Excuse Me, What?

I have been in church since I was born. I have struggled with my faith at times but I have never once believed that my faith in Christ would destroy children. But apparently according to Christian blogger Matt Walsh I'm destroying America.

The public school system is not dedicated to the destruction of Christian values. The public school system is dedicated to the education of America's children. All of them. Every single one. With any type of institution, including the church, there are problems. The public education system has flaws, we have our problems and our issues. Because we live in a far from perfect and broken world. This tweet Mr. Walsh is not only offensive to public educators, but to the thousands of Christian parents that send their children to public schools.

Mr. Walsh, did you know that the beginning of every school year I pray over every seat in my classroom and the kids that will sit in those chairs, including the ones that might not believe the same things I do? Did you know that buy Christmas presents for the ones that I know might not get presents on Christmas Day? Did you know that rejoice with my students in their successes, mourn with them when they are hurting, and spend many restless nights worry about their well being?

Each day I shower my kids with love, compassion, and kindness. There are days that I mess up and thank God there is grace. Jesus showed these same values too. So how am I destroying Christian values?

I am a broken woman and a sinner. I struggle with sin every day. I'm far from perfect, which is the reason I need Jesus. Every single day.

So your tweet, Mr. Walsh will not change who I am or what I believe in. I will still be a public educator. I will still fight for public education. I will show the love of Christ to those I meet every day. I will give grace because it was freely given to me. Even to you, I will extend that same grace. Mr. Walsh, what are you doing to show those values?

Take The Leap

Each summer I find myself around this time sitting in this same spot. With my computer in front of me, and that beautiful Tulsa skyline out my window. In this spot I wrote my goals for the upcoming school year, revised my syllabus, worked on the calendar for the year, made lists of repertoire that I was looking forward to possibly teaching. This time, it is different. This time I sit here weeks away from moving not only to a new school but a new grade level and a new city. I hope in the next few paragraphs you will accept my deep vulnerability. that you will read these words with compassion and with understanding.

I am so nervous. I am so scared.

This time in Tulsa has been such an intense period of growth in my life. Probably one of the biggest. I moved here as a young 22-year-old girl ready to change the world in my middle school choir classroom. In a few short weeks, I leave here as a 28-year-old woman ready to change the world in my high school classroom. In this season of my life, I have been blessed with the richest friendships, covered in love, and challenged. This is comfortable. It is familiar. It is safe.

I am taking one of the biggest leaps of faith I have ever taken. While I am nervous and scared, I am hopeful. I am expecting things that are bigger than my thoughts can even begin to comprehend. Like Friday Night Lights says, Clear Eyes and Full Hearts. Well maybe not clear eyes, I cry a lot.

For weeks I have been telling myself that I can't be nervous or scared. You know what, my students need to see that I'm nervous and scared. Because I'm human, my students are human chances are they are scared and nervous. It is so okay to be nervous and scared. What is not okay? To do nothing about it. I am nervous and scared, but I also I know that I am knowledgeable in my content, that I love kids, that I am the best Meghan Loyd that I know how to be. I am a hot mess, but I have embraced and nurtured those messy corners of my life. Students, especially teenagers need to see this type of vulnerability in their teachers. How can they relate to us and trust us if we pretend to be whole and perfect people? When that is far from the truth, we are broken and imperfect, and that makes us beautiful. Now before the classroom management police come after me, yes teenagers smell fear from a mile away. We must be the adult in our classroom. We must set the expectation and the example, but we must do so with realness and with compassion. Confidence is great, arrogance has no place in the classroom.

I have been trusted to lead students in one of the most beautiful and life changing art forms out there. I have been trusted to develop not only student leaders but leaders from my middle school feeder patterns. It is a lot, but oh for the love how wonderful it is! I thank God every day that I get to do this. That I get to take this leap of faith. I love the Bible story of Esther and who knows maybe this is my "for such a time as this." With clear eyes and a full and grateful a heart, I leap forward. What if I fall? There is someone there to catch me. What if I fly? I sprinkle glitter everywhere I go!

So what is your leap of faith? What is calling you out of your comfort zone? What is holding you back? For the love, take the leap. I'll hold your hand and we can do it together.

