awesome and great and super important...but I want to focus more on my innate qualities, rather than the ones I can channel into a pen or a guitar or a frying pan.
At the high school I work at, in the detention room, the students have collaborated all year to put together a Positivity Wall. Even when so many of these teenagers walk into this room because they've gotten in trouble for something, the supervisor is so supportive that she inspires them to communicate positive things about themselves and others, usually in writing or drawings. This is constructive, restorative, and productive: It helps students who may be in academic and/or emotional danger stop, reflect, reconcile, and learn. And that's something I want to do for myself - something I think I deserve, and that I've earned. No one stops growing, changing, or improving as a person, and even though this current culture is incredibly unforgiving of flaws or mistakes, that doesn't mean that I can't forgive myself, work harder, and remember the positives.
It is so easy to get lost in the fog of self-deprecation, low self-esteem, and harsh self-criticism. I get lost in that fog a lot, and many of the people I adore and cherish also get lost in that fog a lot. So as I create my own "positivity wall," I encourage you all who read this to do the same thing. Remind yourselves of how incredible you are and how much you've grown as people, and how even though you will always be flawed and always make mistakes, nothing that is beautiful and worthwhile is perfect.
So in lieu of a Storyteller this week, I give you my best attempt at remembering positive traits and qualities about myself. My wife also helped me out a lot in creating this list, and I thank her for her outside perspective.
Okay. Here we go.
***
My Positivity Wall - January 26th, 2019
by Belinda Roddie
I am an incredibly compassionate person. I care deeply about my community and the people I surround myself with, and I work hard to try to make as many of them as possible happy.
I exhibit an immense amount of energy and enthusiasm for what I teach and do. Every day, I work to get my students just as into writing and literature as I am, and I love being able to share my excitement for music, drama, and culture with others.
I always aim to improve myself as an individual. My constant goal is to take responsibility for and learn from my mistakes, even though I need to be less hard on myself for making them in the first place. I do not make excuses for myself and continually strive to listen to others' stories and give their viewpoints and perspectives a platform so they can be heard.
I am incredibly prolific when it comes to my creative pastimes. I write at least something daily, which demonstrates strong discipline in my mission to consistently produce new stories, poems, songs, scripts, and journal entries.
I am a supportive friend, mentor, and wife, frequently dropping what I am doing and sacrificing both time and energy to make sure that the people I love are safe and content. Because I care about them.
I have a great sense of humor and love to liven up the mood in my classes and among my family and peers. While I lacked confidence in this area when I was in high school, nowadays, I get a lot of compliments for making people laugh and creating a fun, casual environment.
Even though I talk a lot, I have a lot of cool and interesting things to say, and many people love listening to me due to my lively tone and timbre.
I am a good listener and am willing to consider other people's opinions in debates and discussions, in order to remain open-minded about a variety of topics.
I am a brutally honest person, and my ability to wear my heart on my sleeve signifies that I wish to openly communicate my thoughts, feelings, and ideas to people I trust and respect. This also helps me self-advocate and teach my students how to do the same.
I have a knack for setting people at ease and giving them a space to be themselves. Just like I can be open about my feelings, I allow others to open up about their own stories, anxieties, and interests.
I am increasingly passionate about a variety of topics and concepts - including media, social studies, science, art, economics, philosophy, and current events - and I am always willing to share that passion with other people. I harbor a strong curiosity about the world around me and love learning more about it and asking questions.
I am a natural problem solver, sometimes to an extreme. I have a talent for knowing what needs to be done and what the process has to be to get said thing done well and in a timely manner. I face my problems head on, even if perhaps I have to deal with a lot of blowback, skepticism, or repercussions because of it.
I am an empath. I can easily sense how others are feeling and adjust the environment to accommodate for them in a healthful and respectful way.
Just as I always aspire to be a better person, I also acknowledge my limitations when deemed necessary in any given situation. I am very self-aware of what I can do well and what I may not be able to accomplish at that point in time, and that allows me to step back and ensure that I am being taken care of while others who are better able to solve the problem at hand can.
I can put my thoughts and feelings very quickly and efficiently into words, either verbally or in writing. Pretty much everything I've written, fictional or otherwise, is a good example of that quality.
I have a keen eye for detail, especially when it comes to editing texts. I didn't get the pseudo-title, "Pontiff of Proofreading," for nothing.
I am deeply accepting of others' identities and respectful of how they express said identities. Because I was never able to openly express who I was when I was younger, I am someone who encourages younger people to be authentic.
I am very good at code-switching. In my case, this means that I am capable of adapting quickly to different situations and environments, in order to identify people's boundaries and needs.
At the same time, I never change my personality for the sake of others. And even if maybe I back down from confrontation from time to time and some people get away with disrespecting me for what I do or who I am, I never let anyone force me to become someone that I'm not.
Barring extreme circumstances or behaviors, I easily forgive, and I love wholeheartedly.
***
Okay. That's all I can think of so far. If you happen to notice something I forgot that you think I should know, please tell me: Not because I need my ego stroked, but because I sometimes just need a reminder so I can keep going through my day and stay strong in the process. I appreciate your time as I've attempted to reaffirm all the positive and the good as I get closer and closer to the end of the current school year.
Night, lovelies. I adore you all.
One thing I want to work on, as a next step, is allowing myself to be kind and positive to myself. It is so easy to remember the good I have in my life: A loving wife, a caring family, a beautiful condo in a beautiful town, a fulfilling job, wonderful friends, and the freedom to continue to keep writing and creating music and art. I am aware of all of these gifts and privileges, and I have never lost sight of them, even if I don't always think I deserve them. However, being thankful for the things and people around me is different than acknowledging the good qualities that I exhibit as an individual.
