This blog is in honor of all moms for Mother’s Day!

Being a mom is the hardest yet most rewarding “job” I’ve ever had.  The best moms are nurturing, loving, kind, passionate about their children.  They have a calling, a true vocation to be moms.  The role of mom is not all “sunshine and roses.”  There are days our kids get into trouble, or they never want to speak to us again, or we annoy them, we didn’t respond to their text fast enough.  We’re rarely wanted, usually needed and than an annoyance when the need is met.  There are days we have to be the parent instead of the friend we would rather be.  If we do our jobs right, we end up raising well adjusted happy young adults ready to go out into the world able to navigate all the peaks and valleys life will give them.   My mother had an impact on my life, and there was one thing she kept telling me repeatedly that I refused to accept. This is her story about that one thing…

My mother passed away fourteen years ago.  We were very close.  She was my confidante, my advisor, my very close friend.  I could talk to her about anything.  I could “pick her brain” and she would have these tiny pearls of wisdom that to this day I truly miss.  She could make sense out of nonsense.  When my mom passed, it felt as if I had lost a very dear close friend.   She was a very creative person, she liked to write poetry, for a brief time she taught PE at my grade school and was the girl’s track coach at the school.  She did all this while raising eight children.  Our grandpa, her father lived with us for some time when we were young.  She took care of our family, her father and our dad.  She had her hands full!  In the summers we went to the beach, we went to museums, or to visit friends.  Our mom made sure we had adventures!

One day my mom and I were talking and she said, “You are going to be a teacher.”  At the time, I was a young woman, not at all interested in education or teaching.  I had not gone to school for education.  My response like most 20 something year olds, “I am not going to be a teacher!”  I knew better than my mom.  So this banter began between us where she would tell me I was going to be a teacher and I would flat out deny any interest and tell her  that was never going to happen or so I thought.

Later on, when my eldest daughter was in kindergarten, I helped out in her classroom.  I liked it so much I ended up becoming a regular volunteer.  I had the rare pleasure of working with a wonderful teacher.  Her enthusiasm ignited maybe a little spark in me.  I was still in denial.

A few years later, when my youngest daughter started 1st grade, since I had enjoyed helping in their classrooms, I got a job as a teaching assistant.  I initially took the job primarily to have similar hours to my daughter’s school schedule...that was fifteen + years ago!  My daughters have since grown up with lives of their own.

Today, I am an LRC teaching assistant.  Ironically, my daughter’s kindergarten teacher moved to different teaching positions over the years.  Her last move, brought her to the same building I work in!  Fun Fact…This teacher and the current teacher I assist are both “2015 Those Who Excel” nominees for the state of Illinois.  These educators are the “creme de la creme!”  Two amazing educators who I have had the good fortune to work with, who crossed my path and ignited my passion for education.  I feel I’ve come full circle!

I assist the Library Media Specialist who I am honored to work with.  I was blest to get paired with an incredibly talented educator passionate about her vocation.  I assist with the operation of the library, two book fairs per school year, the library classes, all book fines & repairs.  I have the privilege of helping students with technology and the glitches that ultimately occur, learning about the library, how to research or where to find a book…

I am finally accepting, no longer in denial that I am an educator, mom knew!

Happy Mother’s Day!:)