Tuesday, September 16, 2008

sick day

This happens to me every year. No matter how many vitamin C tablets I take or how many times I wash my hands, I get sick.  Just one of the many joys of being a teacher.

However, I must admit..... despite the fact that I have a fever, the chills, and have gone thru a role of toilet paper blowing my nose.... I do, in some strange way, like being sick.  Guilt free days in bed are few and far between. Being genuinely sick allows me to rest because I really need it.  I do not do this enough. I don't think any adult really does.

So, this morning after I wrestled with the idea of missing a day of work - "what will the kids do without me?  Will this mess up my whole master schedule? What about those kids that were coming for edits today?" - I finally checked my OCD and remembered that I am not a brain surgeon. If the papers wait one more day to be corrected, nobody will die. If we don't read A General History of Virginia until Thursday, the world will not end.  If I take a sick day within the first month of school, that doesn't mean I'm not professional.

Fortunately, my life is not that serious. 

And you know what, I actually feel better. Yeah.... resting actually works. Imagine that? Still a little feverish and stuffed up.... but I'll live. Thanks to several tropical Popsicles, five cans of ginger ale, and a husband who takes very good care of me.... much to my students' chagrin, I will be back at work tomorrow.  

I guess I'm just really grateful to be able to recuperate when I'm sick.  When I was a student and sick, I would lay on the couch, watch Little House on the Prairie, and doze in and out of sleep with no guilt for not being a part of the world outside.  Getting the occasional work related illness allows me to do this as an adult. And while I don't want to be sick again anytime soon, I'm glad that I had this day of rest... this "sick day".  We should all take these kinds of days when we need them.. Am I sick because I like being sick? Maybe...... but I will return to work physically and mentally rested.

1 comment:

J-Lu said...

There's nothing like a good guilt-free sick day. Hope you feel better soon beotch!