It’s the final Tuesday, the final Slice of Life for the year.

#uhoh

It’s been a year, that is for sure, so we’ll see where this blog goes. The only thing I am sure of is the thankfulness I feel for the Two Writing Teachers for hosting this every week, along with their Slice of Life Challenge in March. Thank you for showing us all what good writing looks like, and for allowing us to write with you!

Like I said, I’m not sure where this will go today, but it will be set in 2025. After that, who knows? 🙂

  1. I’m struggling. The toil of being a teacher for 32 years is starting to add up. I don’t sleep well. I have no motivation. And I’m just not feeling well. I have maybe three years left, and right now, they look like a LONG time away. The school change, the TWO new curricula (math and ELA) in two years, the new principal, and the new grade partner, all in the past two and a half years, have taken their toil. I have no issues with the kids (other than there are more squirrels today than in the past). They try, they ask questions, they question me and each other. All in all, they are exhausting, but in a good way.
  2. Basketball is my refuge. Even when I had a bad day, basketball heals my soul. While our season is almost done and we won’t be coaching beyond that, I feel like this is my saving grace. Watching the Iowa Women’s basketball team play simply brings me joy. They play a beautiful game, making the good shot a great one with a pass, doing the basics well, and going nuts on the bench, celebrating their teammates. I’ll never match that where we are at, but I can bring those principles to our teams.
  3. I’m excited for our travels in 2026. We are going to Key West, northern Minnesota, Colorado, and maybe, just maybe Paris. The opportunity to see new places, talk with new people, travel with friends, and enjoy our lives together makes my heart happy. I cannot wait to see what kinds of experiences we’ll be able to have together.
  4. We had dinner tonight with my former grade partner, her husband, and our current ESL teacher. It was wonderful to catch up with my old partner, checking out her house (OMG, so awesome), meeting her Great Dane, Luna (again, OMG, what an awesome dog), and just finding out the business around us! So much stuff goes on outside our classrooms that we have zero clue about, and it’s good to know what the hell is going on!
  5. This break has been a break in name only. We are going back to school on Friday for PD. We got off for break last Monday. We’ve traveled all over Iowa, visiting friends and family, eating good food, but school has always been at the back of my mind. It’s hard to not think about school in the midst of all the non-school things. I’ve missed my wife’s aunt and uncle, having moved to Silver Springs a year ago. I miss the Christmas cards we used to get from people. I miss having my kids here in the house. I miss going to my parents’ house for Christmas Eve, then to church together. All of this has been on my mind as Christmas Break has plowed on. I don’t feel rested right now. I hope that as school starts back up, I feel those connections, and that peace knowing that I’m doing the right thing.

So, 5 things. All pretty random. All pretty blunt. My hope, 2026 brings all of us a renewed sense of right and wrong, a renewed sense of humanity, and a renewed sense of what we can truly do when we are not afraid to fail.