A Year in Review for 2024
I start off this blog post with the first picture I took in 2024. It’s a #patiopic from my apartment. I lived in this apartment for 6-years. Two of those years are blurred due to the pandemic. I lived in my house that I owned in Sechelt while I was teaching remotely and my kid was finishing Grade 12. And a few years was living with my kid in this one-bedroom apartment and my bedroom and office was situated in the dining room. Yes, I lived in the dining room with no door for more than 3-years. But this living arrangement was worth it to make it possible for me and the kid to live together. She had a transition year and picked up a couple courses to then enter into the nursing program at CNC and UNBC. I am so proud of her and she is half-way through her third year. In 2024, we have transitioned from surviving to thriving.
So much has happened in 2024. I am so HAPPY… my #OneWord2024. This year, I was focused on a SLOW mentality that embraced wellness, joy, and sustainability. The mantra is, do what you can do, one step at a time, and it’s ok that not everything gets done. SLEEP is a good thing. LOL. It’s true. For years… meaning decades… I would often forgo my well-being to get work done. There was no joy or self-compassion. My thinking had to change. In doing so, my sense of self and value for self needed to rise. My one-word HAPPY helped me to refocus, self-assess, and reflect on what’s important to me and what makes me happy. It’s as simple as that. I finally understood my agency. I joined research committees I want to be a part of, I volunteer for committees I want to contribute to, and I do what I want to do. That’s it. Who knew?
This year, I supported a few teacher candidates in their inquiries and presentation at three conferences. We are aiming for a fourth conference and hope to publish. I joined two research committees and on one of them, I am the Principal Investigator (supported by my more experienced peers). I also finished writing a chapter for a book on behalf of another research team who also supported me in that work. I also had my first term without teaching courses so that I could focus on my writing and my first year not supporting practicum. I am so happy to have this time to focus on research (and learning a tonne) while keeping a teaching role in my position. I loved working with the outgoing teacher candidates and learning lots from the incoming teacher candidates. I am honing my teaching practice and presenting lots. Yay me!!
I’m not sure if this is a year in review, meaning, being very specific with events, but I have go mention that I loved working with the teacher candidates this year, outgoing and incoming, I purchased a new home, and I got my gall bladder removed. Mentioning these three things indicate the love I have for teaching and learning, that I value myself to live in a home that I love and not feel dependent on other events to happen first before prioritizing my needs and wants, and my health matters. My health has been unravelling during this decade of my life, but I am so grateful that I could have the medical care and service to get day surgery and be fully recovered in less than a month. I never felt better… physically, emotionally, and spiritually. Although I’m not curling this season due to health reasons, I feel like 2025 has a lot more to offer. I’m back to weekly blogging and loving where I am. Thank you 2024.
