Get Your Pink Back

A few months back while losing precious time on Instagram (LOL), I stumbled into Lindsey Gurk who does many impressive things, but one thing that caught my eye was this concept she started, “Get your pink back.”

As she explains far more eloquently than I can, Get Your Pink Back was inspired by facts she learned about flamingos while trying to manage the daily life a busy mom. In short, flamingo mothers lose that beautiful, rich pink hue in their feathers while raising their young because their energy and food is given to their children.

But have no fear, upon raising their children, flamingos can get their pink back to the vibrant rich color that we all know to be their signature look.

Lindsey’s point in all of this is pretty apparent for moms. In short, you may feel like you are losing parts of yourself or like you aren’t able to operate at your fullest capacity as you work hard to raise good humans, but don’t worry, you will get your pink back.

This actually got me thinking about educators. Who by the end of a long school year, find that their pink feathers have faded. With little time to enjoy lunch or adult conversations during the workday and with every minute accounted for in their busy lives, many educators end the school year feeling exhausted and less vibrant.

Over the summer, many educators are still hard at work teaching in summer school, taking on second jobs, or reading and planning for the following year. Despite all of this, many of us still tend to have a bit more flexibility. Some of us focus on making healthier meals or getting more exercise while others schedule out the appointments they’ve put off during the school year. Many of us schedule long overdue lunches or coffee dates to catch up and enjoy each other.

And by the time school starts again, many of us have gotten some of our pink back and feel excited about the potential of a new school year.

However, we shouldn’t have to lose our pink for the majority of the calendar year. In fact, if we can make school a place where everyone is energized, rested, and connected, this can lead to deeper levels of meaningful learning.

As I mention in my upcoming book, Legacy of Learning: Teaching for lasting impact, we often encourage students to give 110% in all they do. First of all, that is impossible. There is no 110%. But additionally, everything is not worth that level of gusto and when we give that much energy to that which matters less, we have less energy to give to that which matters more to us. We mean well. Giving 110% is something many of us were encouraged to do as kids, and many of us were told that was the path to success.

But what if we are successful in spite of this kind of effort? I believe in hard work and discipline. I’m just skeptical that the same amount of hard work and discipline should be applied to all aspects of our work.

Perhaps our schools need a little less hustle in certain areas, so we can give a little more heart.

Perhaps school would feel more alive with learning if we felt a little more alive in our work.

Perhaps we could see more of the beauty in others if we didn’t sacrifice the beauty within ourselves.

So, during this time of summer savor, maybe next school year is less about what you can do better and more about how to enjoy more.

Maybe.