30 by 30

Being a blogger can be really rough sometimes. You pour a lot of your heart and soul into what you have to say, and then you push it out for thousands of people to read, or in my case like ten people to read. Focusing on education and educational issues has been time-consuming and draining. And I'm pretty sure no one even cared anyways. So this blog is doing a little change up. I will still write a few things about teaching, education, and the all that crap. 

So in 445 days, I turn 30. As I was thinking about this milestone moment in my life, I came up with a list of things I have always wanted to do. I will call it my 30 by 30 list. 

Some of the things on this list are really ambitious, and I might not accomplish all of them, but this more about the journey that I will be taking. What I find most interesting is that really only one of the things on this list relates to my career. I'm totally okay with this. 

These are in no particular order, I just put them in some form of a list. Some of these are specific, and some are pretty general. As I accomplish a thing on a list, I will write about it. Again, it this is not about accomplishing everything on the list but the journey that it will take me one. If I do accomplish everything on the list, amazeballs. This is going to fun. This is going to be challenging. This is going to hard. This is going to be joyous, and this is going to be best year ever. 

1. Complete a 5k without having to walk. 

2. See the West Coast.

3. Go on a solo trip to Europe.

4. Pay down some debt.

5. Run the OKC Memorial Half Marathon.

6. Go to Boston.

7. Go on a super cool hiking/camping trip.

8. Read all the Sherlock Holmes books...or at least listen to them on Audible.

9. Take a Slo-Mo jumping video in Times Square.

10. See the Grand Canyon.

11. See a glacier.

12. Go skydiving.

13. Move into a house.

14. Beach trip anywhere (I have done this before lots of times, but I could always go for more beach times).

15. Go to Canada.

16. Attend a national conference of some kind.

17. Spa trip with my besties.

18. Try new foods from another culture.

19. Buy my parents something cool.

20. Have a pen pal.

21. Go to a legit wine tasting at a real winery. 

22. Get another tattoo. 

23. Go to an NFL game.

24. Have a smash cake photo shoot.

25. Record some songs.

26. Go camping at a music festival.

27. Meet the Hanson brothers.

28. Ride a camel.

29. Have Hershey compete in an agility contest.

30. Go change the world. 

35 Years Later

On June 6, 1982, in a small church with no air conditioning in Arkansas, Willam Bradley Loyd, and Janet Lynn Flanders became husband and wife. They, later on, went on to have the coolest daughter ever, but this isn't about me!

My parents have been through highs and lows. They raised three kids, and in a few short weeks will have all of them out of their house. They have stood by each other and been there for each other through career changes, caring for aging parents, the time they gave me Benadryl and talked for like fourteen hours straight, Taylor breaking his face on a railroad tie, Philip, and his learning disabilities, and well...me. I was a handful.

They have provided my brothers and I a great example of what marriage should be and should like. They have loved each other faithfully, and they have had a lot of fun along the way.

I feel like the key to their marriage's success has been the fact that they both snore like freight trains. So it doesn't bother them at all!
 
To Mom and Dad: Happy 35th Wedding Anniversary. Thanks for getting married in that sweltering church in the beautiful Dynasty like wedding gown. I can't wait to write about your 40th, 45th, and 50th Wedding Anniversaries! *Also please remember that Taylor and Philip did not do something heartfelt and awesome like write you blog. They may have stayed home with your dogs while you were on your special getaway a trip, but I delivered in the emotional "Oh my gosh, my kid is so amazing" department.

I love you so much and thank you for every concert you attended, every Nutcracker performance and rehearsal you were at, helping every time I moved (which I promise you won't have to help with this time), and for loving me even when I am a loud and talkative extrovert, and it is killing your introvert vibe.

Love,
Meghan aka Meggie aka Baby Girl aka Megaroony aka Werido

Keep Breathing

High School Seniors, current College Students, and College Graduations,

This is one of the most exciting times in your life. It can also be one of the scariest times in your life as well. Many of you are embarking on a journey that you planned, but for many of you, it is nowhere close.

We each have our journey, our own story that we are creating and telling. Your story will be different from your family and from your friends, the most important thing, stay true to your own story.

