Friday, September 2, 2011

One Year

One Year
My year in Korea is nearing the end.  It’s only natural to look back and reflect on such an experience.  In more ways than one this has been a life changing experience.  I’m not using that phrase lightly, I have changed.  The core of who I knew I was is breathing new life on its own reality.  Like a dream that comes to existence, I’m no longer dreaming of who I want to become, I am.
I’ve become more confident and this confidence has also made me more humble.  It’s okay to not know all the answers.  It’s okay to make mistakes.  The same words of advice I tell my students are finally finding my own ears.  In my 32 years I am finally understanding lessons I was taught when I was younger.  I know I’m a work in progress and I hope it’s a life of progression.  I’ve found an extremely loving and patient woman that has come to mean so much to me.  Kate was and is that person I was able to be myself with.  We talked a lot about everything under the sun.  She has helped me become a better person.
Professionally I’m continually evolving.  I’m learning new methods of teaching and classroom management while putting those ideas and theories to the test.  I’m learning more about the way young students learn.  I’m no longer just reading about Piaget’s cognitive development or Vygotsky’s zone of proximal development, I’m actively engaged in it firsthand.  It’s an amazing feeling to be a part in a child’s growth and development.  I can’t begin to fathom the joy a parent must feel when their child takes their first steps and speaks their first words.  I think to myself, even on the tough days, “I’m in the right profession.”