Starting Out...

Life is full of adventures. Some are big, some are small. Some are exhilarating, and others are slow and difficult. Whatever it may be, each is a journey that teaches us something about the world and, perhaps more importantly, ourselves. Last year at this time I was packing and planning for a three month, teach abroad adventure in Europe. I was excited and anxious and terrified of what I was about to embark on come September. I wrote lists, bought necessary supplies, and planned the various trips I would be taking while I was there. In the end, even with all my planning and preparation, I found myself caught in unexpected situations I simply couldn't have planned for. Some of those situations taught me something. Others turned into some of the best memories I have of my time spent in Europe. Overall, it was the ups AND downs that helped shape the best three months of my life. It was the difficult and the extraordinary that changed me. It was the crazy, dull, trying, thrilling, and incredible that made my travels to another continent into an adventure.

Now here I am, one year later, about to embark on an entirely new kind of adventure.

Kindergarten.

In May, after months of applying to numerous districts and jobs and waiting to hear from someone about an interview, I got a call. It was ten o'clock in the morning. They wanted me to come in for an interview at one that afternoon. Short notice? Little time to prepare? Sure! I'd love to!

The interview went fairly well (as far as interviews go), and I got a call the next day asking if I'd be able to come in for an observation. Since I was already subbing at one of the schools the following week, I was told to just show up for my sub job as usual and that a principal or two would be in to observe me at some point that day. Sure enough, come the next Tuesday, I was observed teaching Math to fourth graders. I felt good about the lesson, and the Principal told me afterwards that they still weren't sure what openings the district had, but that I should let him know if I got a call to interview anywhere else. I took that as a good sign, and left that day feeling pretty good about my chances of getting a position in that district.

Then I waited.

The next two weeks felt like the longest of my life. Out of all the districts I'd subbed in, this district was the one I most wanted to teach in. Because of the way they hire teachers, I had no idea if there were even any openings available! It was the day after I'd sent out close to fifty applications to other districts in the area that I got the call: They had a Kindergarten position open, and they'd like to offer me the job!

I signed my letter of intent the following day. I was beyond excited and couldn't wait to tell friends and family and begin setting up my classroom. Unfortunately, the previous Kindergarten teacher (the one I'd be replacing) wasn't leaving on good terms. She "hadn't been asked back", as my principal explained it to me. He asked that I not say anything about getting the job until after their last day of school. My family knew already, but I had to keep the news to myself for another ten days. It was incredibly difficult to be so excited about something and not get to tell everyone or post it on Facebook for the world to see :).

The school year ended, and I finally got to share the news about my new employment. I had no idea what a lengthy process getting a teaching position could be! I'd applied in early March, hadn't heard anything until May, and then finally got a job in June. The process, though, is worth it. I'm once again at a "beginning", and it's such a great feeling to be in a place where the future holds endless possibilities.

Back to Adventures. I learned so much from my trip to Europe last year. It was exciting, and difficult, and crazy...and ultimately rewarding. I can't help but think this next adventure is going to be similar. Sure, teaching will be an entirely different kind of adventure. Yet as I make lists and plan and buy supplies, I realize that I may just find once again that the ups and downs, crazy and trying, dull and extraordinary... make for an adventure that teaches and changes me all over again.