Back to school?

The weather is turning cooler, the days are growing shorter and the calendar recently ticked over to September. My heart screams, "Get organized! Plan! Gather! Get ready!" while my brain softly soothes, "Alright, that's enough already. You need to calm down. Everything's fine. We're retired, remember?" While the past 8 months have been Uber entertaining, the TRUE feeling of retirement is kicking in now that I am not prepping myself for the return to school. Staying with that stream of thought, I recently took part in a pretty awesome celebration called "To HELL with the Bell!" One full half of the infamous Central R119 crew have meandered into the sunset of retirement ... myself, Berardi, Andrews and Chestnut ... and in an effort to ensure the occasion would not go unnoticed, I was invited to take in the grandeur of Lake Kushog to properly celebrate the the first day of NOT-school. EPIC is a word that comes to mind when I think back to the camaraderie, cottaging, and comfort food that occurred. I even got the opportunity to know Andy and Fiona better, high school chums of Ron's, who hosted the hoard for "To Hell with the Bell" breakfast with Mimosas made with freshly sabred Champagne.

Gone are the nervous feelings that prompt the hour-long, middle-of-the-night stares at the bedroom ceiling as I mentally compile and crosscheck my educational To Do List. Gone are the hours spent in front of the laptop or desktop, planning then creating then uploading all of the components required for D2L for the year's courses. Gone are the hours reviewing the past few year's plans to tweak here and there, all in the name of more sound teaching practices. Gone are the hours given to the planning and organizing of all the teams that I would normally invest in everyone else's kids by coaching the sports I am so passionate about.

Let me be completely honest with you, though. I most definitely feel a void! I loved teaching and coaching because of what it did for me just as much as what I could do for kids. There's not much better in this world than the spark of energy you see when the light of understanding brightens the eye of someone struggling to understand a concept, be it academic or athletic. Be that as it may, I was acutely aware that my time to exit had come so that I could make a full contract available for one of those incredibly talented "youngsters" that I saw over the past few years.

I actively seek out information and opinion in an attempt to stay in touch with the educational system, partly because I care deeply about helping kids find their way in life, partly because I have good friends who will be returning to class this fall, and a little bit because I was planning to be active on the supply teacher list. All that I have read about what the world presently understands about C19, and its ramifications AFTER recovery, points to the prudent choice of avoiding contracting the virus. At almost 58, I fall just outside of the "danger zone" age demographic, but the real fears are those in my bubble ... my own mom who is 80 and my mother-in-law who is 90 ... and passing it on to others. Joyce and I have agreed the correct course is to press pause on the supply work until at least the end of September so we can have a realistic understanding of how the system is coping with the restart. 

The Covid-19 pandemic and all of its ramifications have left me with questions ... is this what retirement looks like? ... or is this really pandemic life? ... or is it a combination? Whichever question is the most appropriate, I will openly admit that life is pretty darn entertaining right now. All those stories and comments from teacher friends who went before me were ABSOLUTELY true! It's the ability to choose the events of the day that is the greatest gift it gives. 

Life is MOST definitely Good!