In this volume, I go all the way back to the beginning, when I had to interview for my first teaching job in Oklahoma. I talk about the journey from that first class in the inner city, through my experience with the terrorist bombing four and a half miles from our class, and the 2011 EF5 tornado that cut our school year short in Joplin.
While short accounts of those events are part of School Busyness, they are not the focus of the book. Instead, I wanted to share some of the lessons I've learned in the last 27 years - the ups and the downs. In fact, the book begins with this:
After nearly 30 years as an educator, after experiencing many ups and downs, I set fingers on the keyboard and intentionally pattered out some wisdom that I hope makes sense. Whether you’ve been in the classroom for a quarter century or you’re just starting out, you should find something here that will help you along the journey.
There was a time when I was ready to leave – actually a couple of times if we’re being honest. I had heard about teachers hitting a wall, being burned out, leaving the profession prematurely. I had heard the short longevity for teaching, and I vowed to never let that happen to me.
But it happened.
And it happened at a very inopportune time.
I had been teaching for two decades. It was too late to start over, and too early to retire. I was invested in a profession I loved, and it had become a profession I despised.
all of which are available on my author site and from Amazon.