Queen Jen's Gems

Fresh air is good for all of us 😊! Fresh air is something we should get every day if possible. When you step outside next time, take time to notice all the nature around you. Look up at the clouds in the sky. Look at the different animals that are crawling  and flying by. Listen to the noises of the animals. I love to sit outside and walk outside a lot 💖. Sometimes when I'm sitting outside, I hear these really loud birds (maybe you have heard them too!). I remember I used to get annoyed by the noise. But, then, more recently, I started looking at the noise in a different way. I have started to see it as the birds doing what God has created them to do. That's how they're communicating. Look at the flowers and plants that are blooming. They're all beautiful in their own way 😊. All that God created is beautiful! You know who else God created? You and I! We are made by God! In Psalms 139:13, it talks about how we are fearfully and wonderfully made. Anything God made is b...

 At one time or another, all of us have followed someone before. It could have been that someone showed us how to get to our certain destination. We could have been playing the game Follow the Leader, where we imitated the actions of the leader 😊. With our society being more technology driven now, we can follow people's pages on social media. We can see the latest post and messages of those we follow. On the flip side of this, we all have been a leader in some way. We all have had someone look up to us at school, in our family, our friend circle, in a community organization, or following our social media page. If we have ever played Follow the Leader that was mentioned earlier, we may have been the leader. In any case, who we follow is important. How we lead is also important. A leader should know the way and show the way. In other words, a leader should live a good example for others to follow in words, actions, attitudes, and motives. People are watching and most importantly, Go...

 Take a minute and look at your surroundings. What do you notice? What do you see? What do you hear? What do you smell? I want to stop right here because smell has inspired today's blog post 😊. Stay with me.. I promise I'm taking you somewhere! In fact, this all comes from a compliment a student asked me in class not long ago. I was collecting papers from students in my classroom. When I walked past one of my student's desks , she said, "Ms. Clark, you smell good." First, I told the young lady, "Thank you!" Then, I proceeded to tell her that I had some Japanese Cherry Blossom on and Dove, but that was it. I didn't have anything special on. I also said it was a good thing I smelled good 😊. The young lady said again that I smelled good. But, this time, she added something she didn't say before. She said I smelled like goodness! Now, when I tell you my whole face lit up smiling, it did 😀! I had never heard anyone say I smelled like goodness befor...

 Welcome! You have made it to see a new day! I'm glad you're here 😊. A new day holds new opportunities, new experiences, new connections, and new memories 💖. When something is new, it's never been seen and it's original. We should be grateful when we get to experience a new day! It's a day we have never seen before and a day we will never see again when it's over. I'm learning more and more of the value of a new day and not to take it for granted. Everyone does not make it to see a new day. I'm learning more and more to cherish the day and the people in my life in that day. Each new day allows us to learn something new, improve, grow, make memories with those we love, and enjoy life 😊. I do my best to focus on progress. However, I will be honest. There's a perfectionist in me! Some of you may can relate to that 😉. The perfectionist definitely rises up a lot. Even in that, I remind myself to do the best I can and look how far I've come. Each n...

 When entering a store, business, house, or new state, we may be greeted with a "Welcome" sign. At a ceremony or service you attend, someone may give a welcome to those in attendance. The welcome lets you know that you are received in a glad and friendly way 😊. Some of you may have a welcome mat or sign at your place of residence. However, at my house growing up, I rarely remember seeing a welcome sign, rug, or flag at our house. At our house, we like the outdoor flags and my brother and I still put them outside our house. I remember being at the store one day with my Mom and we were looking at flags and rugs. I also remember pointing out a welcome one and said how nice it looked. Then, Momma said something that totally threw me off guard! She said she didn't want to buy one that said welcome. In my mind, I'm thinking don't we want people to feel welcome when they visit us. So, curiosity rose up in me and I decided to ask why not. She gave me her reasoning and it...

 In our daily lives, we see a lot at our jobs, schools/colleges, in our communities, on the news, Internet and social media. We see the good and bad, the positive and negative, and problems and solutions. In my previous blog post, I talked about going back for a new school year as a teacher and not mixing the old with the new. I encouraged us to keep what works and change what doesn't. If you haven't read my last blog post, I encourage you to take a minute and go back to read, "Don't Mix the Old With the New." In preparing for a new school year ahead, I want to look at it with fresh eyes 👀. I have to see the possibilities and opportunities that lie ahead 💚💙. A week from now, I will have new 6th grade students sitting in my classroom. I don't know what they went through in the previous years, but I do know I can help them see that this year can be a fresh start. I let them know it's a fresh start for me, too. I want my students to see that we are in this...

 We have made it to August! Praise God! August is the 8th month of the year. The number 8 symbolizes new beginnings 😊. As August rolls in, I know it signals something else for me: a new school year is about to start. My teacher brain realizes that work is starting soon and the students will be back in my classroom before I know it. In fact, the students start school at the end of this month. Not too long ago, we used to start school after Labor Day. Things have moved up! When it comes, I know I have to be prepared. I always do a reflection ( a recap if you will) of the year before. I look at what went well and what didn't go well. I think about the resources, materials, and activities I used. I look at previous lesson plans. I look at my self-care routines and boundaries in terms of what worked, what do I need to do more of, what do I need to do less of. It's in that reflection that I can pray, make wise decisions moving forward in the new school year, and adjust along the way...