First Day of School ….Jitters

This is my first year of not having a "first day of school."

WEIRD.

Let that sink in for a second. First year of no nerves that the kids won't like me. First year without a trendy new back-to-school outfit. Definitely no back-to-school breakfast today. New pens, highlighters and updated software? Not for school.

I keep asking myself, Do I miss the first day of school? Should I want to miss the anxious and excited feeling of meeting my new group of students? 

I do not miss the first day of school. The strict, no-smiles first weeks of school are not my style. Printing and copying enough paper for a bonfire is not environmentally-friendly. Lunch is 20 minutes, but really 5 minutes after the last student leaves, I run to the bathroom for the first time in hours, and I say HI to other teachers, past students, and then sit down. 5 minutes to eat. 

What I love about the first day of school? The kids. That is why I taught for 5 years. Those darn teenagers cast a line and I grab the bait. Every time. Each student has a dream and a passion and I act as an early investor in the business of their goals. Plus, I can make a math-hater convert to a numbers-lover in just a few months time. 

I love hearing on the first day, "I don't get math." "Math is my worst subject." or, "Miss, I don't like math and never will." HAHA

Not when I'm done with you. 

That is what I love about the first day of school. 

Do you think my new English clients in Santiago will tell me that their English is horrible? 

Discipline

How are you disciplined in your life?

I run. 

Lacing up my shoes and bouncing through the first few steps on a run is a freedom I hope to enjoy until I croak. How many people spontaneously go from sitting on the couch to running 15 miles? Not many. I've done it a few times and it HURTS the next day. Walking backwards or crawling down my stairs could be an SNL commercial for an arthritis medicine.

Breck bike trail for a long run at the start of spring

I can go out and run 10 miles after not running for a few weeks or months because my body is conditioned and trained to run.

When I hear, "How can you run that much?" or, "I could never do that. Why do you run for so long?" I am instantly turned off from anything else you will say to me. Seriously? Can I ask you, "How do you stay healthy, fit and happy?" Oh, you don't work out. You are probably not healthy or fit. That is why you don't get it.

My body endured miles of sprints, long distances, timed practices and yelling. Yelling to go faster, to kick sooner, to kick later. Yelling to sprint to beat someone or cheering because I took the lead. Encouragement from strangers at Mile 18 or Mile 25 to kick in, stick with it or remind me I look good with salty skin. 

True discipline is the product of passion and grit. Running, for me, is powerful and relaxing, competitive and exclusive. I want to be the best I can be, every time I run. I hate the feeling of a slow run or a shortened run. The grit comes from a balance between demons and hopes. They battle on the same road, to finish a race with my hopes in first and the demons long diminished. My life has a rhythm to it because of running. Time on the road leads to a clear vision and new goals, a renewed spirit, a healthier body and long-lasting positivity.

Days and weeks go by without lacing up. Sometimes, I just don't feel motivated. And that is when discipline must rule my heart+mind. What happens when we lose our discipline for the things that mean the most to us? 

I am publicly sharing my struggle with discipline. Running frequently and consistently takes discipline and I slip up. I can be I get sucked into feeling lazy instead of inspired. Days in the gym seem easier than a day on the road.

Lacing up my shoes and taking off gives me great joy.

First marathon in 2006, Chicago Marathon training group 

Who wants to clock 8-minute miles for a few? 

Whiskin' Spirits: Summer Pie: Blueberry-Peach Schnapps Style

Whiskin' Spirits: Summer Pie: Blueberry-Peach Schnapps Style: Sing with me, When I say "Colorado summer" you say… PEACHES! Or, let's not sing and just head into The Kitchen. It is hot as an oven on Th...

...that men know so little of other men

I know so little of the world around me. 


Who knew that dental care was SO important? Really? Flossing your teeth can make that much of a difference in my health and quality of life? Ironically, I learned, it does. 


After 2 weeks in Bolivia I accepted that most people in Bolivia have an average of 6-7 teeth. 3-4 teeth is the average once you enter the Amazon. But did you know that losing your teeth also reduces your life expectancy? Bacteria and infection can travel quickly through rotten teeth and infected gums; your blood acts as a highway and takes them right to where it counts - your heart. 


We took about 80 toothbrushes and about 50 mini toothpaste into the village of Asuncion de Quiquibey, a small sustenance community in the Amazon. Courtney, another trip leader, is passionate about dental care and has been supplementing the main event: water filters with teaching kids how to brush their teeth. In order to arrive, we went up river 2 hours from the town of Rurrenabaque. 

