Jono Starsmore (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
furnaceface) wrote in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
fandomhigh2014-01-17 01:11 am
furnaceface) wrote in fandomhigh2014-01-17 01:11 am
Entry tags:
Coping With Change, Friday, Period 3
Jono was looking a little tired as he stood in front of the students in his classroom today, leaning back against his desk as usual, wrapped in leather up to the nostrils and hair still tousled as though he'd just fallen out of bed. Odds were, he probably had. Was it reassuring at all to know that your teacher had a difficult time pulling it together too, kids?
Nightmares were a bit like that.
//Right, then. Last week I had you all give introductions, and, while sharing a change in your life was optional, most of you did talk a little bit about what you've been through, what you're expecting to go through, or what you're going through now. I'm… actually a little honored that you shared those things in my classroom. Actually accepting that something has changed in your life is a difficult step to take. Opening up and telling it to another person, let alone a group of people, can be bloody terrifying. Like… it becomes real if you admit it aloud. You can't sit in that safe little fantasy bubble forever, of course. Sooner or later you have to just accept that the world around you has become a little different, that family changes or your surroundings are different or you'll never quite look right again when you see yourself in a mirror.//
Getting a little bit personal, Chamber.
//Here's the thing, though. You can sit and say no, nothing's changed, all you like. You can pick and choose what you're willing to accept until you're blue in the face - hell, I very literally did.// And wasn't that a story for another day. //But you can't really move on with your life, you can't begin to heal from a change, until you finally stare it in the face and acknowledge that it happened. I want to spend the next few weeks covering that notion, that idea that coping with change doesn't start until you've squared your shoulders and decided to confront it.//
Jono had gotten better about that one, over the years. He'd had more opportunities to get it right than most people should ever have had to see. And some of them had been flat-out ugly.
//When it all really comes down to it, nobody has control over how you cope with a serious change except for you. You're the one with the power to accept or deny the truth, you're the one who makes the choice to begin to deal with it, whatever that might entail. You can choose to prepare yourself for a change you know is resting on the horizon, or to bury your head in the sand while the sky falls around you in the hopes that maybe it'll go away on its own. And trust me, it very rarely chooses to go away on its own.//
He drummed his fingers against the top of his desk just once, and then shrugged his shoulders.
//This week, I want you to all focus not on what you can't do or can't accept, but what you can. Let's talk about what you can bring to the table. I want you to think about things you've used in the past in order to help yourself come to terms with something that's changed in your life, things you can do that bring you peace or make you feel empowered. It can be a talent you've cultivated through your life, a bit of knowledge that you've picked up over the years, a power that you have that you've found useful before. Take me for example. I'm a mutant. By some twisted quirk of fate, the same mutation that robbed me of a mouth just happened to give me telepathy to communicate with. I'm a musician. I can't sing anymore, but I do play guitar. It helps me to relax on days that have been especially overwhelming. Helps me not think too hard when I've been mulling over the hard truths for so long it hurts. I'm a fighter. I was always up for a good pub brawl when I was younger, but these days I mean it more in that, 'if somebody is threatening my life, I can do something about it' sense. And if all else fails, I can probably blow it up with my face. No, you don't get a demonstration.//
Not today, at least.
//I know, this might seem a bit like jumping the gun, leaping straight to possible tools for finding solutions before even getting into how to come to accept the truth about the change in your life, but it all ties in. Believe it or not, when you familiarize yourself with what you're capable of, when you take a moment to actually explore what it is you can control in your life, you might be able to feel a little less helpless in the face of those things that were beyond your control to begin with. So… have at it. Take a moment to take inventory of your personal arsenal. I'd love if you felt comfortable sharing with the class- Perhaps one of you will list something that another person never stopped to consider a strength of their own, even if it is. But sharing, as always, is optional. I just want you to be aware of what you can do, however small or insignificant it might seem.//
[Open!]
Nightmares were a bit like that.
//Right, then. Last week I had you all give introductions, and, while sharing a change in your life was optional, most of you did talk a little bit about what you've been through, what you're expecting to go through, or what you're going through now. I'm… actually a little honored that you shared those things in my classroom. Actually accepting that something has changed in your life is a difficult step to take. Opening up and telling it to another person, let alone a group of people, can be bloody terrifying. Like… it becomes real if you admit it aloud. You can't sit in that safe little fantasy bubble forever, of course. Sooner or later you have to just accept that the world around you has become a little different, that family changes or your surroundings are different or you'll never quite look right again when you see yourself in a mirror.//
Getting a little bit personal, Chamber.
