Shiny Quotes and Joy Creators

When Annie got a new book through the post, it didn’t take her long to begin reflecting.

As educators, we are all joy creators. What joy have you created today?

Finding Something Shiny in a Parcel 

Knock, thud, and constant barking echoes the arrival of a new book at my house which is then followed by a rugby style scrum to the front door ahead of the dogs before the book ends up looking like it has been through the shredder. 

Puffing, panting, and feeling quite elated I usually then retrieve my book and add it to the pile of books unread on my desk which I have come to realise is Tsundoku. 

Tsundoka is best defined as reading material you purchase but which piles up on your desk or bookshelves and are not read or referred to as books. ‘I might read later’. I am not sure this is even a word, but I am a Tsundokian kind of person and my excuse for this is my reflective, neurodivergent and busy brain. I also must admit to being one of those people who bends the pages of a book, who highlights, draws, and writes in all their books…I know! 

This is NOT a Book Review 

So equipped with a glittery highlighter and a cuppa I open my new book and I must admit to date it is still an unfinished read but, in my defence, this is because one quote shone for me and is now highlighted in green sparkles. The quote reads, ‘There are two ways of spreading light: to be the candle or the mirror that reflects it’ (Wharton, in Walrond, 2021, p. 13*).

So, as I say this is not a book review, particularly as I still have pages to finish but what it is, is a shiny quote within a book that has made me reflect in and action, and a citation that has influenced my work over the past few weeks, hence the title of the blog, ‘Shiny Quotes and Joy Creators’

Shiny Quote 

Reflecting upon my new shiny quote, I started to consider not only about how it might influence my own work but how I would share the spirit of this quote in some of my guest lectures. So, I paused, contemplated, and considered how as a community of educators in a lecture together we are joy creators. But how do we create this joy and make our work shine?

It is fair to say that every educator in every sector from Early Years to Higher Education research is in action every single day. It was during the planning of a research and reflective module, I considered how our research aims are set to bring joy, how our methodologies and methods are tools for finding shiny quotes. It is then our data analysis, recommendations, conclusions, and dissemination of our research that sees the joy creator (the researcher) become the creator of joy for our young children and people. 

You may not be one of my dissertation students or involved in a research module, but you and I are all researchers and reflectors, so stop a while and consider the joy you have created today. How have you reflected in and actioned on to bring shiny moments to your learning environments? How have you used your self-lens to find the shiny moments in your professional practice or research? 

Finally, as you travel through your week and maybe collect a shiny quote or two, how about you journal the shiny quote and the joy you plan to create or have created? 

This is the first of my series of blogs for Shiny Quotes and Joy Creators.

Thank you for stopping by and catching a shiny quote. 

*Walrond. K (2021) The Lightmaker’s Manifesto. How to work for change without losing joy. Minneapolis: Broadleaf Books 

The author

Annie

I started my career as an NNEB now known as Teaching Assistants. I have worked in education from Early Years to HE for a number of years in a number of roles including Professional Development Manager to Associate Lecturer. Alongside my lecturing & dissertation supervision I can be found studying for my PhD or researching for my books. I am the founder of #ReflectConnect over on Twitter where I share my passion for reflection and connecting other educators in sharing best practice.