Tis Not Too Late To Seek A Newer World

Today, I followed my students to the door after the bell rang. They ran out, including the one that security had taken out and who returned (!?!) five minutes later, and the two who came up at the end of the day to sweetly wish that tomorrow everyone would behave better, making my eyelids twitch involuntarily and my jaw lock into unshed sobs. I locked the door securely, and then threw the eraser against the board as hard as I could. Picked it up, threw it again. 
Again.
Again. 

Again. 

Again. 

Well, this doesn’t make for very interesting blogging, does it? Because I threw that eraser for a good five minutes past when I was due for our faculty meeting. It’s a very good eraser—it took the abuse well, and erased the KWL chart while it was at it. Then I had to go to the faculty meeting, and sit through a full hour of inanity, which was only made worse when a colleague accidentally turned in to an administrator the shout-out on which I'd been doodling Tennyson lines. Tomorrow I bet I'll find it stapled to the faculty shout-out board. Thank you, Tennyson, who gets me through the bad moments. 

'Tis not too late to seek a newer world.

Push off, and sitting well in order smite

The sounding furrows; for my purpose holds

To sail beyond the sunset, and the baths

Of all the western stars, until I die.

We are not now that strength which in old days

Moved earth and heaven, that which we are, we are;

One equal temper of heroic hearts,

Made weak by time and fate, but strong in will

To strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield.