Hi Everyone!
At the time of the writing of this post, I have spent 820 hours outside since September 20, 2022. Although I did fall short of my initial goal to complete the 1000 hours outside challenge by June 30, 2023, I am confident I will reach the ultimate goal at some point over the summer. This challenge has been more difficult than I thought it would be. Even with my great love of the outdoors and the flexibility to teach outside when the weather allowed for it, there were some busy days where I wasn’t able to get outside much at all. What I did enjoy was making a concerted effort to prioritize outside time on the weekends and during time away from work. I hope you all will try to find ways in your family lives to make it a point to be outside wherever possible this summer. I would also encourage you all to try and balance out “screen time” with “green time” and other pursuits like reading, drawing, crafting, and playing music.
I would also like to extend my heartfelt thanks to you for the kind words, good wishes, and cards as well as the thoughtful and generous gifts I received from so many of you. It is indeed a blessing to be a member of the St. Paul community and I am grateful for it everyday. One of my favourite reggae artists, Clinton Fearon regularly says “Do what you love, and love what you do!” when he is performing. I often think of these wise words when I am at school working with the students, teachers, and support staff of St. Paul School.
I wish you all a safe, happy, relaxing, and active summer. I look forward to reconnecting with everyone in September!
Take care (& GO PLAY OUTSIDE!!!)
Mr. K