Changing with the Leaves...

I've managed to steal a moment to write a new post and let me tell you, moments to steal are few and far between here at our home.  The kids, Chad and I have spent the last 10 weeks getting acclimated to a new school year and when I say 10 weeks, yes, 10 weeks.  Some would say, "Why so long?"  and I might have to think about that! Change is why it has taken 10 weeks and I'm sure we're not completely done yet.  Although most won't admit it, change is not easy for most people.  It brings about unknowns and that uncomfortable feeling of starting over in some ways.  I made a choice to make a change this year and at first I wasn't so sure it was the right thing for me to do...but I'm confident now it was. I chose to take on a new teaching position and return to elementary to teach 5th grade.  I've spent the last 3 years teaching middle school and prior to that I taught elementary for several years in another district.  People even asked me if I was nuts. Rightfully so.  I made this choice to make this change because I am a firm believer that we become stagnate, stale and ineffective unless we make a conscious effort to better ourselves and embrace change when the opportunities are in front of us. Does that mean that what we embrace is easy? NO! Does that mean that in the effort to make ourselves a better, more effective person that we won't fall on our face along way? NO! I wasn't naive to think that my change wouldn't bring about more work, probably five times the work load I've had.  I was naive to think though that I wouldn't have to dig deep to see what this opportunity was really offering me. While I knew the reasons why I needed the change, I didn't fully understand what I was going to have to do personally to allow the change to make me a better person and ultimately a better teacher. So you are probably thinking...what's your point?
My point is this : don't be afraid to take chances and make a change in your life that could help you grow in ANYway, shape or form.  Embrace change when it presents itself and make it work for you.  I can honestly lay my head down at night and know that because of these last ten weeks...I'm a MUCH more effective, compassionate and enthusiastic teacher because I took that chance.  So...imagine what a full year will do! I hope that my desire to be a better teacher and better person will also rub off on those kids in my room..I've realized that our time together is short and matters more than probably anything else they have going in their lives right now.  It's important to love what you do and knowing that.... you need to understand that you will have days that you don't love, but that's o.k. too. It's part of the journey. Here's to the next 10!