Two teachers have informed me that their contracts will not be picked up for next year, basically getting their warn notices. For one, I put what I learned into a letter. As state governments deal with their short falls I fear there will be many more layoffs. And then if the federal cuts come quickly another wave of layoffs will follow.
I thought I would share this here and it might give some ideas on helping others.
So sorry and so excited to hear your news. Our times of growth happen in interesting times, in times when the rug is pulled out from under us. Times when each step you take, unsure of the footing, you have to gingerly test to see if it will hold.
My journey has been filled with negative and positive emotions. I have felt guilt and I have felt victimized. I have felt freed and I have felt joy. Along with just about everything in between. And it was necessary to feel fully each one of these emotions. The mistake I could have made, that I see many others make, would be to bury these emotions and not gain the learning and insight that come with them. You are embarking on a journey of the spirit, and for what ends this journey has come about you may not know for a while it ever. Fully experiencing your emotions is the first step in getting more fully in tune with your spirit.
You put in all the work for these kids, not because it was demanded by your job, but rather because it was demanded by yourself. All the work and the effort that you have put in has been or will be paid back many times over. And you understand this already, even though you are feeling bruised at the present moment. The bureaucracy does not care how much you have touched the lives of the children you have taught, but they do, and many others do. The bureaucracy had to make impossible choices in which there were very few right answers. From a limited perspective, you are one of the wrong answers, with no chance of justification using any measure that you can think of.
I am not though my journey yet, and may not ever be, but I am beginning to see how many, many prayers that I had asked in passing over the years are being answered. I am seeing how my life is more open to changes and growth than was possible if I was still at Boeing.
The bounds that we build around our lives to bring stability are loosened in these unsettled times. Keep your third eye open and look for the opportunities as they arise. Take stock of what is of the deepest importance to you, and even these things may change, so hold lightly just in case. Teaching is something that has defined you for many years. Maybe this continues, maybe it won’t. Maybe you will have to leave it for a while and then return later. Maybe you will never return.
One more word on the emotions, it is important that you go deeply into feeling these emotions without judgment. Don’t tell yourself that you are being ridiculous, or selfish or x, y, or z. Just be prepared to feel the emotion without stuffing it, for as long as it takes. Locate the physical sensation of the emotion in your body. Feel the feeling in your body as deeply as you can, if it morphs into other emotions or body sensations follow them also. It will pass quickly and you are more than strong enough to get through it. If it is pain, feel the pain. If it is trebling, feel the trebling. Whatever it is feel it for as long as you can stand it and then go a little while longer.
Because the bounds of stability are loosened at this time, you can also use this to your advantage. As the changes take place, you can consciously add more changes into the mix and you will find that things that you have been trying to do for years may be much easier to accomplish. You brain will be less resistant to change than it ever has been, take advantage of this.
Enjoy the ride. It is not one that I would wish on anyone, but now that you have your ticket and there is no backing out, make the most of it.
You are loved by so many, this will be one of the most special times in your life.
Chris
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