Thoughts on Being a Mother, Aunt and Educator

In a matter of hours, I’ll be back in my work space…planning, organizing, listening and teaching. For the past two weeks though, I didn’t think of any of those things. Instead, I used my break to play games, sing loudly, dance terribly, smile until my face hurt and have conversations with the children in my life. I was on a break…a real one. It wasn’t that I decided to just “be on break”. Instead, I decided to be in the moment…a goal that I plan to make real every chance that I get regardless of where I am.

“Being in the moment” is my greatest weakness but my greatest strength comes from being a mother and aunt to the kids in our family. We operate as a village which means that technically “mother and aunt” are one in the same.

It is through the time spent in my primary “family” role that inspires my educator life.

There’s a joke amongst those of us in tech that our own personal kids become our “guinea pigs” for tool testing. (So so bad!!!!) That is not the case in my family. I feel like I learn more from them than they could ever learn from me and none of those lessons have anything to do with tech.

It felt good to not have a lengthy twitter chat, voxer chat or any of the sorts. (I did chime in to a few but immediately left as I felt myself leaving the moment that mattered…the moments at home)

My son is 16 and maybe he’ll look back on the night that I wasn’t too pre-occupied in my technology to chase him down the road (long story)…saving him from a night of regrets…and another the next night. One of his friends was stabbed at a party where adults, who should have been examples, were instead supplying weapons & encouraging violence. As the news began to hit our phones, we had discussions…lots of them!

I worry about my son. Thankfully, he wasn’t there but perhaps if he is invited to another outing, he’ll remember why it’s important to “choose your right place and time”. Maybe. He is human & engaging in his vulnerable humanity reminded me of that.

My nephews are all different ages but maybe they’ll cherish that all of our fun didn’t occur with our faces in devices but also through talking, singing, building and inventing.

And Star Wars…lots of Star Wars

Days ago, John Spencer posted the vine video below.

I immediately pushed back on this idea about needing to recharge and I have to say that as someone who has been known to live and breathe education (like many of us)…John was right.

I don’t think that I see family time as a “recharge”. To me, it’s the battery that keeps me going and makes me whole.

Everyone else can look to the work that we do and feel that it encompasses who we are.

I hope that people, specifically the array of younger humans in our family, always hold dear that the Davis/Carroll kids came first and that it didn’t matter what was or wasn’t accomplished in my career…they mattered more.

A smile and calming moment courtesy of a former mid-tantrum 2 year old…who developed an obsession with Fallon’s Star Wars sing along. It was the only thing that dried his tears.