Monday, November 26, 2012

The Breath of Life

I feel I have been absent as of late, not just from Sperk*, but from something indefinable.  However, I won’t bore you with examination of the vague and give only the concrete.  Certainly there has been movement.  After months of a plague of depression, there has been forward progression even amid costly inconveniences:  Scruffy had his tail amputated after nearly chewing it off, the main drain to the house was clogged and filling the basement with feces, and my front tooth composite finally crumbled after many months of gingerly eating and cementing it with toothpaste during the night.  These were all financial setbacks, indeed, and at the most inopportune time of the year, the holidays.

The girls are well.  My tween who is emerging into a teen is quite gorgeous, like a sprouting tree in the spring, in her entirety, not just in her outward beauty.  My teen of 14 years is a constant mystery and deliverer of stress, but I’m learning to take it in stride with less seriousness and worry.  And last week, I finally put my year old degree to use and gained employment.  I’ll be caring for little ones full time.  It is funny that caring for small humans, during the most significant juncture of human development, pays the least in the field of education.  It is my opinion that early educators should be paid on the scale of professors.  And we should be required to have the same amount of education as college level instructors.  However, if that were the case, I wouldn't have my current employment, right?

The clock says 6:31 am, so I must wake the girls.  Here’s to coffee, cool autumn mornings, and the breath of life that keeps us going.


photo credit: Muffet via photopin cc

11 comments:

  1. Congratulations Kim! That is awesome about your job!!! I completely agree, I also feel day care workers, preschool and all teachers (especially dealing with smaller children) should be paid a much higher wage. It's a tough and important job and a lot of responsibility. We need to value teachers and care takers of our children a lot more in out society. But again - congrats! I'm so happy for you and hope you love it :)

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    1. Thanks, Anna. You are always here and I love you for that (for other reasons, too, of course...especially for forgiving me for late replies to emails). You inspired me to go for it...by you getting a job. Here's to you! xo

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  2. Congrats! You'll have to tell me where you're working!

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  3. Good for you! Great news with the job.
    I hope it will bring you some balance and perspective in dealing with your teens (I know I need some of it some days ;)).
    And you are absolutely right about the pay - you should be getting paid on a professor's pay-scale, ECE is such an important field!
    Too bad that we don't get paid on a passion-for-the-job-scale, I'm sure you would be making top-dollar then :)

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    1. Gratitude for your words, my friend. My hope is that someday my passion will turn into advocacy for ECE reform. Fingers crossed. :)

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  4. happy for you and the job! As a mother of a 4 and 6 year old who just had off four days with them for the holidays... i believe everyone who invests in children's lives are either divine, or perhaps a little batty...maybe even both rolled up into one glorious person that i am so.thankful. for. you will do fantastic with this, i have no doubt.

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    1. Wonderful insight...and as usual, super skilled in the delivery. Thanks, Tara. xo

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  5. Wooo hoo for you! As a fellow ECE grad I completely agree with you! What age will you be working with? I spent most of mt time n 3-5 year old at-risk classrooms. Our jobs are soo important and yet so poorly paid and often disrespected.

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  6. I'm so torn... I don't know whether to do a happy dance for your employment in a field you love or to pout for all the icky shit (literally) you've been through recently. So, I'll do a pouty-but-happy dance. How bout them apples. Hugs to you!

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  7. I wish you well, Kimberly. With the Little Dude now in preschool, I have great respect for teachers who can handle large numbers of other peoples' kids. Your progress is inspiring. Best wishes. -J

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