Balance and Develop

 For several years, I have chosen a word to focus on rather than coming up with a New Year's resolution. Last year, my word was balance. I worked on finding a better balance between professional, hobby, and home life and learning to say no. I wasn't always the best at it. Work was especially difficult. To put it into perspective, now that I am leaving and moving on to another county, they are looking for three people to run the club I ran alone. Despite my requests for help, I was never given a reliable person to assist me, but apparently, it takes at least three people to fill my shoes. While that is kind of flattering, it does speak to the lack of balance that I had. 

This year, learning a new position in a new school, I have chosen the word "develop." The word has several aspects, but it seemed especially fitting because I will be the teacher responsible for the Yearbook and the Media Center. The media coordinator before me took most of the photos for the book, used Adobe Photoshop, which I will need to learn, and ran the social media program for the school. I hope to switch the platforms to ones that students will more readily use and make the process easier with a new program. There is a lot of updating to do.

I am also learning new things about the program. I may need to fight to keep my budget, which sometimes gets shuffled to other departments that have other funding sources. I may need to fight for my time and remind people that there is more to running a media center than they may realize. I have a program to build and must be prepared to justify and stand up for it. All of which I can do.

It is fascinating how some opinions on these types of questions come about. How do the administration, students, and teachers view the media center? Should I request a meeting to discuss a shared vision? This is a chance to really develop (see what I did there?) a program that I can be proud of and build a legacy that can support literacy in the county. I need to get people on my side but be firm as well. I can't wait to see if I am up to the task!

Speaking of balance and development, I have collected all my plants and replanted a terrarium one of my former students gave me. I have to keep the amount of water balanced, and I have added some of the moss from my front yard along with a few crystals to make it into a scene. If nothing else, I enjoy it. I know some of the plants will be left to me in the library, but I want to bring my life to the space too. I have looked up how to keep fungus gnats at bay and am working on how much light I can get into the space. I want the space to be my own and comfortable for the kids who visit it. I need to balance the light, and I need to balance the time it will take to accomplish what I want for the area. I have time, though, right? 

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