on the precipice of the mundane

Change is on the horizon once again, and though it involves nothing terribly exciting, I'm actually feeling quite exhilarated. To say that it's "been a year" is putting it mildly. Really, these past two years of returning to full-time teaching has challenged in me in all the ways I expected, and some of it has been quite fun and professionally stimulating. On the other hand, stating it quite plainly, some of it has majorly sucked.

One of the hardest things has been my inability to work through challenges in the way I like to do best, through writing. Many things have not been fit for public statements, and as a result, these frustrations have instead fallen on the ears of loyal friends and my incredibly patient husband. In my lowest moments, I even considered opening an unconnected-to-me Twitter account, so that my frustrations could be gathered and released into the world in concise, bite-sized rants.

But the time is almost upon me when I can say goodbye to this role for the foreseeable future. The logistics are coming together that will enable this change to not make a gigantic difference to our bank account, which is fantastic, to say the least. While I'll still technically be working, it will be in a different capacity and in my own home, which puts our pace of day-to-day life in a much more manageable and sanity-enhancing mode.

Right now, though, I'm seriously looking forward to a few weeks of full-on mundane-embracing life. My house will get clean. My pile of papers and random items will get organized. My hammock will get laid in. My pots and pans will get used, as will my swimsuit. My book shelf will begin to lighten, allowing it to once again be weighed down. Oh, the joy that I've been feeling just at the thought of being able to accept a larger number of books for review! And, if my biggest hopes for the summer come true, words will once again float around in my brain wanting to be put into just the right order and released through my fingertips onto the keyboard of our trusty laptop.

Today, I will embrace my inner Suzie Homemaker, getting into the mindset for the four day week ahead filled with cleaning my entire classroom, top to bottom, with miniature helpers by my side. When the work week comes to a close, along with my time in a preschool classroom, our crew will head out for our second family camping trip of the season, this time with no thoughts to lesson plans, story times, behavior management, parent communication, emails that need to be sent, or seemingly endless lists. Upon our return, life will enter the slowest pace of the year, the summer serenity, if you will, of lazy mornings followed by afternoons spent poolside. Sure, the serenity part will likely not extend to the actual interactions amongst my children, but a mom can always dream.

One more week, and then another door will close. Another path will veer off into a completely different direction. Another chapter will come to an end. Whatever metaphor fits best, I'm ready. There will be tears, many out of sadness and just a few from happy relief, and then it will be time to move on. Let's do this week.

Looking forward with excitement,