I love crime and children.

Tuesday, stop being Monday and put your terrific face on! It's only a three day work week - I am having a procedure done on Friday, so we aren't counting Friday. 

I can't believe it's here - essentially, the end of school and EOGs. Everything after this is end of year reading testing, packing up my classroom (I am moving back to the mobile units), and enjoying the last few moments with this class that I have loved so much! 

This week is going to be a whirlwind - I have an interview today. My parents are coming in and I am moving this weekend - all things that I am excited about! This interview is my last attempt to leave my current situation. If I don't get offered the job, I am destined to stay at my school one more year, unless I can enroll myself in school full time over the summer, which is another fantastic idea! 

In life, you aren't destined to have the same career or job for forever. Life does not work that way. People love more than one thing, but how do you decide when it is time to move on? How do you decide when to stop pursuing one set of interests for another, especially when they are so vastly different? 

I love children and crime equally. Yes, you read that right - children and crime. I love educating children, but I also love trans-continental crime (the appropriate word for large criminal organizations.) After watching Narco Cultura on Netflix yesterday, my first instinct was to find a university who could bankroll my research into these organizations. That, however, would mean leaving behind teaching in the classroom, at least for a handful of years, to get the appropriate degrees and such. Then, I'm back at square one - which interests do I pursue and for how long? 

Who knew choosing between your passions would be so difficult? Who knew it was such a crime to love two things equally? 

So here's to loving children and crime. Here's to a job interview, and here's to trying to figure out what I am going to do with my life.

Photo Credit: Google Images

Thoughts for Thursday.

I am a sucker for alliteration - as most of my posts show. Today is no different - let's have some positive thoughts for Thursday. 

This week has been a whirlwind - as most are, but the urgency of the EOG has been looming over my head and my students, and we have been putting in work to see results. We've been working hard all year (don't get it twisted), but every great puts in hard work in the eleventh hour.

Despite my personal and professional life being in shambles for a ton of reasons, my time with students is something I crave. It's consistency, it's safe, and it's a positive experience. I love being in my classroom with them, and having discussions about humans and their impact on ecosystems, watching disgusting videos of parasites, and trying every operation to figure out a word problem - being their teacher, being a teacher is the only thing I am sure of in my life right now. 

This week has been hard, because I have realized that people I respected do not necessarily have respect for me. I won't get too specific or too personal for professional reasons, but I had a moment of clarity when my tender heart realized that not everyone, even those who I respect, respect or value me. This has made me reevaluate my choice to stay at my school, and where I want my life to go. 

I recently read an article about turning 25 (which I do this year), and the author made a point to explain that at 25, she had to make some concrete decisions about where her life was going and where it would go, and at the end of the day, she had to cut off activities that were toxic or not helping her achieve her ultimate goal. I feel like that right now. How much do I cut off - how much do I change, so I can achieve my ultimate goal? How much do I tolerate for convenience and comfort? How much of myself do I sacrifice for a chance to do what I want? 

I have a job interview on Tuesday for a private school in a neighboring city. I am completing applications for another round of graduate school (cheers to being a life-long learner!), and I am supposed to move into a new apartment next Saturday.

Whatever decision I make in the next nine days will affect everything for next year and potentially, the rest of my life; but at the end of the day, I only have myself to be loyal to - no matter how much I feel loyal to my work place or to a supervisor or a colleague - I only have myself and my dream to truly think about. 

Photo Credit: Pinterest 

9 days.

Photo credit: Google Images

9 days. 

9 days till the EOG. 

Such a scary thought. 

9 days till my students are assessed on everything we have learned, practiced, discussed, and worked on the entire year. 

9 days till my reputation rests on the shoulders of 10 year olds. 

As a teacher, you have to disassociate yourself from the reality of test scores, and be the best teacher you can be every single day. I cannot be crippled by fear of failure on my part or the part of my students. Being afraid doesn't teach them to preserve and try their best. Being hesitant doesn't show them it's okay to make mistakes and try again and again. I am the best role model for my students and I have to set the tone of success, the attitude of excellence that needs to be poured into my classroom. 

I have been blessed with a group of students who know that knowledge and intelligence comes from hard work and lots of experience, and I have tried my best to give them that this year. I have to take comfort in the fact that I have tried my best, and they will try their best too. We are family. We are in this together. This is our journey and in 9 days, it's going to wrap up. 

