June 30th - Visit #6

So, for this month I decided to spend time with myself and God and reflect on the things I have learned so far on my journey. I traveled to San Antonio to the ISTE conference for 5 amazing days of learning and food, but was able to spend some alone time and reflect and ponder the things of life. Things that help you reflect on life - turning 50, graduation and the oldest leaving the nest, anniversary #24, the death of an amazing person and friend, the terminal illness of a dear friends young wife, the end of a school year, time alone... Too much of the time I don't stop and be still long enough to ponder anything. This year long journey is a marker along the way to make sure I am headed the right way along the path of life. It has been a wonderful and fun learning experience so far.

Big ideas I have learned so far...

Be passionate about what you do!

Care about others!

Don't take yourself too seriously!

Stop and smell the roses along the way - take time for the relationships in your life!

Some times you just have to deal with "it" and move on.

The most amazing people I know are those that are passionate about what they do and care about others more than themselves. Several of these people are: Mr. Lee, the janitor at my old school. He takes such pride in what he does and is willing to always go above and beyond to help others. My husband, band director extraordinaire. He lives band and would do anything to to share that passion with others. A testament to this is how many students he has had that have followed in his foot steps. Shannon Price, one of the best teachers I have ever worked with. The relationships she builds with students allows her to teach her students to reach their highest potential in everything. I want to be passionate about what I do so I can affect others as these have affected me.

I know that I take life too seriously! I am a perfectionist, very hard on myself and expect too much from myself and others. This tendency hinders my ability to relax and enjoy all life has to offer sometimes. This is definitely an area for continued work! Stopping each month to spend an extended time with someone has helped however, this will always be an area of struggle for me.

One of the people in my life who represents all of these big ideas is my friend, Dee Rogers who recently died of pancreatic cancer. She was and will continue to be such an inspiration to me and so many others. Everything she did in life, she did with passion. Whether it was Learning @ Lovejoy, golfing, family, friends...she lived life with grit and gusto! She cared immensely about others and was always willing to stop and listen. She helped me "move on" on several occasions and helped me not take thing too seriously. I will miss her smile and friendship!

I have enjoyed my journey so far, learned a lot about myself, really connected with people and hopefully will continue to learn and grow and become more of the person I should be.

May 27th - Visit #5

Visit #5 was today with son #1, Chris. He definitely had a large impact on my life in that when he arrived on the scene, I became a mom. Being a mom is one of the hardest but most rewarding jobs I have ever had. When Chris was born, he had sleep apnea and a dislocated hip. He came home on a heart monitor and a Pavlik harness. Since I was a first time mom, I knew no different and we went about life visiting Scottish Rite and listening for the monitor to go off. You tend to deal with the hand you are given. Since that time, he has had his tonsils out which resulted in the "worst day of his life", a broken arm, 5 surgeries on the cyst in his arm, a gash to the head, braces... He has also provided us with many joys along the way. Chris remembers in infinite details many of life's journeys. This can be good and bad!! Chris is one of the most kind, caring and sensitive people I know. He cares so much about others, how they feel and wants to make sure no one feels left out. He has decided to pursue a career in Psychology so he can help troubled youth. This career path is perfect for him!
I wanted to visit with Chris this month because graduation is upon us and he will be leaving the nest soon. I am excited for his journey into the world and can't wait to see what he accomplishes. We had a nice visit over breakfast at Spoons in downtown McKinney. After breakfast he asked me if this was where I was supposed to ask him how I messed up his life by the way I had raised him. I replied that he could share with me anything he thought I needed to hear. His only complaint in his upbringing was that Alan and I sheltered he and Andrew from "stuff" so much that he didn't know how to talk to his middle school classmates. They were all interested in things that he hadn't been exposed to. I am good with that - if that is the only thing he thinks I really messed up, I can live with that.
I feel like Chris and I have a great relationship and have talked about many things throughout the years. He seems to feel pretty comfortable discussing his thoughts, feelings, dreams and hopes with me and for that I am grateful! He is too much like me and will suffer many of the same woes I do however. You want your kids to only take the good stuff from you and hope they skip over the things of which you are not so proud. They see it all though and become what they see and know. Chris is a wonderful person and I know he will make a huge impact on many people throughout his life. I am very proud to be his mom!

April 27th - Visit #4

Visit #4 was a day spent with my husband, Alan.  Of all of my relationships, Alan knows the good and bad of me more than anyone. We are rapidly approaching year 25 and this year I will have spent more of my life married than single. After my first three visits, I knew that Alan needed to be my next visit. Spending time with Billy Faye on my first visit and seeing her 50+ year relationship with Harold, plus seeing how my aunt and uncle have influenced each other and created an amazing family, led me to evaluate my own family.

We spent the day in downtown Dallas eating and visiting.  Our first stop was The Dallas Farmer's Market and BBQ at Pecan Lodge - most amazing brisket ever! We strolled the Farmer's Market and got some great fruit and veggies for the week. We then went to the Klyde Warren Park in Downtown Dallas. It was full of people enjoying a beautiful day. I love that we both enjoy many of the same things - watching sports, reading, going to concerts, traveling, spending time with our family...

Our visit consisted of where we have been and where we hope to go with our lives and our family. Chris is graduating from high school in about 6 weeks and our lives will be changing. Andrew is not far behind Chris and before you know it, we will have an empty nest. We are beginning the talk of retirement and what the future holds. It is hard for me to believe that time has passed SO fast! Many times we are so busy, we don't take the time to really stop and talk about things that are going on, things we believe or things that are bothering us. We get so caught up in every day life and don't stop to check in with each other on a deeper level. We both decided we need to do days like this more often.

