Pause, Begin

I took this picture as I waited at a stoplight Monday morning:

The sun rising among the clouds. I was beginning my commute to work for our first day of workshops for the new school year. The stop was precipitated by the traffic light and the vehicle in front of me, but it was a reason to pause, regardless. I look for those in my days more readily now. I grant myself moments, breaks, a breath or two.

This is good wisdom to take into any day or activity, and I will certainly take it with me into this new school year. As I sat at that light, I was thinking about my career in education. I always appreciate the return to routine and the arrival of fall. I have always had a mix of excitement, anticipation, worries, and insecurities as school years get underway. What these look and feel like have had similarities between years, but each year has also been unique.

This is year #36 I am beginning. I taught for ten years, was an elementary counselor for two, and am now embarking on my twenty-fourth year as a middle school counselor. Much has changed. Much is the same, just wearing different clothes and speaking different vocabulary.

There are new schedules, teachers, students, parents, classes, colleagues, and more. Best to pause before beginning. Always best to pause before beginning what comes next at work and home, in our heads and hearts.