Full Circle

     Sometimes you have to wait a minute to be where you really know you should be.  Sometimes my patience is really short with that sort of thing.  This time I waited a quick 20 years! :)  And I do believe its gonna be worth every minute of adventure and excitement and growth!
     When I first came into working with kids as a real live paid professional I had just moved to the University of South Carolina from Glendale, Arizona and I landed a job as the Director of an after-school program for kids from our local housing projects.  Every day, we'd go to the church we worked from and take the bus down the big hill to the projects and pick up a busload of kiddos to spend the afternoon with.  We helped with homework, did art projects, played sports, went on field trips and got lots of love (never as much as we could give) from this amazing bunch of young people.  Fast forward two short years and I started student teaching and soon found a full time teaching position and was no longer able to run the program.
     Over the last 20 years of teaching I have had one amazing teaching opportunity after another but none have shaped me like that very first taste of teaching did.  I always said I would get back to a similar situation and I think I may have finally struck gold!  I have just taken a position as an Upper Elementary Montessori teacher (4th-6th) grade in a downtown Charleston school that apparently is situated directly across the street from one of our housing projects.  I feel like I am coming home.  Coming full circle.  And I couldn't be more excited about all the learning and growing and love I have ahead of me!
     Year number 22 is gonna be the best yet!