Thank You Steve Jobs (1955-2011)
You are an inspiration. You have changed the world. Thank You Steve Jobs. You will be missed.
Good People
I am surrounded by good people. I felt uninspired yesterday to write in my blog. This morning I realized that inspiration does not have to be profound, but it’s the little things that matter most.
Yesterday, I finished my 2-day training session with Capilano University to become an ESLSAP/CALL tutor. I much enjoyed the learning process and understanding how to teach individuals how to speak English and settle in the community. I liked meeting new people… good people… who wanted to volunteer their time to teach others English. I met retired teachers, community members, and other folk who had an enjoyable time together with our workshop facilitators. Good energy, good times.
After the session, I left the conference room at the Gibsons Library (my first time being there… very cool) and bumped into a woman I met last week from the first tutoring workshop session. We had chatted the day before at Aikido and had coffee at the store while our kids were participating in their extracurricular activity. It was great seeing her again and her daughter at the library.
Off to London Drugs before returning home (an opportunity Sechelt residents take when going Gibsons) to buy some computer ink and paper. I bumped into another woman who participated in an art class we took together last fall together. I think the last time I saw her was almost a year ago. Anyway, she said hello and asked how my dissertation was going. What a nice surprise.
Feeling pretty stoked about bumping into friendly faces and completing my workshop, a good friend calls me on my way home. I talked to her hands-free on my Blackberry (that was sooooo cool… first time doing that) and we always have a good laugh talking about nothing. We did lose contact mid-drive, but called her back in the parking lot of the bank. I was burning up some time before I returned home to the Grade 7 babysitter. It seems fair to use a complete 2-hours of service.
Aside from having another pleasant experience at the bank with the teller (a former student) and gabbing about ‘turkey dinners’… I returned home to find my daughter, her babysitter and the babysitter’s sister all having a great time. That was the first time this babysitter took care of my daughter at my house. She was great. I offered them a ride home, but they opted to walk.
After greeting my kid, we made her favorite dinner… TACOS. She loved it and I was in a rush because I had two new clients coming in for tutoring. The brother and sister duo were a delight. The tutoring session was stimulating and very enjoyable. Their mom is fantastic. She was so supportive and knowledgeable of her kids learning. I gave her an A+ for her part in the learning process. Best of all, when she asked kids how the session went, they both said, “it was fun.” Good feelings.
The evening continues with a long chat on the phone with another good friend. She is a curling buddy. I love curling with her, but I am strongly considering not to curl this year for various reasons. My buddy is very understanding and thoughtful. We talked about curling, my studies, career goals, change, friends in common, and what’s happening overall. She even talked my daughter for a bit.
During the phone call, my husband returned home after being out of town for a few days. He sat down to watch the hockey game, but brought home gifts… a HUGE candy apple for my daughter and a camel pack for me. What a pleasant surprise. I love the bag. It’s a really nice way to support me in my new interest in mountain biking and my daughter’s interest in candy.
I was glad to see my husband home and we gabbed about how the trip went… thanking him for the thoughtful gift. Before I knew it, it was time to take part in my daughter’s night time routine of showering, getting ready, and reading. My husband reminded me to call one of his friends who was looking for some tutoring. I called and left a message. He called me back a few minutes later, apologetic, humbled, and eager to support his son. He shared his story and made an appointment.
Whew… the day ends with a hot bath… reviewing spelling words with my daughter… and scratching my husband’s back before going to bed. There was not on ‘special’ thing that happened to me yesterday, yet everything and everyone seemed special. It’s strange that yesterday I felt somewhat uninspired to write in my blog. I thought I had nothing special to write about. I was wrong.
Thank you good people for being in my life. You are all special to me.
I Love My Man
A late submission to my blog today… I was contemplating what to write about. I had many inspirations, but hesitated. With about 20 minutes left in the day, I realized that my man is the topic of the day. I cannot express how lucky I am to have a man like I do. We were friends in Grade 10, hanging out in Mr. Freeman’s science room. We started “dating” in 1991, 2nd year of university. We moved in together at UBC on campus in 1993… then established our common law marriage in 1996 after graduating from UBC and settled on the Sunshine Coast. We married in 2001, on our 10th dating anniversary, and we recently celebrated our 10th wedding anniversary a few months ago. My man and I have been together for more than 20 years. We have spent more than half of our lives together. He knows me better than me. I love that. What I love even more is that he could be a hundred miles away and we can still connect on Skype to say hello and chat about our day. I love my man.
Congee Comfort
Here I sit in front of the fireplace eating a hot bowl of pork congee. Congee is a rice porridge. It’s a savoury bowl of comfort. Last night, we had pork roast for dinner. Normally, I make chicken congee… but why not pork? Let me tell you… it’s delicious. I must admit, it has taken me about 8 years to master this asian dish. It was 8 years well invested. The weather today was wet and windy, a classic fall day, sitting alone… blogging… with a big bowl of congee comfort has made my day. Happy October.
