I considered starting a new blog to go right along with a new chapter to my life, but I liked the title and the idea of this blog so much that so far I haven't come up with something I like better. So, what has happened since my last post.
- finished student teaching (that 3 on the TWS felt oh so good)
- officially graduated from college (and paid $50 to get my diploma...seriously, you didn't get enough $$ from my tuition, UNI?)
- moved in with my brother, sister-in-law, and my three nieces (so thankful that they were willing to let me crash while I get my feet on the ground)
- started substitute teaching (my first foray into the elementary teaching world)
- got a part time job--although, it's hard to even call it that because they literally never schedule me
- got hired on at Living History Farms for the upcoming season (those of you who know me, know this job is perfect for me)
- volunteered to coach my niece's 10&under softball team (those of you who know me, know this did not take any arm twisting)
- got a job teaching English in South Korea.....
So you might understand why I felt the title of the blog still fitting. This is a new chapter to my life. A beginning. Yet, I still see it as a continuation of my life as an educator.
I will, after all, still be teaching when I am in Korea. Is it history? world cultures? government? geography? Well, no. Will I miss those things? Of course I will. Will I stop studying those things? Absolutely not. My love for history, cultures, etc. came long before I dedicated my life to education. This is just another stop along the path to my future.
I have no idea where I will end up in 5 years, 10 years from now. That is what I love about my life. Someone once told me I have a "free spirit." At the time I shrugged them off, equating the term "free spirit" with hippies, and not entirely thrilled with the comparison. The more I grow and the more I understand myself, the more I see that I really am. Not a hippie, but a free spirit. I tend to go where life takes me. There is a plan for me, and I am simply along for the ride.
I make deliberate choices, yes. I have complete control over where I go, what I do, and who I do it with. But I truly believe that whatever those decisions are, they are made for a reason. Mistakes are purposeful. So are successes.
This is what I am meant to be doing right now. This is the time I am meant to be doing it. I have, for the longest time, had an insatiable yearning to travel. To explore. To live in an environment entirely foreign and see if I am up for the challenge. I think this can be attributed to my sister, who moved abroad right after college to embark on her professional career as an educator. Her path was different than mine will be. My path is my own, and that is what I love about it.
Although I do "go where life takes me," that does not mean I refuse to plan. I have quite a few potential "plans" in mind for my post-Korea life. None of them can be decided on or come to fruition until I spend my (at least) one year there. What will I experience? What will I think of teaching ESL? What will I think of life as an expat? Will it change my career path? Will it solidify my previous path? Will it lead to me furthering my own education? They are all possibilities. Each one is exciting.
So here it is, a new beginning. One of many throughout my life, I am sure. The next few months I will be attempting to keep busy, through subbing, LHF, and softball.
Along the way I plan to give updates about finalizing everything that is necessary for my upcoming move. Maybe a few tidbits here and there about life (although I can't see it being very interesting). If you're really bored and didn't read my blog before, you can read previous posts from my student teaching journey (until I got paranoid that is...)
"Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover." ---Mark Twain
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