Gratitude
It’s that warm feeling, the happy tears, the moment you hold your breath and then exhale with appreciation, this is the feeling of gratitude. Being thankful and being thanked matter. The exchange of acknowledgement are the magical moments that we all remember.
Acton co-founders Jeff and Laura Sandefer started it all fifteen years ago in Austin, Texas. They started a small non traditional school with only a handful of children and a big hope for change. Today, there are over 300 Acton’s across the globe and counting and at the end of this month I will venture to Austin, Texas to honor Jeff and Laura and witness them close their chapter and pass the leadership baton to another Acton leader. I, like many Acton founders, Guides, learners, and parents am immensely grateful for their inspiration and bravery. As they say goodbye to the limelight I and many other Acton leaders were asked to write a letter of gratitude.
As I began to write my letter I detoured and checked my email and had a profound sense of gratitude timing. I received a letter from one of my former viola students from my time at the university. As I read I had that warm feeling, I held my breath, and formed happy tears. I was being thanked. He began “Ever since you told us you were leaving 4 years ago I wanted to write this email to you but I never knew how to start….It really meant a lot to have a teacher who wanted to help me grow into the kind of musician I wanted to be instead of the stereotypical professor growing me into the kind of musician they wanted me to be….Thank you for making me feel seen as a musician, student, and person during my time in your studio. Thanks for just being a really fantastic professor and changing my life for the better.”
I had no idea that I had this effect on my student. After I read his letter I paused to receive, to feel, and then I said out loud to myself “this is why we started Acton.” Every child and person deserves to be seen and to feel seen and supported to become the hero they desire to be. Imagine if every child was seen and nurtured from the beginning!
As I read and felt my student’s gratitude I found a way to express my gratitude to Jeff and Laura, with stories. Gratitude is hard to measure and articulate but with stories we share meaning, we share the why behind our thank you. To Jeff and Laura I am immensely grateful for their courage, leadership, grace, and inspiration. They inspired me and our heroic change makers to know that our stories are worth remembering.
To you, our brave Acton Academy Oshkosh parents I am also deeply grateful. I am grateful for your community, your bravery, and your willingness to venture into the unknown of wanting something different for our children and for ourselves. I am grateful to be on this journey with you and for all the lessons in the dirt and sunshine.
So, as we move into the weekend take a moment to reflect, take a moment to talk about gratitude and sharing gratitude with your child. What are you grateful for? What gives you that warm feeling, what gives you the beginnings of happy tears, what gives you the exhale of appreciation? It may be as simple as the smell of lilac season or as epic as a lifelong friendship. Share. Sharing creates connection and makes it all worth it.
I invite you to share with me and our Acton a story of why you are grateful to be on the Acton journey or something about Acton that you are grateful for. Don’t wait for the perfect words, send the email. Your story matters and Jeff and Laura taught me that storytelling is the gift. The story of Jeff and Laura’s legacy will continue one school, one hero, one moment at a time. Thank you for helping us continue their work.