My colleague Steve Bradford noted a little while back that this is the season grading, not grade whining. (Colleague Joan Heminway followed up with some sound advice on avoiding grade whining, too.) Add to the grading season an upcoming ABA site visit, and a few other deadlines, I'm feeling more overwhelmed than usual.  And, this morning, I went for my run in wet and rainy 55-degree weather with some a stiff wind in my face (on the way out).  

The wind in my face, coupled with Steve's sound words, reminded me of a post I wrote in November 2014, Better Teaching Idea: Try to Notice When the Wind Is at Your Back.  When I got into the office, I read it again to try to help me get back to my work with a good mindset.  The close of that piece was this: 

If we want to be better teachers, better lawyers, and better people, we’d all do well to try to recognize when the wind might be (or might have been) at our backs.  At various times, because of our race, gender, sexual orientation, class, religion, familial situation, education, or other reality, we have faced challenges, feeling the wind blowing directly in our faces. But at some point, most of us had the wind at our back, at least as compared to someone else.  And certainly, some of us have had the help more than others. 

Recognizing the challenges others face does not make our challenges less real or our accomplishments less significant. It just gives us the chance to have a closer, if not full, understanding of the challenges others face.  Ideally, that can make us more fair, more accessible, and more reasonable. It is right to try, especially for those of us who have reaped the benefit of the wind at our backs more often than others. 

I still very much believe this is true, and with the holidays rapidly approaching, it's a good reminder to me to be thankful for all I have, and to appreciate how well I have it.  

I wish you all happy holidays, efficient grading, good beer and wine (not whine), and great friends and family.