Thinking about School

It has nearly been a year since I accepted an early retirement incentive from HISD, thus making my exit as a teacher inevitable. A whole year. I swear I've only blinked once or twice since then. Still, that exit is the perfect mix of bitter sweetness. Bitter because I miss being part of the school community. I had friendly, supportive, empathetic, and inspiring co-workers. The school families were great. The kids were great. I miss the friends I made along the way. But I DO NOT miss the mess. Messy people, messy politics, and messy policies. I remember early March being a turning point for me being an unhappy employee to being excited about what was yet to come. The sad part was packing up (and throwing away--that part was liberating) my classroom. Ten years of work. I hope I can always close my eyes and picture how inviting, colorful, and educationally stimulating it was. I love thinking about it. I worked hard on that room and I loved it. What I love also, bittersweetly, is being away from it.