Rio Quiquibey and the community boat

On the night of our presentation about the water filters, we asked the children to line up by grade level. Our team distributed the toothbrushes to every student in line - and had extra for some parents, too. We gave a toothpaste for each family to share. Courtney led the way and we taught all the kids at once - 5 years old up to 13 years old - how to brush their teeth in circles. No water is used at all - because the water is contaminated. They also are encouraged to brush their teeth with such a tiny amount of toothpaste - and also told that when there is no more paste left, you still brush your teeth with a toothbrush. Twice a day. In circles. 


Before I left for the trip to Bolivia, I had a dentist appointment for a cleaning. During that appointment, I learned that I had a fracture in my back molar that needed to be fixed. While in Bolivia, I experienced discomfort and wanted it to feel better. After a few days of working at the clinic and feeling discomfort, I went to our dentist and he found that I had a gum infection. I took an antibiotic for a few days and it cleared up. 


The tragedy in this is that I was able to see the dentist for FREE and get an antibiotic within 2 minutes but the people of this town, Rurre, and its surrounding communities do not have consistent access to basic health care because of distance and transportation, and cost. Here I am, an American volunteer, and my tooth hurts so I get it checked. 

the travel clinic sets up in a school

God really wanted me to listen that day at the travel clinic. Rachel, a student on the trip, and I sat down at the dentist check-in table. The table featured in the photo above is where families who wanted to visit the dentist checked in with us. In the far left of the photo, you see a man leaning over. He is standing with his child as he sits with the dentist. The dentist pulls out the rotten teeth that he can. Right there. He has sterilized equipment and some local anesthetic and takes out the rotted teeth. Rotted teeth are brown, the edges of a tooth are left but the middle is hollowed out. Sometimes, the nerve in the tooth dies. The dentist, Roberto, pulled out more than 25 teeth that day. 


I know so little of the world. My small amount of tooth pain was a consequence of my brand new onlay being too high. Basically, my bite was too high and was causing pain and some headache. But I didn't have to get my tooth pulled out with the town watching. Did I mention these kids sat there, and barely flinched in discomfort or pain? 


The standard of living in Bolivia is far, far, far lower than what we see in the United States. 


A mom asked me, "how are your teeth so good?"


Me, "I brush them two times a day." 






“Herein lies the tragedy of the age:
Not that men are poor, - all men know something of poverty.
Not that men are wicked, - who is good?
Not that men are ignorant, - what is truth?
Nay, but that men know so little of men.” 
- W.E.B. DuBois

What would you do for free?

What would you do for free?

When I start going crazy with travel plans to international destinations, and nothing else, I know that I value our global community as much as I value my small Colorado/Michigan/Chicago community. We have been given this beautiful world to explore, experience and impact. Why not extend my hand as far as I can travel?

For free? All I need is an airplane!

I would mentor high school graduates that want to take a gap year in South America. I'd help them find volunteer positions, a place to live with familiar host families, and prepare a budget for their trip.

Our college study abroad trip allowed us to travel all throughout Chile

For free? I would travel the world in search of NGOs in developing countries that were locally started, and receive local support and study how they operate - and share their successes with the developed world. We need to work with them to support their development!

With endless money? Stock up on foodie ingredients and cook and bake for my blog! The world needs to eat, and drink, so why not help?

With no budget? I would take first generation high school juniors from low-income families on college trips around the country. I'd arrange for them to stay with a college student for a night in the dorms, go to class with their mentor student, and experience their daily life. Then, I would work with them to plan for college, prepare for their first year, and set them up with a mentor for their first year away from home.

With no need for money? I would share my knowledge and skills as a math teacher with new secondary ed math teachers around the country that are not receiving professional development support at their schools. I would coach them, provide feedback, and encourage them.

If I were to write a book...I would get bored after one day of trying. Then, I would go for a run to shake off that idea and search for the next new career.

With limitless cash? I would pay off Congress and get a few education reform bills passed. I would start with dissolving the teacher unions and teacher tenure in the K-12 system. Then, I would throw cash at highly effective school leaders for development. As a result, I would throw cash at failing school districts and make them go learn from the best in their state. Then, I would throw a cash bonus at all teachers who make significant gains with their students in one academic year. And, increase their salary so that teacher's are paid comparable salaries to the people they have taught: doctors, lawyers, judges, consultants, reality TV stars, movie executives, etc.

In the end, all this stems from one desire: to make the world a more enjoyable place to live. Educate our youth so that they can be informed global citizens and find solutions to our world's most pressing issues. Educate our ignorant citizens about education so that they can transform their communities to be more open-minded, more secure.

The one thing I would do for free - serve others. 

From this hour, freedom!

