Many of you already know that I've been working on being a teacher. This has been a long journey and I am pleased to say that I am very near having a California Teaching Credential. There have been a few hiccups on the way to my credential, but it's almost my turn.
Let me just say. The credential program was hard. Really, really hard. For the first semester, I taught fourth grade Monday through Wednesday, and took graduate courses on Thursday and Friday. Busy, busy, busy. For the second semester, I taught Kindergarten Monday through Friday, and took graduate courses at night. I'll admist. First semester was a breeze. Second semester nearly killed me. Don't get me wrong. I loved teaching kindergarten, but when you combine a full teaching schedule with night classes... I was not a happy camper. But while I know that it was totally worth it, there were moments where I honestly didn't think I'd make it through.
Second semester was hard, PACT was hard, and RICA was hard, but in the end, it all pulled me towards my goal of finally having my own classroom. I want my own classroom so badly. I didn't realize this until recently. There was a time when I thought about changing my goals. There was a time when I was discouraged and just wanted to take the easy road. I know that's a very bad habit, but I was tired, I was discouraged, I was defeated. However, I have a handful of mottos that I live by...
Personal Motto #1: Fake it until you make it. I am by no means perfect. I know what I am capable of and have had to fake my abilities in order to be given a chance to prove that I can do it. Sometimes in life, you might have to fake it until you prove to others that you can do it. Personal Motto #2: What doesn't kill you makes you stronger. This is oh so true. If things are easy, they are not worth doing for a long period of time. Doing those hard, difficult challenging things push you to be a better person, push you to be a hard worker and instill many admirable qualities. Personal Motto #3: One Foot Other Foot. My grandpa used to say this all the time. It's just a reminder to take things one step at a time. slowly but surely. One foot other foot gets the job done. It's a great thing to remember when the road seems long and harsh. Just take it one step at a time. Personal Motto #4: If it doesn't scare you, It's probably too easy. Okay. I'll be the first to admit that sometimes easy is not a bad thing. But if you are always taking the easy road, you are not challenging yourself. You are not stretching and growing, you are not evolving. It's important to provide challenge and change in your life, or it just gets boring. You become complacent.
I sat down and thought about the path I was on, and I knew that I had made good choices. I was constantly being challenged and for a moment, that terrified me. Constant challenge is hard. It's hard work, but in the end it is so very worth it....
I find myself excited for the future. I still don't know what's in store, but I know that I am ready for the challenges that life will throw at me. Hopefully a classroom, but at this point, I'm ready to accept whatever is tossed my way.