I am so thankful that Alan is supportive of my many adventures in life. I am very independent and I know it takes a very special person to put up with my sometimes crazy ideas. I feel like I can do anything I can dream with 100% backing from him. Neither one of us are perfect but I feel like I have a partner for life. It feels wonderful to know how much support I have from him!!

March 24th - Visit #3

WOW!! What an incredible weekend!  My first visit with family was an overwhelming time of learning, growing and understanding.  My aunt and uncle are amazing people who love God and family.  Their lives are such an inspiration to me.  My uncle, who I have always thought was almost perfect, allowed me see to his inner thoughts and feelings.  He spent time sharing what he knows of my family for the past 3 generations and how that has shaped us. We are probably a pretty typical family with skeletons in closets, crazy stories, failed relationships and people trying to make their way in this thing called life. 

He shared his perception of why things are the way they are in our family. He helped me to understand my inner drive, work ethic, how I relate to people and my insecurities. Both sides of my family have a very strong sense of drive which can be mentally and physically overwhelming at times. He shared how he has handled this over the course of his life. My cousin Justin even chimed in and shared some of his journey. Justin’s insights were amazing and almost eerily correct. It is interesting to me, how even though we aren’t connected on a daily basis, being from the same family creates many of the same issues (good and bad).

My aunt, who I also hold in high esteem, talked about how we have a choice to let our circumstances and backgrounds dictate who we are or we can choose to rise above anything and experience joy. She has “joy” signs all over her house to be a constant reminder of this. I think this is a great idea and plan to do the same around my house and office. It is so easy for me to get caught up in the everyday things of life and not remember this. Max is a mentor teacher in her school district so we had a lot of education “stuff” to visit about as well.

When I left their house, I stopped on my way home and climbed Enchanted Rock.  It was a very peaceful time of reflection and beauty. I was able to spend several hours reflecting on my journey so far. As I have said before, this journey has been about connecting with people in my life who have inspired me and meant a tremendous amount to me.  I am thrilled to be spending this year with the people I love the most and learning great things in the process. I truly think that this is becoming a life changing journey. Can’t wait for next month!!

March 16th - Visit #3 Planned

My March visit will be my first with actual family. I will be traveling to Boerne, Texas to visit and receive wisdom from my Uncle Fred and Aunt Max. My Uncle is number five of six kids on my moms side of the family. My mom is number two. Fred has obviously know me since I was born and known my mom since he was born. He has great insight into my extended family and I am looking forward to him sharing some of this insight. He has always been a Quiet Rock in my eyes. He thinks a lot, takes it all in and is very reserved in his sharing of thoughts. Kind of reminds me of me. :)
I was quite excited when Fred decided to bring Aunt Max into the family. I remember helping my Uncle wrap a gift (a cross necklace) for my soon to be Aunt. The wrapping job looked great except one end was wrapped up and the other end was wrapped down. I guess it didn't matter to her because she soon joined our crazy family. Aunt Max is from Valentine, Texas. When you are from Valentine, you are FUN! You have to be because there is nothing to do in Valentine. Max and I created our own fun on many occasions. Spending many a New Years Eve in Marathon, Texas requires the invention of fun. Coconuts, meat cleavers and ice picks were included one year. Memories were made!! Fred and Max have always been a stable force in my life. We don't talk much but when we do, I always come away feeling better about myself, my family and life in general. I really look forward to our visit.

February 27 - Visit #2

For my #2 visit on my 49 year journey, I spent the night visiting with Mary Carole Strother.  MC has been an incredible inspiration in my career and life. She has encouraged me to challenge and stretch myself beyond what I ever thought I could. She has given me tremendous career advice and has helped me think through my next move on several occasions. We have presented together, learned together and collaborated on many a project. I always look forward with anticipation to a call with a new idea that involves a new technology that we must figure out for the next project or presentation. These calls often happen late at night - long after my creative brain has gone to sleep but MC is still up, dreaming up the next idea. She is one of the most energetic, creative, hard working people I know. She stays up on the latest technology integration and inspires many of us to do the same. She is always willing to share the spotlight if you will only step up and learn. 

We spent time talking about work - what is the next "thing" on the horizon, our families - we both have two great boys and husbands, retirement, spiritual matters... I think she felt a little like she needed to say something spectacular because she knew I was going to write about it but that is not the point. Spending time with my amazing, inspirational people is all I am looking for. She continually challenges and inspires me to be my best me.

MC asked me what was the biggest thing I had learned so far on this journey.  I have learned that people and relationships are what life is all about. The destination on this journey is Jan. 1, 2014 when I turn 50, but the journey I am on is the people along the way that I can visit with, enjoy and learn from. This past month I have had a long dinner with Chris, enjoyed dinner with a former student, scheduled lunch with teachers on my campus and just concentrated on listening with intent to others. People are what life is about!! I am thrilled that God put Mary Carole in my life to be one of the people who share my journey with me. 

February 24 - Visit #2 Planned

Visit number two of my 49th year is set up. I will be visiting with my friend and mentor Mary Carole Strother. I met Mary Carole six years ago when I was looking for someone to do my practicum in order to complete my Masters in Library Science. She came very highly recommended and I started my library journey with her. I learned more from her in the 60 hours I was following her around than I learned in my entire Masters degree. Since then, she has encouraged me, listened to me, pushed me, and taken me on some amazing trips. We have laughed together, plotted together and learned an amazing amount together. Through our passion for learning and sharing with others, we have become great friends and spend much time talking about the next project or presentation. She is an amazing ball of energy and continues to inspire me to reach for great things. I look forward to our visit!