So I just spent the last week in Disney. And I spent. And I'm spent. Spent sums me up at the moment. But something truly hit me our last evening there: the absolute power of dreams.

Walt Disney World is a land where dreams, imagination, and creativity come to life. Literally. We met Mickey Mouse. (Several times, actually). We took a mission to Mars, flew along side of the Millenium Falcon, dined in the Beast's castle, traveled up Mt. Everest, rode the Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, went Under the Sea, found Nemo, experienced the Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh, survived the Haunted Mansion, learned Bollywood Dancing, ate at a Luau, went to Infinity (and Beyond), and reminded ourselves that it is, indeed, a small world after all. It's the truth, it's actual. Life is Satisfactual.

So as I was watching the "Celebration of Magic" and fireworks on our last night in the Magic Kingdom, the theme centered all around the power of dreams. Around the power of the mind and imagination. And how anything is possible; it just takes courage to step out and try.

Courage.

It's one thing to dream an idea; it's an entirely different realm to realize that dream.  Add into it the millions of nuance life can throw at you when bringing that dream to reality.  It's hard work.  It's scary work.  It's frustrating work.  It can be so tiresome, annoying, and painful that it becomes easy to ask, "is this dream even worth all of this?"  That's where another line from the "Celebration of Magic" hit me:

Dream realization takes courage.  It also takes patience.  It takes stubbornness.  But, more than anything, it takes belief.  It takes a conscience to push ourselves through the muck and over the brick walls.  It takes idealism.  Idealism to see through the muck and brick walls and believe (truly believe) that what we're doing matters.  Taking that idealism and making it into a reality can seem daunting, if not impossible. 
But the Magic Kingdom reminded me: nothing is impossible.  You only have to dream it.

What are your dreams for your classroom/school/district? 

Over the last few months I've taken a deep dive into practicing Sketchnoting as a way to change my thinking process. Why? To push myself. To get myself over humps. So that when I am faced with a challenge, I will have several methods at my disposal to help me overcome that challenge. Logic models? Yup. Data analysis? Sure. Qualitative research methods? Done. Design thinking? Love it. Visual representations? That's where I'm at.

This post is a summary/gallery of a few of the Sketchnotes I've done over the last month or two. I'm still learning, but I'm finding that it is helping me be a better listener; more intentional with plans and design; and is helping focus and clarify my meaning.

At least, I think so.

As always, feedback is welcome.