January | Savage Haiku

Last February, my superintendent called me into one of my principal’s offices to tell me they were eliminating my (gifted and talented/enrichment teacher in three towns ) position and that I would not have a job in that district after June 30th. At the time I felt relief, shock, devastation, fear and grief and I still had to work the rest of the school year.

So I took a lot of sick days and with the help of Twitter, this blog, yoga, my dog, family and a few close friends I managed to make it through the school year – feeling mortified and so uncomfortable as everyone expressed how unfair it was and their sorrow to see me leave.

I am now officially entering my seventh month of unemployment-

I have taken the rare opportunity to reflect and discovered a few things I wanted to share-

Time is a luxury that should NOT be taken for granted
I have spent so much less and appreciated what I have so much more
There will never be enough money
It makes my son feel safe knowing that I am at home in the town we live in while he is at school every day instead of working far away.
I really like my house, cat, dog, fish, yard, stuff
Idle hands are the devil’s playthings
Unemployment is great and horrible at the same time
Many people are out and about during the day doing God knows what – I had no idea! maybe lunch?
I have been in an elementary school classroom for a long time
There are many things in the world I am totally unqualified for and they seem to hire all the time.
Necessity is the mother of invention.
A bad job is a bad job and no matter how hard you try it will infect most areas of your life.
The job I thought I would be at a loss for I am relieved to have lost.
I have developed a system of reciprocity with my local beach I pick up trash, it gives me sea glass.
People need to stop and examine the trajectory of their lives every so often- even if they have to be forced into it by unemployment.
I finally feel the old spark of me returning
I am happier than I have been in many years.