School Bells

This time of year I get a little antsy. As a longtime student and educator, the beginning of the school year is a high-water mark for me. I also have a birthday at the start of the academic year, often on the first day of school. So nowdays, when I'm not going to school, not teaching, don't have children getting ready, I find myself a little bit at loose ends.

 It's dangerous for me to enter stores right now. I can hear the notebooks and pens calling to me. And do you know, they have more do-dads and cooler colors every single year! So far I've resisted --- almost. Okay, so I bought a completely unnecessary package of colored pens and a set of sticky notes of varied colors and sizes. That's not excessive, is it?

  The truth is, I miss it all sometimes. It's easy to forget how much bureaucracy there is, how much time is spent on recordkeeping rather than actual teaching. And in memory, all the little darlings were well-behaved and on task. But I really do miss the kids and the excitement of learning. When a classroom crackles with new skills and ideas, there is nothing like it!

One of the buzz words in the ed biz is "lifelong learners" ---- that's supposed to be a goal. I happen to subscribe to that idea for myself as well as the kids I taught. I still like learning new things, I still get excited about modifying what I thought I knew, in light of more information or a different perspective. My daughter, Ashley, and I have long, passionate discussions over the phone about the books we're reading and the ideas we're discovering. Perhaps that's why I'm back in yet another learning situation.

What's that? More school?

Of sorts. I have embarked upon a certification in one particular set of Qigong, so I can teach it to other people. I've had this in the back of my mind for a couple of years, but just started in for real.

I know I said I'd never go back to school after I finished Montessori teacher training a decade ago. And the very idea of me, the girl who had a thousand excuses to get out of PE and never met an organized sport that didn't bore her to tears, teaching something that's listed in the catalog as "Fitness" is nothing short of ludicrous. But there you are. Life takes some strange turns.

After two and a half years of incorporating the 24 Postures of Therapeutic Qigong into my life, I've benefitted so much that I want to pass it on. Isn't that what teaching really is? We're all learning and teaching, all the time. Some people just do it more formally than others.

I've wondered what was coming next, now that I feel like a new stage of life is opening before me. For this moment, I'm taking a step that's difficult and challenging because I truly am a lifelong learner and it's time to go back to school. Sharpen the pencils, limber up the body. I'm plunging back in.