You will have huge successes, celebrate and reflect upon them, it is okay to brag a little, but not too much. Those successes will have a lasting impact on your life, but what you might not believe is how some of your failures will be some of the best motivators for your life.

My sophomore year of college I had to take College Algebra. Math is not my thing, it has never been my thing. I visited with my professor (seriously do that), got some tutors, and I was still going to fail. I was ready to let that one class completely derail my plans of becoming a Choir teacher. I kept trying, but it still wasn't enough. I spent my summer retaking that class. But that one failure, it became a huge motivator for me. I learned about my resilience, about my own ability to keep breathing. Because sometimes that is all we can do.

You will be challenged, you will be pushed to your limits, but you keep breathing. You may change your major, you may not even have a job in a field that is even related to your major, or you may six years down the road find a new dream job.

Yes, it will be exciting, and it will be scary, but you keep breathing. I am starting a new chapter in my career, and it is exciting but it is scary, and sometimes I all I can do is remind myself to keep breathing.

There will be nay-sayers and haters, there will be people that will work to keep you down, but you keep breathing.

Go change the world, and when it is hard just remember that sometimes all you can do is keep breathing, you will be great and amazing.

Donut Worry Be Happy

I interrupt this blog that frequently is centered around policy and budgets and fidget spinners...to bring talk about one of the greatest days and loves of my life.

Tomorrow is June 1st, one of the best days in history, it is a day to be celebrated. It is a day that we can aside our differences of last-minute budget deals, political parties, opinions about the previously mentioned fidget spinners, and we celebrate. I just want to make sure that this beautiful, magical, and happy day gets the covfefe it deserves.

Photo Credit Vanessa Perez

Happy National Donut Day!!!!

In case you might have missed it, I love donuts. I don't get birthday cake I get birthday donuts. So really for me, every day is national donut day, but they somehow taste better on June 1st.

A brief history, National Donut Day started as a Salvation Army fundraiser for World War I doughboys. Many donut shops even today still partner with the Salvation Army for National Donut Day.

A few weeks ago I moderated the Sunday night #oklaed chat. That chat was over the topic Survive and Thrive: How to Combat Teacher Burnout. I asked the question, what is your favorite donut?

The answers varied from raised glazed donuts, cake donuts, maple long johns, bear claws, apple fritters, and a few fancy donuts. For one brief moment in time #oklaed was brought together in peace and harmony. Donuts brought us together, and donuts made a really terrible stressful and budget crisis time a little bit better.


So tomorrow, go get a donut, a sausage roll, and cup of coffee. Sit down with a friend and talk about life. Be intentional, love each other, and take a picture of your donuts and post it on Instagram.

Love what you do and when it gets hard, keep doing it and eat a donut.

P.S. Show me how you are celebrating National Donut Day! Tweet me your pictures to @meghanloyd or post them in the comments below!

I Did It For Me

Today I gave myself a raise. Since the Oklahoma Legislature couldn't seem to do it, I did it.

But was it actually raise? I just paid off my car, five years of having $250 going back to my credit union, that monthly expense is no longer a part of my life. I just have that money to save and go to paying off other things.

I'm going to say this without being sassy, salty, or shady. Oklahoma House of Representatives leadership, Senate leadership, and Governor Fallin are you really that stupid?

Okay, I lied, I'm going to be sassy, salty, and shady.

I should not have to depend on paying off debt, which is wonderful and people should do it, second jobs, or living on a prayer. You made it clear who you represent this past week. In your mind, you represent oil and gas companies, not the average hard working Oklahoman. Because the average citizen paying 4% tax increase on a car is okay but not asking an industry that can easily pay that 4% is just terrible will lead to our downfall.

You had four months to get a budget together and to raise revenue. Instead, you wait until the last minute, rushed through legislation with large disregard for the Constitution.

I'm done even pretending that you might have my best interests, my friends best interests, my former students, and future students interest at heart. I know that are many members of the legislature that have fought for my friends and students and for me. Thank you for all you do and for your service.

For the rest of you, I'm going to fight for me and do it for me. Considering I can't depend on you to do it for me.