The Night Before

I leave for Florida in less than 6 hours. Why am I awake, I don't know. There is a lot running through my mind right now, but I found a song that I believe encapsulates everything that it is. So enjoy a classic song and listen to the words. Every word is me, has been me for years.

Florida Prep

In one weeks time I will begin embarking on a journey of a lifetime. My entire career in education has led me to this point, the point of student teaching. For over a year I have been planning to leave the state of Ohio to accomplish this task, and through the growth of my character and the opportunities at my university, that dream is coming true! In only 7 days I will be leaving for the state of Florida to teach in the Celebration district. 

The idea of being a senior in my final semester of college is beyond surreal. It is hard for me to grasp the fact that in one week I am leaving for a place that could become my future employer. It is hard for me to understand that all of the work we have put in to countless papers, working on updating resumes, and playing secretary to mentor teachers in past experiences has finally come to the end. Everything has added up to this! Although there are a few loose ends to tie up here in Ohio, I am slowly beginning to embrace the endless possibilities of my future that await. And to think it shall all play out before May of this year. 

So with that now comes the answers to all of the questions. I will be traveling to Florida and staying with a host family from January 20 until March 3. We have been in contact and I could not be more excited to meet them. The last part of my student teaching will be done back near the university. Now comes the answer to the main question I've been asked : Do you hope to get a job in Florida? The answer is complicated. In many ways, yes I would absolutely love to teach down South as a part of my career. The area of Celebration is wonderful and many students have gotten teaching positions there, and they love every minute of it. The difficult part is leaving my friends and family from up North behind. It would be difficult, but the closer this experience gets, the more I feel a strong connection and pull from the South. 

But for now these are all future worries, and the answers will come soon enough along with gowns and tassels and diplomas. Until then I cannot wait to begin this journey. Follow me here to learn all about my experience, or I will have another blog later on provided by the university to follow as well. Student teaching 2012, final semester of Senior year, let's make it happen!

Truth be Told

It's as simple as  this:

"Missing someone isn't about how long it has been since you've seen them or the amount of time since you've talked. It's about that very moment when you find yourself doing something & wishing they were right by your side" - This feeling is true. 

When that moment occurred, I found this quote: "I miss you. Not in some cheesy, let's hold hands way. I just miss you. Plain and simple. I miss your presence in my life. I miss you always being there for me. I miss my best friend." - And always will. Someday, I pray our paths may cross once again. Maybe then that friendship can we begin again my best friend.

2000 Mistakes + 11

2011 has come and gone. Hello to the year 2012, the year my life changes entirely. In the year 2012 I will graduate college and become an entirely independent woman. It is strange to think that my entire life has built to lead me to this position in my life and it has finally arrived. 

As the new year begins it is important to reflect on the lessons of yester-year. So here is what 2011 has taught me, lessons that I will be certain to carry with me throughout my life.

1. Humility is important above all - Know when is appropriate to step forward and when to dial back.

2. Regret is a powerful emotion - Live life now. Live life without regrets, for it is a sensation stronger than any.

3. Patience is a process - Learning to manage to level of patience, learning to grow further each year.

4. Leadership is Unique - Take charge of your life and lead as an example to the younger generations.

5. Love. Love is not only that of a significant other, it's of friends, of family, of brothers & sisters, of mothers & fathers. Love abounds eternally.

So go forth. And let the new year ring in. Happy 2012 everyone. May it be a year that fills your lives with more happiness than ever before.

The End of a Sanity

Hello 5:00am. It has been some time. Hello 4 blank pages. You present a challenge. Hello finals week. Your presence has not been missed. How do I get through it?

It is simple. Pandora radio plays with instrumental soundtracks from incredible movies. I remember watching each one of them with my family. I remember the thrill of the adventure from watching the plot unfold, the chill the music sent throughout the room, and the expressions on my family's face when the movies end. Those memories keep me holding on. They instill within me that sense of peace, that sense of motivation to reach the end. It is the goal : to push through finals to be with that family once again and make new memories.

This year : finish Harry Potter. Each time a Harry Potter soundtrack appears on Pandora I think of this. Even though I was at the midnight premiere of Deathly Hallows Part 2, my parents have yet to see Part 1 or Part 2. They are waiting for me to be home, because they have never seen one without me. I push through the papers, the late nights, the blistering headaches from caffeine withdraw all in the hopes of seeing my parents experience what I felt in the theatre : the end of a generation. Maybe, just maybe, they will see the end and realize what Harry Potter meant to those in my generation.

Whatever the reaction might be, I look forward to those nights. I type through the suffering of finals and pray to be home once again. 2.5 papers left in 4 days. 18 pages in 77 hours and 30 minutes. Trade for 3 weeks of family time without homework. 3 weeks of a final Christmas break before graduation. 3 weeks of Christmas normalcy in my life .... finals week may be torment, but the priceless feeling of home is worth a hundred tormenting hours.