I want to take you, my friends, back the the beginning. Back to where this online indulgence began. Walt Whitman gave us, "Leaves of Grass," in the late 19th century. When Ashley, my lovely sister, introduced me to this poem at Christmas a few years ago, I felt chills and I cried as I read the poem in its entirety. Change Course. I bought a ticket to Santiago, Chile on Friday night. After my first drink of the night, I grabbed my new zero-fee international credit card and booked the round-trip flight that has taken over my dreams, both day and night. I clicked "submit" 3 times and FINALLY saw that the flight had been confirmed. I am really going to Santiago for 8 months! Walt says it best in "Song of the Open Road" ~ From this hour, freedom!
From this hour I ordain myself loos’d of limits and imaginary lines,
Going where I list, my own master, total and absolute,	55
Listening to others, and considering well what they say,
Pausing, searching, receiving, contemplating,
Gently, but with undeniable will, divesting myself of the holds that would hold me and then again... You shall not heap up what is call’d riches,   You shall scatter with lavish hand all that you earn or achieve,  145 You but arrive at the city to which you were destin’d—you hardly settle yourself to satisfaction, before you are call’d by an irresistible call to depart,... I love that I am taking a huge risk. I am terrified it will be a horrible experience. I am scared that I will be miserable and not make friends. I am shocked that I am walking away from a promising career at Denver School of Science and Technology. What am I thinking? I am thinking that I thrive when I push my limits. And I haven't found my limitations yet. I know that with determination and self-discipline, I can set high goals and achieve them. I know that this life is about more than my selfishness. This may seem like an act of pure selfishness, but I feel convicted to go to Santiago. It is more than a silly dream or a fleeting thought. God has a big plan for me and I am just following his will. Leave Colorado!? WHAT? No way! I love living here. I have developed great friends here that have become family. We support each other and we seek out ways to truly live life here in Colorado. These are also the same friends who are encouraging me to take this adventure, who want to visit, and who are willing to store my Colorado gear while I am gone. As I struggled with balancing the zest for international travel and maintaing friendships, a good friend helped me see clearly. She said - 'You have been so blessed here in Colorado with great friends, great support, and a joyful life. Isn't it great to know that God has blessed you so much here? Imagine what he will do for you in Chile!' What a great way to think about each chapter of our life. I have been blessed. And will be blessed again through him. How will I glorify God in Chile!?

Do we all share milestones?

Or, do we step on our own milestones?

When I think about the many stepping stones I've encountered, I have some little and big ones that I know all add up to where I am today.

Learning Spanish.
Playing basketball like my life depended on it.
Joining a sorority in college. Didn't know that about me? Yup.
Taking the EL in Chicago to and from work, in the ghetto.
Accepting drinks from drunk men at a bachelor party in Boulder.
Finding a few rounds of roommates on craigslist. And 5 out of 6 of them worked out well!
Teach for America.
Dating. A lot.
Buying a bike in Denver and jumping on that hipster bandwagon, sometimes.
Tutoring calculus in college and tutoring 5th grade math in high school. And I didn't see it coming that I would one day be a math teacher. Blind!
Weekends at a ski condo in Silverthorne to ski, run, eat, and drink.
(Trying) Rock climbing in Phoenix and Colorado.
The beach in San Diego.

What about the big ones everyone talks about?
College graduation.
First love.
First car.
Bake "grandma's" chocolate chip cookies.
Retirement Funds.
Marriage.
Mortgages.
Babies.

Do we all anticipate the big events, the major milestones, as mandatory life events? Or, do we fret that we will be odd or an outcast if we don't experience the thrill of these indoctrinated events?

What if our milestones went something like....
first time I changed a bike tire
get lost in a foreign country and hitchhike
last time I paid my taxes and then lived off the grid
my garden grew edible vegetables
win a race or a competition
make international friends
use a typewriter to write a love letter
accidently fall in love
build a bird house for the backyard
teach the dog a useless trick
learn a new language
find the best pho in the city
live on a farm for a vacation, or for life

how much more interesting would change encounters with strangers be? instead of talking about an upcoming wedding, or a new mortgage because you bought a car, why not talk about the time I finally wasn't scared of the hens and grabbed fresh eggs to scramble for breakfast? or, why not figure out a way to bring in the dough but not give it back to the man?

As I prepare to pause the teaching career and buckle into a new, international life for a few months, I think about the pieces that make me, ME. I think about the stories I love to hear about others' lives and the ones I remember from my own experiences. Memories don't stick unless they involve my supportive, fun, and thoughtful friends. My milestones don't add up to what I am supposed to be pursuing.

The people in my life make my life - and it isn't what I do or where I am, but it is who i am with that matters the most. I am blessed with a supportive family and ridiculously fun friends.

You've been in my life? Then,  you've placed a milestone down for me to add to my path. I am looking forward to adding to my journey, and recycling stones that still have a solid place in my life.

What would your milestones be?