It's Official!

"Choose a job you love, and you will never have to work a day in your life." - Confucius

If you had told me four years ago, when I accepted my first job as assistant principal, that I'd be principal today, I would have laughed.  I like even numbers, and in my mind, I taught for ten years, I'd planned to be an assistant principal for ten years, and then move up.  Nice, neat, tidy numbers, and yet here I am, ecstatic that today is my first official day as principal of a truly amazing school.

Did I waiver on the decision to throw my name in for consideration?  Absolutely, and it's only natural when making such a major life decision.  For my family, this is a big shift, having Mom work all year.  From the start of my career, I've always had the summer off, and becoming a full-year educator took a lot of thought and discussion.  I know in my heart that this is, without a doubt, the way it was meant to be.  I technically have this week off for vacation, yet I've been working on scheduling and hiring and planning at home, simply because I love it.

I may be biased, but I've also heard from many people, that there is something very special about this school.  It's that feeling you get when you walk in the door; positive, upbeat, and united.  We all rally around one goal to educate each of our students and help them become happy, productive, kind members of our community.  I think that's why this move feels so right.  It's the people, every single day, that make a difference, that trump issues like budget and mandates and testing.  People matter, and I want to highlight my people here and share their awesomeness with you.  As we move closer to the start of the school year, I'll be profiling my staff, sharing with you their contributions that make me grateful to be the principal of such a great school.

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It's a tiny bit ironic that, right after renaming this blog, my running has been plagued with obstacles.  First it was a calf/foot issue that turned out to simply require some rest and sports massage and a change in training.  I got in my first two speed workouts, which felt amazing, as if I was truly flying around the track.  The day after my last track workout, my shoulder was in so much pain I ended up in the ER in the middle of the night.  Verdict: I have a huge calcification on my left rotator cuff tendon that will require surgery.  Minor surgery, but surgery nonetheless, with an undetermined recovery time at this point.  Frustrating?  Disappointing?  Yes and yes.  Defeated? Not even a little.

I have the ability to step back and look at the big picture, and that serves me well in all aspects of my life.  This is an unanticipated roadblock, and training is once again paused, but I'll be back at it again as soon as I can.  In the meantime, I'm immersed in my new role, planning a running club for students in the fall, and enjoying the summer with my family.  No dark clouds over here, that's for sure!