Gone

I finally did it. I left the place I began my teaching career. I always heard that it would be a sad and difficult even, but it turns out, it wasn’t.


I’m not saying I didn’t contemplate the decision for a long, long time. It’s just that once I decided I was going to leave, I got a lot of support from a few good people, and it just made it all easier. I almost faltered when we were discussing plans for the upcoming year—getting hopeful, thinking of the possibilities. But then, those few good people reminded me it was time for me to go and grow.

It was quite daunting, too. The first task was re-creating a resume which took me a few weeks until my friend held me hostage at Starbucks awaiting a completed copy. Then, there was the intense application process which I started one Friday afternoon after a long and intense week. Then, it was talking to my former principal who seemed to always have someone in her office when I got up the nerve. Then, there was the task of packing up the classroom I’d made my home for the last few years, but a student got me started on this task one afternoon by insisting she stay afterschool to help. Then, there was the interview process which seemed totally derailed by my unprecedented extended stay in El Paso earlier this summer, but somehow it all worked out. And, I was offered a position without ever having a face-to-face interview.

I know this is sort of cheesy, but this entire process has reaffirmed my faith. Since last summer, I prayed. I asked for things to work out for the best, and if I was meant to leave, let things work out in my favor. So perhaps, this is why it wasn’t so sad or difficult.

I’m excited about my new school. The student population is more diverse, and they will be taking on the 1:1 computer initiative which means, I will have a computer but the students won’t until the following year. It’ll be cool starting this whole process over again because I can try things differently, and I can assist with the roll out by sharing what worked and what didn’t. I’ll have new colleagues. But best of all, I am teaching English which for us is Writing. I will miss exploring literature, but I know that the “book whisperer” in me will never leave. I will always have book suggestions for students.

I’m glad to have gone through this process because had I not; I would continue to take compliments at face value. I am a good teacher, and I have done a lot in my short time in education, and I have a lot to offer students.
I am, for the first time in a while, super excited about the upcoming year.