Attitude of Gratitude, Day 10

November 10: Being grateful for humor - share a story about a time in career where humor played a part.

Humor is the main tool in my teacher toolkit, so it's a little hard to recall a particular moment in my career when humor wasn't playing a part in my day-to-day teacher/librarian life. I will admit to having a somewhat sarcastic-type of humor, which does tend to work well with older kids. I have found that the best "delivery" is pretty straightforward, with a slight twinkle of the day to let the person know I'm kidding but serious. Making a little joke can seriously diffuse a tense situation, because it can reduce the tension.

One of the earliest times I can remember using humor was during a contract bargaining session. My district is small; it has become somewhat of a casual place, but the superintendent who was there the longest preferred a more formal bargaining approach, which meant that he did not come to the bargaining table, but sent the district attorney to meet with the bargaining team. The attorney did the running back and forth, and while it wasn't far, it took time. The attorney tended to be formal also, probably taking his cue from the superintendent, and things were feeling somewhat tense. We weren't making any headway. I can't even recall what point we were discussing, but the district's point just seemed kind of silly to me, and I made a little joke about it. The attorney looked at me with astonishment, and then suddenly he began to laugh, and the whole atmosphere in the room changed. The ice was broken, and I always looked forward to working with the attorney. Bargaining just isn't the same without him at the table.

Another time, the same superintendent came down to the library to talk to me about some forgotten topic. I felt as though I were in the middle of some counseling session, and I mentioned that I felt like Lucy from Peanuts - 5 cents, the Dr. is in! I was surprised when he dug into his pocket, and handed me a nickle! Apparently the doctor was in, and I taped the nickle on my office window. It's still there.

Humor works - I'd be sunk without it. I've always known that if I didn't have a sense of humor, I would be deadly, so I plan on keep the smiles coming.