This week has been very difficult. Last week, I was offered a good job at an excellent school where I admire and respect the school and district administration. I had to choose this week to accept or decline that job. So much soul searching to figure out if I want to go back to the classroom or if I want to "reach for the stars". Many hours were spent gathering other people's thoughts (including my mom and dad who were in DC to visit), but I knew the final decision had to come from within.
This year of working in DC as an Einstein Fellow has changed me personally and professionally. I am much more confident about the change I have made in the world before this experience and what I am capable of once this is done. I want to continue to make a difference for students and teachers, but I am not sure what that looks like yet.
The teaching job was safe and comfortable. After the way I was treated by my previous school district, teaching in a school where I was respected and valued was very alluring, but I would have been committed for 9 months, potentially losing out on other opportunities. So I made one of the hardest decisions ever by turning down the job. As crazy as it may sound, a line from Julia Robert's character in Pretty Woman keeps flashing in my head, "Look, you made me a really nice offer, and a few months ago, no problem but now everything is different and you changed that and you can't change back. I want more." After this Einstein Fellowship experience, I feel like I need to help teachers on a different level now.
As an unknown person said, "Don't ever stop reaching for the stars. Even if they remain out of reach, you'll still go further than if you didn't bother to try." Wish me luck, because as terrifying as that is right now, I have decided to reach for the stars.
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