Starting All Over Again
Oh my goodness… revisiting my dissertation proposal for the n-th time feels like starting all over again. I am building a great respect for those doctoral candidates who finished their dissertations in a timely manner. Thoughts have to be clear and direction focused. Can you see my problem?
I have an awesome topic. I think that I am writing purposefully, but in the end, I am not. I often feel like I am “writing” into a wall and can’t seem to walk around it. I sit here almost one year later contemplating the approach to my topic. In the end, it ends up somewhere else. Is this where I want to be?
With each step forward, leads to two steps back… I am beginning to wonder what my motivation to finish is. I get frustrated. I think that I am learning, but I believe that I am running out of steam. It is only brief moments from inspiration, like TedxSechelt, that makes venturing out into academia worthwhile. Come on number 6… I want to get out of START fast.
Happy Birthday to ME
Happy birthday to me… Happy birthday to me… Happy birthday dear ME… Happy birthday to me.
Finally. I am well into my 40’s. I am 41. How did my birthday go? I slept in. I made a big breakfast for my family. We ate outside. It was sunny. We had cake after breakfast. I cleaned up the kitchen, baked banana muffins, and ate sushi leftovers. Shared a special moment with my daughter, a good friend, and a little bird. I cleaned the rest of the house, went for a walk, and chatted with my parents on the phone. And, went out for Chinese smorgasbord dinner, but really wanted Vietnamese, with family and friend. I end my day with Facebook birthday thank yous and blogging.
Still to come… dissertation work, a hot bath, and putting my daughter to bed… a very nice day.
TedxSechelt
This my last day of being 40. I am not being sentimental… I am being thankful. What a year… Turning 40 was more than I anticipated. This blog entry will be a year in review. I am so grateful to end my 40th year of life with TedxSechelt. I feel so lucky to be a part of this event. I saw good friends and left the all-day event inspired and affirmed… This is a good feeling.
So, how did my 40th year of life start out? In 2 words… NOT GOOD. For several weeks prior to my 40th birthday, I was in serious pain. I had hip pain and had difficulties walking. Furthermore, I had an extremely HUGE cyst growing on the side of my chest. The cyst caused me a lot of pain that I did not show up to work the day before my birthday, where I found out later, a surprise party was being organized for me. I could not celebrate my birthday. I taught in agony thinking that this growth would someday disappear, much like the hip-pain would. My health was rapidly declining.
On the morning of my 40th birthday, the baseball-sized cyst ERUPTED. It was totally gruesome. That Saturday I had a EdD cohort meeting on campus that was organized weeks before. I took my daughter with me to Surrey, traveling from Sunshine Coast. Like a “good” teacher, I pretended that everything was OK. What a lie I was living. I had obviously reached a turning point in my life… let’s call it MIDLIFE… My body was the final straw… I had to make life changes.
With great contemplation, I abruptly left my ‘secure’ teaching position to work full-time on my dissertation. I worked in public schools for 16 years. I was an icon in the school’s math department, but I was becoming attuned to the idea that I was no longer aligned with my workplace. In time, the career I loved became a job. I promised myself when my teaching career dwindled down to be “all about the money,” I had to leave. So, I left. Not an easy decision, but I was losing the love.
The next 30 days after my resignation notice were the longest 30 days of my life. On the one hand, I was happy to take the risk to move into a different direction in life that was more attuned to my authentic self. On the other hand, I hated leaving the kids. I had awesome classes. It was tough to leave them, but because all of my classes were exceptional, it was the best time to leave. Saying goodbye to staff and students was difficult. The next 10 months were even more difficult.
What a journey. It has taken me about 10 months to feel OK with my HUGE life-decision. I have started writing and rewriting my dissertation proposal. With each revision, by perspective becomes more objective… and hopefully one day, more academic. I’m working on it. Anyway, what sparked the blog was a way to journal my PEDAGOGICAL JOURNEY. And, even still, my blog has transformed several times. The content has changed. The blog-site address had changed. The template has changed. Today, I do feel good about how I am writing my blog, with nothing to hide.
I am thankful to my blog (and my Bloggies). I am more grateful for my family, friends, and colleagues. With any tough decision, it’s tough to know if you’re doing it alone or with a supportive posse. I am so lucky to have the latter. My parents, siblings, husband, daughter, students, friends, and colleagues have been phenomenal. I could not realize my dreams without any of them. The strangest part is that I feel more connected to people today being home alone writing compared to being in a school surrounded by hundreds. I am fortunate.
My biggest growth has been realizing what I see is what I create. The other life’s lesson is ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE, but you have to believe that it’s possible. Now, back to TedxSechelt. What an amazing event. First of all, I had to step into the school that I taught in for 16 years of my life. I was a bit apprehensive, but felt good. It was an awesome litmus for forgiveness and moving on. Second, I saw so many good friends at the event… my ‘boy friend’… my ‘mentor’… my ‘buddy’… my ‘comrade’… my ‘former student’… ‘my colleagues’… It was so wonderful see them all. Finally, the speakers, the locally made videos, the live music, and TED presentations were incredible. What did I walk away with? You can live your dream. There are no limitations. Live willingly naive.
