There are no windows in my classroom.
It’s pretty sad when the only way I know that it’s raining is the thumpthumpthumpthump of the raindrops on the roof overhead.
When that happens, everything in class stops. All twenty or so students stop whatever they’re doing, look to the ceiling, and wonder if they’re really hearing what they think they’re hearing. Because maybe it’s raining or maybe it’s a TV cart swishing and rattling as someone pushes it down the hall. And is that thunder or just a truck, its engine idling outside?
So, I step out into the hallway to look out the front doors and see if it is really raining outside. And about that time, the smell of rain seeps into the building and now everyone knows the weather. The kids settle back down to their books.
Last year, before school started, I decided enough was enough. I was tired of staring at cream-colored concrete block all day, so I enlarged three photos poster-size and set them up around the room … as “windows.”
One of the photos is of the Viera Wetlands. It shows a white heron standing on an island of green, green shrub, surrounded by marsh.
The second photo is of this old, spiral staircase that sits off of U.S. 1, surrounded by pepper trees. There’s not a building in sight and part of the reason I chose the picture was to spark the imagination of my students. Where does this lonely staircase go?
This year, I hung the third photo on the back bulletin board where I can see it from my desk. It’s a picture of where I walk the beach each summer. And, as my friend Nancy pointed out, it’s important that it’s not some random beach. It’s my beach. Though I don’t own it, it becomes my beach just because I walked it and captured it on camera.
All three photos provide me with something many of us our missing in our jobs … perspective.
It is so easy throughout the day to be overcome by demands and worry. We get caught up in the minutiae of life and lose focus on what’s truly important.
The Bible has a lot to say on worry—mainly, don’t worry. But that is always easier said than done. How do we keep perspective?
Philippians 4:8 has the answer: “Finally brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.”
Even one picture at your place of work to remind you of what is right or lovely or praiseworthy might make all the difference.
A picture of your family, a picture of a vacation spot, perhaps even a picture of your church, may be just enough to keep your faith and your heart properly rooted.
In my case, in my room without windows, I had to bring in photos. I had to have something to remind me of the outside world. My only other option was to knock down a few walls. And I didn’t think I’d get approval for that.