This also goes for my specific talents or skills. It's usually quite easy for me to recognize what I'm good at, as in: I'm a decent writer, or I'm a good singer, or I'm a good actor (according to Arden, sometimes I'm too good at acting), or I'm a good cook, or I can play a mean game of badminton. How I succeed at my hobbies and passions is awesome and great and super important...but I want to focus more on my innate qualities, rather than the ones I can channel into a pen or a guitar or a frying pan.
At the high school I work at, in the detention room, the students have collaborated all year to put together a Positivity Wall. Even when so many of these teenagers walk into this room because they've gotten in trouble for something, the supervisor is so supportive that she inspires them to communicate positive things about themselves and others, usually in writing or drawings. This is constructive, restorative, and productive: It helps students who may be in academic and/or emotional danger stop, reflect, reconcile, and learn. And that's something I want to do for myself - something I think I deserve, and that I've earned. No one stops growing, changing, or improving as a person, and even though this current culture is incredibly unforgiving of flaws or mistakes, that doesn't mean that I can't forgive myself, work harder, and remember the positives.
It is so easy to get lost in the fog of self-deprecation, low self-esteem, and harsh self-criticism. I get lost in that fog a lot, and many of the people I adore and cherish also get lost in that fog a lot. So as I create my own "positivity wall," I encourage you all who read this to do the same thing. Remind yourselves of how incredible you are and how much you've grown as people, and how even though you will always be flawed and always make mistakes, nothing that is beautiful and worthwhile is perfect.
So in lieu of a Storyteller this week, I give you my best attempt at remembering positive traits and qualities about myself. My wife also helped me out a lot in creating this list, and I thank her for her outside perspective.
Okay. Here we go.
***
My Positivity Wall - January 26th, 2019
by Belinda Roddie
I am an incredibly compassionate person. I care deeply about my community and the people I surround myself with, and I work hard to try to make as many of them as possible happy.
I exhibit an immense amount of energy and enthusiasm for what I teach and do. Every day, I work to get my students just as into writing and literature as I am, and I love being able to share my excitement for music, drama, and culture with others.
I always aim to improve myself as an individual. My constant goal is to take responsibility for and learn from my mistakes, even though I need to be less hard on myself for making them in the first place. I do not make excuses for myself and continually strive to listen to others' stories and give their viewpoints and perspectives a platform so they can be heard.
I am incredibly prolific when it comes to my creative pastimes. I write at least something daily, which demonstrates strong discipline in my mission to consistently produce new stories, poems, songs, scripts, and journal entries.
I am a supportive friend, mentor, and wife, frequently dropping what I am doing and sacrificing both time and energy to make sure that the people I love are safe and content. Because I care about them.
I have a great sense of humor and love to liven up the mood in my classes and among my family and peers. While I lacked confidence in this area when I was in high school, nowadays, I get a lot of compliments for making people laugh and creating a fun, casual environment.
Even though I talk a lot, I have a lot of cool and interesting things to say, and many people love listening to me due to my lively tone and timbre.
I am a good listener and am willing to consider other people's opinions in debates and discussions, in order to remain open-minded about a variety of topics.
I am a brutally honest person, and my ability to wear my heart on my sleeve signifies that I wish to openly communicate my thoughts, feelings, and ideas to people I trust and respect. This also helps me self-advocate and teach my students how to do the same.
I have a knack for setting people at ease and giving them a space to be themselves. Just like I can be open about my feelings, I allow others to open up about their own stories, anxieties, and interests.
I am increasingly passionate about a variety of topics and concepts - including media, social studies, science, art, economics, philosophy, and current events - and I am always willing to share that passion with other people. I harbor a strong curiosity about the world around me and love learning more about it and asking questions.
I am a natural problem solver, sometimes to an extreme. I have a talent for knowing what needs to be done and what the process has to be to get said thing done well and in a timely manner. I face my problems head on, even if perhaps I have to deal with a lot of blowback, skepticism, or repercussions because of it.
I am an empath. I can easily sense how others are feeling and adjust the environment to accommodate for them in a healthful and respectful way.
Just as I always aspire to be a better person, I also acknowledge my limitations when deemed necessary in any given situation. I am very self-aware of what I can do well and what I may not be able to accomplish at that point in time, and that allows me to step back and ensure that I am being taken care of while others who are better able to solve the problem at hand can.
I can put my thoughts and feelings very quickly and efficiently into words, either verbally or in writing. Pretty much everything I've written, fictional or otherwise, is a good example of that quality.
I have a keen eye for detail, especially when it comes to editing texts. I didn't get the pseudo-title, "Pontiff of Proofreading," for nothing.
I am deeply accepting of others' identities and respectful of how they express said identities. Because I was never able to openly express who I was when I was younger, I am someone who encourages younger people to be authentic.
I am very good at code-switching. In my case, this means that I am capable of adapting quickly to different situations and environments, in order to identify people's boundaries and needs.
At the same time, I never change my personality for the sake of others. And even if maybe I back down from confrontation from time to time and some people get away with disrespecting me for what I do or who I am, I never let anyone force me to become someone that I'm not.
Barring extreme circumstances or behaviors, I easily forgive, and I love wholeheartedly.
***
Okay. That's all I can think of so far. If you happen to notice something I forgot that you think I should know, please tell me: Not because I need my ego stroked, but because I sometimes just need a reminder so I can keep going through my day and stay strong in the process. I appreciate your time as I've attempted to reaffirm all the positive and the good as I get closer and closer to the end of the current school year.
Night, lovelies. I adore you all.
Comments
Post a Comment