Aside from getting my picture with one of the TedxSechelt speakers, which was so awesome… I ended my day going out for a special sushi-birthday dinner with my little family. It may be the day before my birthday, but my man has a hockey draft tomorrow (third year in a row… just saying) and honestly, I had no expectations. All that I know is, I started year 40 on a low… and now, I’m ending it on a high. My hips don’t hurt. I have no cyst. I FEEL GOOD. Forgive me all for a lengthy blog today, but I feel that I am living my dream, I have no limitations, and I am open to possibilities. Best of all, my daughter is making my birthday present, as I blog, in the other room. That’s cool.
ABD Student
You would think that I was a PhD student… really, I am an EdD student… I’m beginning to think that I am an ABD student. What do all these acronyms mean? Well, here’s the break down…
PhD = Doctorate of Philosophy
EdD = Doctorate of Education
ABD = All But Dissertation
I am currently reading my third book on “The Dissertation Journey” for some solace and peace of mind. What I am experiencing is apparently “normal” but personally, I’m done with it. Procrastination begone.
The term “ABD” had been tossed around during my Educ 809 course and a continuance of that course, which is called ABD student meetings. I never understood ABD meant until reading this book. The light bulb is on.
Take for example, I am writing this blog. I “like” doing loads of laundry and washing the dishes. I tutor lots of students. I give professional development workshops. I am a bike-club mom… etc. Classic ABD behaviour.
Like Dr. Phil says, “You’ve got to name it, to claim it.” I want to be Dr. Younghusband, EdD soon. In essence, I’ve got to get of the denial train and deal with it. Hmmm… sounds more like Dr. Phil, but it’s true.
New mantra: JUST DO IT NOW. Fear begone. Albeit, starting over and over again on Chapters 1-3 is not what I call “enjoyable” but it is a part of the dissertation process. Try, try, and try again until it’s done. Sigh.
Municipal Election
Something to consider… running in the 2011 Municipal Election as School Trustee representing the District of Sechelt on the Sunshine Coast.
This is a HUGE decision. To step in this direction, I would have to say ‘goodbye’ to teaching on the Sunshine Coast and say ‘hello’ to public service. Running for school trustee and representing the constituents of the District of Sechelt would be an honour and seems to resonate with how I feel. I am passionate about student learning, public education, and living on the Sunshine Coast. With these three factors alone, it seems like a formidable formula to run for public office as school trustee to advocate for public education as a parent, community member, and teacher.
Nominations for the 2011 Municipal election begins on October 4th. Spread the word… Christine Younghusband is running for school trustee in the District of Sechelt to represent the families and students of School District No.46 (Sunshine Coast). I love teaching and learning. With 16 years experience in this school district as a public educator, studying educational leadership at SFU, and being a mom of an SD46 student, I am actively involved in education and care about quality public education.
Dear Bloggies… come November 19, 2011… VOTE FOR YOUNGHUSBAND as SD46 SCHOOL TRUSTEE representing the District of Sechelt.
Looking Forward
“Looking forward” has been a mantra I have been adhering to lately, thinking to myself… LOOK FORWARD. As much as I am looking forward, I will periodically look back to see what I have left. Make note, looking back is not a good strategy when trying to implement change into one’s life. I feel like I have made “the change” but I’m not acknowledging it.
Bare with me Bloggies… I am in the midst of writing a “gratitude list” or things that I have accomplished in the past 10 months since leaving public schools to pursue academic work, professional development, and personal growth. To write a gratitude journal… or blog, in my case… one can easily see what is going well and what direction one is heading in. My list…
PERSONAL
1. I am all paid and up-to-date with my credit cards.
2. I am cooking meals at home for my family.
3. I am able to drop off and pick up my daughter at school.
4. I am able to volunteer at my daughter’s school.
5. I am a part of the WSE bike club and LOVE IT.
PROFESSIONAL
1. I have presented 8 workshops on to practicing teachers.
2. I am successful at giving professional development workshops.
3. I am self-employed.
4. I provide a math/science tutoring service that is thriving.
5. I am a member of the BCAMT excutive committee.
ACADEMIC
1. I presented at the SFU EGSA Speaker Series.
2. I am a Masters of Education Site Assistant at SFU-Surrey.
3. I have created a learning community to support my
4. I am tutoring at Capilano University with the CALL program.
5. I am working on my dissertation and learning as I as I go.
MISC
1. I pulled the 2011 Pulling Together Canoe Journey.
2. I participated in the SFU Instructional Skills Workshop.
3. I made an elk hide drum.
4. I celebrated 20 years with my husband/best friend.
5. I am running for municipal government as school trustee.
Thank you for letting me purge out my list of gratitude. There is so much more to mention (i.e. I have a wonderul husband who supports me 100% in my pedagogical journey and I am presenting at 3 more conferences this fall) but, I will leave it for now. I am on a journey. As much as I miss teaching in the classroom… I am still teaching and learning. I will admit that I do get ‘spooked’ on the way and I guess that’s when I look back to see what’s behind me. In the end, it’s looking forward that seems more exciting.