An Older Teacher

Some old teachers showed me this list of twenty values compiled by an older teacher. They then gave me this homework. "You highlight in green the five of her values that appear most important to you. Then highlight in red the five values that mean the least to you.
Put aside the values that mean the least to you and arrange the remaining ten values in descending order from okay to not very important. Now, you should have a value list that is important to you."
I am not a student of these teachers so I have not done the homework. However, the list seems interesting and its purpose worthy. So, I reproduce the list below. Perhaps I will indicate five of them which seem most important to me today. You know, I'm not even sure that they are values, but they do seem to point toward values.


1. Life isn't fair, but it is still good.
2. When id doubt, just take the next small step.
3. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone.
4. Your job won't take care of you when you are sick. Your friends and parents will stay in touch.
5. Pay off your credit cards every month.
6. I don't have to win every argument. I can agree to disagree.
7. Cry with someone. It's more healing than crying alone.
8. It's OK to get angry with God. He can take it
9. Save for retirement starting with your first paycheck.
10. When it comes to chocolate, resistance is futile.
11. Make peace with my past so it won't screw up the present.
12. It's OK to let your children see you cry.
13. Don't compare my life with others. I have little little idea what their journey is all about.
14. If a relationship has to be a secret, you shouldn't be in it.
!5. Everything can change in the blink of an eye. But don't worry; God never blinks. 
16. Take a deep breath. It calms the mind.
17. Get rid of anything that isn't useful, beautiful, or joyful.
18. Whatever doesn't kill you really does make you stronger.
19. It's never too late to have a happy childhood. But the second one is up to you and no one else.
20. When it comes to going after what you love in life, don't take no for an answer.


These are from retired women who taught children and now speaking to each other. The list probably says more about them than anything still the list, and the homework, may motivate one to do something about ones own values.


My green list of the moment is: 2, 3, 16, 19, 13.

WEP&GPO... Social Security Fairness - Home

WEP&GPO... Social Security Fairness - Home


California public school teachers lose part or all of their Social Security benefits.


I worked over 40 years under the U.S. Social Security Act, but because for a time I earned retirement as a California teacher, received only about $250 A month in SS benefits.


My situation seems unfair to me.

Teacher's Pensions in California

 Teachers are required to pay into their retirement accounts. Most pay 8%, which is higher than the rate private workers pay into Social Security. In general teachers are not eligible for SS. Even if they have paid into SS for 40 years, as I have, they are penalized via Government Pension Offset and Windfall Elimination Provision. Private industry workers who receive a pension and/or have a separate retirement account, are not penalized by the WEP/GPO so their potential retirement income is much more than a teacher's. 
School districts are required to contribute to the specified teachers' retirement service, CalSTRS, on behalf of their employees just as a private company is required to pay into SS.
Doesn't seem fair or usefully motivating to teachers.