Summer Reflections

The beginning of summer can be a difficult time for me. I look forward to warm weather, festivals, extra time with my kids, and a more relaxed atmosphere. It also comes with graduations and the discussion of students' choices of colleges and majors. Given my insecurities, it's hard not to look at what others are doing and wonder if I made the best decisions for myself.

In my AP class this week, students were discussing which medical specialty they may want to pursue. There were only seven individuals in the room, but five of them were chatting about their plans for medical school. In my experience, when people find out about my education history, they can't understand why I would have abandoned physical therapy or optometry for a teaching career.

Just the other day, though, an interesting memory returned to me. Within the first couple months of optometry school, I was restless. Unlike other students, I wasn't excited by the clinic rotations; I didn't care what I did or did not get to see through the teaching tube. Instead, I found myself daydreaming about more creative endeavors. I thought about what kind of projects I would assign and how I would set up my classroom if I had the chance to teach. 

"Do you think a school would let me teach AP biology on a part-time basis?" I asked my roommate one time. I knew that I wouldn't have the teacher training and certification most schools would require, but I hoped that a private school might allow a medical professional to guest-teach an advanced elective. While my peers chatted about corneal abrasions and glaucoma, I talked about ways to engage students in meaningful lessons. 

Ten years later, I got that AP biology class. I won't lie, teaching is not easy. There are many days I'm ready to throw in the towel. I can say for sure, however, that I'm never bored. I am appreciative of the fact that I have a profession in which I can experiment with new techniques on a regular basis. When it doesn't work, I can try something else next time - and no one's health was harmed in the process! 

Sometimes I wish that I had a passion for medicine or engineering. The increased pay, prestige, and other perks are very alluring. There is also something to be said for knowing who you are, and if I chose one of those careers just for the benefits, I'd still be miserable. 

So I look forward to recharging over the summer and coming back next year to, in the words of the wise Ms. Frizzle, "take chances, make mistakes, get messy!"