The Sunday Sessions: 4.22.18 Edition
Sunday is traditionally a day in which we slow down, take time for reflection, and recharge. Every Sunday, I will share a poem or excerpt that will make us think, wonder, or even laugh as we prepare ourselves for the upcoming week.
A few weeks ago, I participated in a professional development training at my school in restorative justice practices. One practice we learned is morning and afternoon circles. These can involve students sitting in the circle and one by one sharing an answer to a question that either the teacher or another student poses. Circles promote community amongst students.
At the training, we practiced doing circles as teachers and posed questions to the group. One fun question that was asked was what superpower would you choose to have if you were a superhero. I found the answers the teachers gave were quite revealing. I learned more about who they were behind the professional veneer they bring to work.
I have a difficult time choosing between two superpowers. The first superpower I would choose is invisibility. Harry Potter’s invisibility cloak, to me, would be the gift of all gifts because I am nosy, nosy, nosy. I find people to be fascinating. I would love to be able to watch people when they think they are being unobserved, to get into their heads a bit, and understand their thought processes and motivations. I’m also curious about if and how people change when they interact with different people and what they talk about when I’m not there. I could continue on with so many more questions I have about people and what I would be able to learn if I had the power to be invisible. At times I think I would love to be a detective or a private investigator and get to study the little clues people drop for a living. By now you are probably thinking I might be a little imbalanced, but I promise I’m not a stalker and do not go snooping around people’s personal lives! I’m simply curious about humans and how they live.
The other superpower I would love to have is the ability to control time. I remember watching a TV show as a kid that had either two teenagers or two twenty-somethings who had a remote control that could pause time. I wish I had a remote control like that, but I would also like to be able to rewind and fast forward time. Now that I am a mother, I feel as though time is just slipping through my fingers and I can’t finish everything that I would like to get done. It would be amazing if I could pause time to finish work for my classroom, write my blog, exercise and, without a doubt, take naps. I’d also like to be able to fast forward time since I am often anxious about the future and how things will turn out. I’d love to be able to fast forward to certain times to see who my daughter grows up to be or how certain life decisions pan out. And finally, I would want to be able to rewind time to prevent my mother’s death, and if that is not possible, spend more time with her while she was alive. I did not savor my time with her enough while I had it, and I would do almost anything to get that time back.
Didn’t my choices expose a lot about who I am, what I think about, and what my priorities are? I love this question because it gives so much insight into who a person really is behind the filter they use to curate their outer persona. It tells us their deepest desire without the need for Harry Potter’s Mirror of Erised (that’s desire spelled backward for you non-Potter fans). Now that you know that I’m an extremely nosy person, I’m sure you’re not surprised at all that I can’t wait to hear what superpower you would choose. Let me know in the comments below or on Facebook!
Question of the Week
If you could have any superpower, what superpower would you choose to have?
My two would be: invisibility, much for the same reasons you stated; and the ability to fly. In my beat dreams I have been able to fly, just lift my arms and be weightless, move effortlessly and with grace. The things I could see, the places I could go, the peopleI could visit and help and know. The sheer joy of flying, observing from a distance, and coming back to earth when I choose and without effort. Guess it Speaks to my curiosity, as well as the effort and sometimes pain it has caused me to carry the body I have throughout my heavy years, and also that hidden wish to feel graceful. Interesting exercise.
Beat dreams = best dreams. Argh.
I love flying in my dreams! The freedom that comes with mastering gravity is thrilling. That’s a good superpower!
Great minds think alike–invisibility and time control are the same two powers I would choose, albeit for different reasons. Invisibility would allow me to hide when I need to get away from people but getting physical distance is either too difficult or too rude. Controlling the speed and direction of time could be superhero fuel–stopping accidents before a loss of life, providing a do-over to prevent future hardship, etc.–but let’s be honest, it would also just let me take a dang nap or a day off when I need to recharge. I guess the Mirror of Erised would show me peacefully napping alone? 😉
Wouldn’t that be a hoot? You’re all set, ready to look in the Mirror of Erised, and when you look you see yourself taking a nap. You should tweet J.K. Rowling. As for invisibility, I hadn’t thought about being able to hide so you don’t have to see people. That happens to me so often. I just want to go to the grocery store and shop in peace. I don’t necessarily want to run into someone from my childhood and then awkwardly have to summarize the last 20 years in two minutes. Invisibility cloak, please!