I have a confession to make: for a long time, I was a grump. Not the fun, cartoonish kind of grump, but the kind fueled by anxiety, endless to-do lists, and the weight of trying to do all the things as a teacher.
I carried that heaviness around like a badge, sinking into stress instead of noticing the good stuff right in front of me.
At the time, I blamed the system, the pace, and the demands. And honestly? None of that was wrong. Teaching is hard. Life is hard. But somewhere along the way, I realized I didn’t want to live in that grumpy place anymore.
Like so many of us, I started scrolling one night, half looking for distraction, half looking for comfort. That’s when a couple of quotes crept into my algorithm that stopped me cold.
“Make it a habit to talk about blessings more than burdens.”
“Glimmers are those moments in your day that make you feel joy, happiness, peace, or gratitude. Once you train your brain to be on the lookout for glimmers, these tiny moments will appear more and more.”
Something about those words shifted me. I didn’t need to overhaul my whole life, or find some magical new time-management system. I just needed to re-train my eyes. The stress wasn’t going anywhere, but maybe I could learn to spot the sparkles hiding inside it.
Fast-forward to this past year. I’ve been traveling a lot—different schools, different districts, different airports.
At first, I carried heavy burdens with me everywhere: the stress of delayed flights, the ache of being far from home, the constant mental checklist of presentations and responsibilities.
But once I decided to experiment with looking for glimmers, everything felt lighter.
These aren’t big, life-changing moments. They’re not going to trend on Instagram or be carved into a motivational poster.
But when I let myself notice them, they softened the edges of the stress.
They reminded me that even in the middle of chaos, kindness and joy can sneak in.
Here’s what I’ve learned, and what I’d pass along to anyone else who’s feeling the weight of their own “grumpy place”:
Glimmers hide when you’re stressed. The more anxious and overwhelmed you are, the harder it is to notice them. When you feel that heaviness, pause. Take a breath. Close your eyes. And when you open them, deliberately look for one glimmer. It’s there. I promise.
Small counts. A smile, a hot cup of coffee, finishing your grading pile before the bell—these aren’t tiny if they shift your day. Waiting for the “big wins” can leave you disappointed. Collecting small ones will keep you grounded.
Blessings > burdens. It’s not about pretending the hard stuff doesn’t exist. It’s about deciding which side of the scale you want to give more weight to. When I started naming blessings more often, the burdens didn’t magically vanish—but they felt less crushing.
I’ll always have a little bit of “grump” in me. Stress doesn’t disappear, and I’m human. But these days, I’m choosing to recover, day by day, glimmer by glimmer.
If you’re stuck in that anxious, heavy place, know this: you’re not alone. The system is tough. The demands are real. But joy isn’t gone—it’s just waiting for you to notice.
So here’s your homework from this recovering grump: tomorrow, find one glimmer.
Then another. And then another.
You might just be surprised how quickly they add up.