//Here's the thing, though. You can sit and say no, nothing's changed, all you like. You can pick and choose what you're willing to accept until you're blue in the face - hell, I very literally did.// And wasn't that a story for another day. //But you can't really move on with your life, you can't begin to heal from a change, until you finally stare it in the face and acknowledge that it happened. I want to spend the next few weeks covering that notion, that idea that coping with change doesn't start until you've squared your shoulders and decided to confront it.//
Jono had gotten better about that one, over the years. He'd had more opportunities to get it right than most people should ever have had to see. And some of them had been flat-out ugly.
//When it all really comes down to it, nobody has control over how you cope with a serious change except for you. You're the one with the power to accept or deny the truth, you're the one who makes the choice to begin to deal with it, whatever that might entail. You can choose to prepare yourself for a change you know is resting on the horizon, or to bury your head in the sand while the sky falls around you in the hopes that maybe it'll go away on its own. And trust me, it very rarely chooses to go away on its own.//
He drummed his fingers against the top of his desk just once, and then shrugged his shoulders.
//This week, I want you to all focus not on what you can't do or can't accept, but what you can. Let's talk about what you can bring to the table. I want you to think about things you've used in the past in order to help yourself come to terms with something that's changed in your life, things you can do that bring you peace or make you feel empowered. It can be a talent you've cultivated through your life, a bit of knowledge that you've picked up over the years, a power that you have that you've found useful before. Take me for example. I'm a mutant. By some twisted quirk of fate, the same mutation that robbed me of a mouth just happened to give me telepathy to communicate with. I'm a musician. I can't sing anymore, but I do play guitar. It helps me to relax on days that have been especially overwhelming. Helps me not think too hard when I've been mulling over the hard truths for so long it hurts. I'm a fighter. I was always up for a good pub brawl when I was younger, but these days I mean it more in that, 'if somebody is threatening my life, I can do something about it' sense. And if all else fails, I can probably blow it up with my face. No, you don't get a demonstration.//
Not today, at least.
//I know, this might seem a bit like jumping the gun, leaping straight to possible tools for finding solutions before even getting into how to come to accept the truth about the change in your life, but it all ties in. Believe it or not, when you familiarize yourself with what you're capable of, when you take a moment to actually explore what it is you can control in your life, you might be able to feel a little less helpless in the face of those things that were beyond your control to begin with. So… have at it. Take a moment to take inventory of your personal arsenal. I'd love if you felt comfortable sharing with the class- Perhaps one of you will list something that another person never stopped to consider a strength of their own, even if it is. But sharing, as always, is optional. I just want you to be aware of what you can do, however small or insignificant it might seem.//
[Open!]
Re: Inventory Your Arsenal!
"I'm resilient," she said quietly, after a moment. "I can adapt. I can spring back from being hurt. I can, literally and figuratively, heal myself when the situation calls for it." She offered a small, wobbly smile. "And if I don't like my new surroundings, I can change them."
That seemed like an answer she liked, whole and true.
Re: Inventory Your Arsenal!
Of course he was. These were Fandom students.
//And as for the last bit-- Sometimes, that's what it takes.// He offered her something like a smile in turn. //I'm in the process of packing up and moving, myself, because the surroundings I had were just causing me more harm than good. There are times when stepping out of or changing the setting you're surrounded by is the best thing you can do for yourself.//
Re: Inventory Your Arsenal!
"One of my gifts is that I can do that, whenever I wish, without necessarily having to relocate," she offered, looking up from her hands. She shrugged, and her dress shifted color from a pale grey wool to a dark, rich blue velvet in a matter of seconds. "If my surroundings or circumstances aren't to my liking...it's exceptionally easy for me to fix that. And sometimes -- yes. That's all it needs. It's not always real, or permanent, but it can help."
Re: Inventory Your Arsenal!
//It can bring a much-needed change of tone,// he offered. //Or even affirmation that you're capable of being more in control of a situation than it might feel like. That's quite the impressive talent, Celia.//
Re: Inventory Your Arsenal!
Re: Inventory Your Arsenal!
//I used to get dizzy, when I tried to speak to more than a handful of people,// he shared. //And I'd have to... speak... like... this. It would take time for me to get a thought out so that other people could hear. Even impressive talents have limits.//