Let me first say this, you NEED to see this, so please, watch this, then come back here and read my words that will be a second shadow compared to this motivational insight:
Okay so yeah, Okay, I have been gone from my blog for a little while – but wow, what has occurred!
Okay so let’s pick up last YOU read –
September 9th – wow – LONG time ago but – let me start with a memory….
September 11th, 2001 – can you believe this never turn back memory occurred in 2001? Where were you? MY gosh – I remember – I was a teacher in Penn Hills High School, outside Monroeville, PA – and truly thinking a prank was occurring when a student told and then showed me what was occurring on television. Life would never be the same for anyone in their memory of New York City. Flash forward a few years later, I am working at U.S. Investigations, in Grove City, and we held a moment of silence for those affected. I have to say, even a few years later I realized how much this moment came back and hit you like a tidal wave. I still had the lump in my throat, tears in my eyes, and still amazed at how many people we would never truly know were affected. I thought this briefly as Janet, our librarian, put up a bulletin board in memory of 911.
The trips we made as an Aloha Staff, traveling with Mrs. Austin-Richardson’s class to New York for the Christmas show, the interviews we took while there, buses full of students in the middle of New York, then Whhhoooosh, ironically in Mexico we ended up there last year making some historic strides in meeting Mr Arad – architect of the 911 Memorial – and students that just had an experience that would never be able to be left behind in memory. Life, whoever says it is not full circle and ironic, has truly not been out there enough.
Mexican Driver’s license – seriously, can you believe it? Poor Tracy Miller finally got me in her care – YEAH – she is BACK at ASF! – and we head down to Revolucion towards the place where I can go, without an appointment, and with all my papers get my license before I headed to Oaxaca for the long break (so I thought – on two accounts).
We get there, I am nervous as I will have to go without Tracy through some lines and be expected to respond in Spanish – wow, still nervous about this.
I get to the line, and am asked for the receipt. OhmyGOSH, I have my passport (not needed, just my FM3!), an old bill verifying my address the form that says I did pay the cashier for the fee, but not the tiny little receipt I needed, ARE YOU KIDDING ME? Ever the optimist, Tracy told me at least I knew where to be to get it next, and I am wondering how on EARTH, or Mexico, I am going to get my license, and get my Passport and Fm3 to HC the next day to renew my FM3 at the same time before I would leave? HOW? – But Tracy, as always, (I am so lucky to have people around me that are optimists!) – keep insisting this was a good thing, and I thought, HOW?
I ran to the laundromat, and managed to pick up my 50+ kilos of three month laundry, raced home to walk the dog _ YES – a name is coming by the way by the end of the week! – and as I raced in the door a text! Tracy telling m the place was open until 9:00 PM NO FREAKING WAY!….yes, I knew it could happen…
Sifting through every receipt since I had driven to Mexico from Delaware, my memories sifting through my fingers as I searched through my past – represented in receipts, literally hundreds, looking for that one, little Da- HEY! MAGIC! IT IS HERE! – Yessss…:) I raced out the door, dog in two dog in truck – dog with me to Revolucion, 8:20 PM – 8:20 PM ARE YOU KIDDING?
Never being there, let alone driving there before except with Tracy earlier that evening – I made it ALL THE WAY the first time, pulled in the lot, told the dog I would be back (I am sooo excited to not call her “The Dog” soon!) and ran in. Yes, the receptionist was quite surprised to see me the same night but bing, bang, answered a few questions in Spanish – No WAY – lol, and fingerprints, and Voila! A Mexican Driver’s license – yes way! I as on cloud nine, did a little shopping at the Soriana, and jumped back into a very excited dog, then headed back amazed….
Next day, all originals to HC and my FM3 would be renewed just in the nick of time!
So there is the Oaxaca thing, plan A was to be “sick” Thursday, and head to Oaxaca with “the dog” and spend a few days chilling. Realization set in and I knew I should and needed to be at the inservice we had Friday, so I succumbed to responsibility ( I hate that).
Friday – I was to race around, get the dog groomed and head out. All worked out so far, except I picked her up at 6:00 PM, and it was a 4 hour drive. I had all packed in the truck, and traffic, which I knew, was CRAZY – it took me 2 1/2 hours to get from outside Condesa to ROMA – normally a 20-25 minute drive. AT this point I was not feeling very good about this and just had a big NO enter my head and was sure (still 50-50) I would not go – I was outside the World Trade Center trying to get to Roma, and I felt my truck being lifted, and that is right, a little, itty bitty cab tried to pull in front of me, and I did not even see him, minding mu won business! What the HECK?
We get out, of course there is a crease in his taxi, and not a speck on my truck, lol, nothing. He is adamant this is worth 1000 pesos of damage, I beg to differed…Being one to not want to tempt fate, we settled on 500 pesos and we could walk away and we did just that. Not feeling good about this, as if I JUST received a ticket, I totally decided, despite the dog looking awesome and ready for Oaxaca and me being TOTALLY ready, home was the place for me and being home all break would give me a chance to catch up. Catch up I did, on rest, cleaning the house, organizing everything, best choice I could have made! I did sleep through the Independence Day fireworks as well, and have to say it was an off year for me celebrating but I did not mind in the least!
This Thursday is our FIRST 2012-2013 Open Mic Night, and I have to say this is exciting for me. Our staff last year, jumped to 28 this year, and received the Silver Trophy of recommendation the FIRST year of publication from Columbia University. COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY, the GURU of journalism….I could never have been prouder. The exciting directions the staff is going this year would blow your mind, so yeah, is it an epic year – one hundred percent.
I see an amazing generation of students rising up and being creative, and impacting others’ lives. This is the most amazing treat to have as an educator to see, I am so incredibly lucky to have (I have said this in the past) had the Kate Baltz’s, Alison Schwinn’s, Christina Stevenson’s to name a FEW – as well as the tire Aloha Staff I had for years, as well as an entire STAFF of amazing young minds now surrounding me, does life get any better? There are major dips, turns, dead ends, and turns arounds I never saw coming. Yet, I have seen some of the most amazing things in my life, experience the most amazing people, and still cannot put it into words. Still.
To ay this has been a wild ride at my age of 40 would be an understatement. I truly felt I have lived the life of two others, and that was my goal ages ago, to live a live reminiscent of my father who gave to everyone, and of my friend Dave who took his life because he felt he had nothing to give anyone. Somewhere in the middle, I have been lucky enough to have finally reached a middle ground, and soon, I will be able to sit back and say about these amazing individuals, “I knew them.”
I wish I had a penny for everytime someone told me, “You do way too much.” Yet, I have absolutely no regrets. The things I would have missed out on I could never obtain in another life, and each and every individual has made each and every moment amazing. When I read my writing tomorrow night at Open MicNight in Condesa, it is dedicated to the people that have brought me so far, and given so much. Life is good. Next post – sooner to come than you think (so that means less than 2 weeks!)
PAVEing a Blog 