Several nights ago I got some good advice...in a dream. Ken and I must have been building something because I had my paint clothes on. There was an older guy helping us. We took a break and were making small talk when the guy asked me what I was up to. I told him I was applying for teaching jobs. He looked at me over his glasses and kindly suggested that I could sound more enthusiastic. He asked me where I was applying. I told him, and he gently advised that I could look closer to home. He was right on both counts.
Deep down I knew these things, but it helped to hear it out loud from a character in a dream. I have decided to return to teaching and want to stop sounding so tenuous about it. I sound apologetic when I am asked what I'm doing and make excuses for not doing something else. That's on me. It matters how I frame what I'm doing, the words I use and my tone of voice. I could sound more enthusiastic.
And I have been spreading too wide a net. Twenty miles from home turned into thirty and would soon be forty if I didn't put the brakes on. I have actually considered schools forty miles north of me. That's quite a commute for a teacher on an ordinary day, but on a day when I want to have dinner with my daughter it would be impossible. In September my daughter will start a new job in southern Maine, teaching at the medical school and treating patients in the attached clinic. We are already talking about how we will make time to see each other. While those plans don't dictate where I will work, it makes sense to look at schools a reasonable distance from home and not in the exact opposite direction. Right now the field is wide open so why not take advantage of that?
This week I made another decision: I'm going to an educational conference at my alma mater Goddard College in Vermont in mid-July. I haven't been back to visit in many years and haven't attended a conference there since I graduated in 1999. I wasn't planning to go because I haven't been teaching and couldn't imagine what I have to offer. Upon reflection on my dream advice, this conference could spark my enthusiasm. I won't know if I don't go.
The journey continues....
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7 comments:
Ooohh...this gives me shivers!
I think the conference is an excellent idea! If all else fails, you'll have connected with other like minded individuals and had some fun.
Blessings,
Carolynn
Dreams hold a lot of useful information -- if we pay attention. I know you acknowledge the validity of dreams and I'm glad you are following up on the "building" dream.
The conference will be a good networking opportunity, a time of refreshing and renewal, and I believe you will be surprised at how much you have to offer. And perhaps be surprised at how many others are walking a similar pathway. Enjoy!
I think you give yourself excellent advice.
Don't you love how life in our dreams unfolds so easily.
What a wonderful future you have before you, it's yours to grab hold of...take it.
Thanks so much for the kind comments...I do appreciate them.
Jen
The gentleman in your dream sounds like your inner champion. So glad you are listening to your inner wisdom.
So you are not in Bath, England, lol. I would love it if we were both teaching this fall. We could support each others when the kids act up:) Food luck finding just the right job.
By all means, you should go! I think our dreams are a great path to our inner wisdom, and our goals. Let us know when you get to the conference! Cheers and happy 4th to you!
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