To the next 9 days of my life and the EOGs, prepare to be defeated and bloodied by the most fabulous fifth graders ever. 

I'm Moving!

Photo Credit: Pinterest

That's right, I'm moving...




to a new apartment complex about 10 minutes away from my current one. (: What does this mean? This means I am staying in North Carolina. I am declining the job in California. 

Please save the you're only young once, you have one life speech for someone else. I am young. I only have one life, and I am choosing how to live it. 

Staying in North Carolina does not make my life less meaningful or exciting; on the flip side, it makes it that much more meaningful and exciting. A few carefully placed events in the past few days have showed me my life is here, at least for the next few years. I have built a name for myself as an educator and have made a life that I am proud of and love (most days.) So, I will respectfully decline the job to California, which was perfect and wonderful on paper, and who knows - it could have been in real life too. It just wasn't for me. 

This blog was created to chronicle my journey for new beginnings and my search for my place, and through this whole process, I have found what I was looking for. It was right in front of me. That sounds so clique, but it's true. Being forced to think about the idea of moving away forced me to see the amazing things that I have in front of me. It forced me to see that I am surrounded by friends who have become a tiny little family for me, a job that I love (most days), a city that I have grown to call home, and a few other things that I am keeping a secret for now. (: 

I can't say how long I'll stay in North Carolina. It will be for at least a year, maybe longer if I can re-enroll in school in the fall for a Ph.D program. I do know one thing is for sure - this isn't the end. It's very much the beginning, very much the fresh outlook I had been craving to make my life even more fulfilling and enjoyable here. In this moment, I will never be younger than I am now, so let's take a breath, enjoy the fact that the Ginger isn't moving too far, and be totally in love with life! 

Here's to a new chapter and a new apartment in an old city! 

Photo Credit: Pinterest

On a side note: My boo from college has started a blog: http://thejourneyof3cs.blogspot.com/. Please check it out. She does such a good job letting her voice carry across the screen and inspire others to do their best! (: 

Teacher Appreciation Week!

Teacher Appreciation Week. 

This is probably my favorite week of the year, aside from my birthday week. It's a week dedicated to appreciation everything educators, all educators, do for America's students. People have this idea of a teacher being some old schoolmarm with a line of apples on her desk and no husband, and everyone thinks she is mean. 

THIS IS NOT A TEACHER. 

A teacher is someone who inspired you in school, and school can be elementary, high school, and college; a teacher is someone who drove you to do your best. That's a teacher. Teachers take all shapes and sizes and wear a lot of different hats, and they all deserve to be appreciated. This week means everything to my profession, especially in North Carolina. We have taken a beating this year, and there is a large group of us who keep coming back for more. 

Why? Why do I keep coming back? 

Because, my passion is education. Teaching is a life style. It's a large part of my self identity, and my heart is endless with how much I love my students. That's right - I love your child as my own. I haven't had my own children, that is irrelevant. My capacity to love and make your child believe in themselves is something I take very seriously about my job. It's my hope that this week you take time to appreciate that. Appreciate the teachers who hug your child when you aren't there, who encourage your child when you can't, who remind them that they have a million and one things to offer this world when you can't. We are a team. We aren't enemies. We both want the best for your child and that's the most success they can achieve. 

Appreciate your teachers. Appreciate our jobs - for most of us, it's our life. 

I may not ever have a lot of money. I may not ever get to afford to take a vacation, because my classroom needs pencils and glue or one of my babes needed new clothes or a backpack. I may not ever get to spend a weekend doing whatever I want, because my duty to my passion outranks binging on Netflix, but I know one thing - I will have impacted so many lives that the count is innumerable. I will have made a difference that will continue long after I am here. I will have showed a child that they are loved and valued, and that they are the most important person to me, not just for 180 days, but for their whole life. My oldest class will be in 8th grade next year, and guess what? They still run to greet me in Food Lion, and still tell me that they love me and they mean it. 

So, take this week to appreciate the people who educate your whole child. It's not about the presents. It's not about material goods - just say "Thank you." It will be enough. I promise. 

On a side note: The school from California is providing me a contract today or tomorrow. We will see what happens.