Ellen McAllister
Managing Editor
A couple of days ago, a friend asked me, “If you could teach a class based on what you thought was interesting in life, what would it be?” At first I was startled because I am going to be a high school English teacher, so there are very specific things that I have to teach; however, the more I thought about it, the less “traditional” my ideal class was.
After stumbling through something about how books in verse are highly overlooked and severely under-read and that maybe I would like to teach a class about that, I finally landed on something I thought would make an interesting and vastly applicable class: “Practicing Maximum Enthusiasm: How to find – and share – joy in the ordinary.”
I know, I know, this sounds super cliché and like something you would find in a magazine article titled “How to Make 2024 the Best Year Ever.” But that’s just it — it’s not cliché; it is something we should make a point of doing every day.
One of my favorite outdoor authors, Brendan Leonard, republishes an article every year titled “Make 202_ the Year of Maximum Enthusiasm.” He sends it out right around the first of the year with a few adjustments to the article to keep it culturally relevant, but the premise of the article remains the same. Leonard encourages readers to share their enthusiasm for things, even if it seems insignificant and silly. People want to hear how awesome that cookie was that you finally got your hands on in Lowry or about the leaf you found on the ground that’s bigger than your hand that you can’t stop thinking about.
These may be strange things to share with people because they aren’t a large part of your life, but in actuality these things are what make you you. Making a point to share these small moments of pleasure could make everyone’s day a little bit brighter.
The class I would teach would be rooted in this philosophy. No formal papers. No grades. This seems odd coming from an education major, but I want people to stop and take time to be excited about the often overlooked but special moments of life. I would have the students share one thing that they were excited about that day, which could be something as small as tying both shoes to the same tightness (which I think is always a win) to something as big as acing a test. It is all important! Learning to notice and to vocalize these little moments of greatness can take a little practice because as a society we have been taught to only celebrate the big moments in life, two things I think we should all try to make a more conscientious effort to do.
If you ever see me around campus and want to tell me about the amazing brown sugar latte with oat milk that you got from Boo Bears this morning, I would love to hear about it.
