As is the case so often with this whole blogging thing, the first inspiration for this came from the blessing that is my LeadUp chat friends. Although I only know one of them in real, northern NV life, they are all my friends and supporters in real, twitter and voxer cross-country life. Mark introduced the idea of #oneword to the group. Perhaps everyone had heard of it already but I loved it and continued to ponder it while the rest of the group posted their words and helped inspire me. But still I wasn’t sure.

I reflected on last weekend’s backcountry ski on Mt Tallac with some new and old friends. We skinned up up up and so I thought maybe my #oneword could be up. Things will look up in 2016: Zack’s speech will continue to improve, we will continue to ski uphill in order to ski back down, I will continue to look up after falling down, and we will look up to figure out what our next steps for work will be. Last night at a lovely neighborhood New Years Eve Eve party, some of Zack’s most local supporters were cheersing (that’s a word?) us and saying On the up and up. So I took that as a sign that I had chosen correctly.

The other contender for #oneword was winning. One our way up the hill last Sunday, Ben (the photographer of both these shots), declared loudly and emphatically out of the blue: We’re winning today! And that’s a sentiment that Zack often feels about backcountry skiing. There’s no competition up or down, there’s no value in being first or shame in being last at any stage; there’s plenty of fresh air, smiling, and fun for everyone. Even though I was a bit surprised with Ben’s exclamation – we had all been slogging quietly up the hill listening to our own breathing – it immediately made me think what a great motto this would be for education. I recently heard a news story that NV will continue tying teacher evaluation to student assessment performance, I am holding firm in my belief that collaboration among teachers results in happier teachers, more engaged students, more closeness among staffs, and a more positive school culture that permeates everywhere. Right? Everyone winning. A pretty good runner up for #oneword!