'One can never consent to creep when one feels an impulse to soar.'
Helen Keller
The story of Helen Keller is inspirational. Not just because she was the first deaf and blind person to earn a bachelor's degree but because it was her 20 year old teacher, Anne Sullivan, who was the first to successfully reach into her world and make a connection that would change the world forever.
As the story goes, for over a month Anne used sign language to communicate the names of things into Helen's hand, but Helen (who became deaf and blind through an illness at 18 months) could not understand what the symbols meant. It wasn't until Anne poured water over one hand while spelling into the other that the breakthrough moment came. From that moment on, the door was open and the light interrupted and changed Helen's world of darkness.
Breakthrough moments are possible, and they are amazing. You never know when they will occur or what will trigger them, but we do know they do not happen without persistence, hope, and entertaining the impossible. What breakthrough are you attempting with your students today, this week, this month, or this year? Keep at it. Don't stop trying. You never know what will be the switch that turns on a light that will make a difference in the life of your students.
You can soar and so can your students. Never be content to creep.
