“It is not the stongest of the species that will survive, or the most intelligent. It is the one most adaptable to change.”
~ Charles Darwin
We are approaching the 90 day mark since we closed our preschool. We continue to teach Mia and Max and a group of fourth graders at Mia’s school along with a handful of private clients.
I wake up to TEACH.
We have kept in touch with our “clients” as Max always referred to them to differentiate work and family, or in Max’s language… OUR teachers. MY parents.
He initiated this from the beginning, then walked the walk and talked the talk. Unprompted, he called us Mr. Sean and Ms. Cindy and apologized when he would accidentally slip a Mom into a sentence.
At Mia’s school he calls me “Mrs. Platt and at the age of 4 our little puppy tries to keep up with the big dogs. “Graders Mom, they’re fourth graders,” he says, hands in his lap, eyes on the speaker, and finger to his mouth when the person next to him is failing to listen. Mia just darts the sideways or direct teacher glare that clearly states, “Please stop right now so I can listen.” Studying violin since the age of the 3 and learning in another language all day will build that behavior and expectation.
Oh my goodness. I am looking in a miror.
My children are good learners and a barrel of fun to teach. I am a good learner and fun to teach. Remember, as a parent, if you cannot admit your child has schooled you and taught you a few times around the block and back, well, you need to work a little bit harder or take a long look in the mirror and meet two words:
OWNERSHIP AND SELF AWARENESS.
So checkpoint for progress. Am I happy we closed our preschool? ABSOLUTELY. The past 90 days has given me the perspective to weed out the unecessary so I can focus on the here and now and work inside my present to build my future.
Upon my two decade tally mark of teaching, I still find myself at the beginning. The past was my warm up, now with technology and the world wide web at my fingertips, my message is burning and raging to be released; to be heard, read, and acted upon.
One client recently said, “So what do you do besides get him coffee all day long?”
The cheshire cat smile gleamed. ” I build, I learn and I teach.” I have retreated to my virtual Tibetan mountain top…with a laptop to scribe.
Namasté
We’re discussing Angela Maier’s Classroom Habitudes over at Daddy’s domain.
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{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }
Cindy, my kindred spirit! I loved your comment, “I wake up to TEACH.” It’s in your soul, isn’t it?
I worked so many years in the business sector, helping entrepreneurs with the details of growing their businesses–details that were too tedious for them to want to sit still for. I had success, I made good money, but I was miserable. Every day, I would wake up saying, “Why do I HAVE TO go to work?” All I really ever wanted to do was teach.
Finally, after several years of lamenting that I HAD TO go to work, my husband said, “Maybe we’re doing this wrong. Maybe you don’t HAVE TO work.” We sat down, punched some numbers and realized that we could live if I quit work and taught at the co-op. We gave up cable TV, (you should see us adjusting the stupid antenna a couple nights a week when there is actually something on TV we want to watch!) going out to eat, buying new clothes regularly, traveling, and buying various other bling bling items that take up space. They always say, “Do you love what you do enough to do it for free?” Absolutely. I love teaching. I do it for free.
One thing I cannot part with is the internet. For obsessive learners, it’s a must. And dare I even say that for teachers it is a must? As a child I would spend HOURS in the library, reading and looking up things, wishing I was Encyclopedia Brown. Now, I have a whole flipping library right in my house! I’ll sooner go without food. Rarely does a night go by that I am not on the internet, teaching my son something new. He hates school. He loves learning.
I can only imagine that your family has had to make many sacrifices financially as well right now, to do what you are doing. I imagine that you have had friends who think you are crazy. I guess that some of them assume that your children are suffering. (All things my friends have said to me.) But you can’t get those childhood years back. I wasted the first eight years of my son’s life working 60 hours a week. No more. We go to school together and we come home together. I have never had one day when I thought, “Do I HAVE TO go teach today?”
Congrats for taking bold steps to do what your family needed. And even if all you WANTED to do was bring WD coffee all day, whose business is that?
AWWWW….look at those babies. I miss seeing that group of kiddos with you and our boys miss your school. You gave them such a great start- no school will ever come close. I can’t believe how much bigger they already look. Time has flown by. It’s great that you made the right choice for your family. Those fourth graders are one lucky bunch.
Randi: It is uncanny…the connectiveness. Kindred is applicable and so amazing in this crazy world of technology. The only words that continued to come to my mind after each read statement: “TRUE THAT.” I enjoy you wisdom and your comments alone, would be a great post. Thank you for saying all the right words to fill in the gaps and reinforce the edges of my inner reflections. I hope to have the pleasure to actually give you a” high five” rather than virtually
^ 5.
Karen: You are so kind, supportive, encouraging and missed. It makes our family so happy that you have maintained consistent communication that is genuine and for our lifetime. Your family and our family have shared many real” and intimate moments that the art of child rearing embraces. Thank you for being a true collegue and friend.
I’m a relative newbie at WD so I didn’t realise you had a blog, Cindy. Having ‘met’ your whole family now, I think I’m going to enjoy some catch up reading in your archives! I gave up teaching in colleges etc when I had my kids but I know in my heart they got a good start because we gave them presence. Society hasn’t been so kind, though, and stay at home mums are frowned on here by folk my age. It doesn’t count with many folk that I still teach and coach online and through ebooks. Older mums seem to understand when I tell them I want to be here for the kids when they get home from school but many younger mums just ask me how we manage on only one main salary. Frugality hasn’t been fashionable till recently either. I resonated with what Randi said above. My teenage daughter needs my calm, stress-free presence and support more now than she ever did, more than she needs designer clothes or a million gadgets.
I wish you and your family were local. I’d love to have a chat and get to know you. Your whole family glows with warm, creative energy. Power to your parenting and your writing!