By Connie Blunden
What does a road trip to Northeastern Ohio have in common with the school year?
Every summer, I drive from Connecticut to Ohio to visit my parents, see childhood friends, and pick up my favorite sandwich from a restaurant in Cleveland Heights. For years I headed south on I-95, crossed the George Washington Bridge and merged onto I-80 West. Without fail I would hit stop-and-go traffic around exit 4 on I-95. I grew accustom to this over the years, although it was a stressful start to an eight hour trip. I knew there was another option, but on the surface it didn’t seem substantially different from what I was doing. I thought I was taking the most direct route to my destination, ignoring the fact that the traffic and congestion made the direct route inefficient as well. After finally switching to the alternative the first hour of my drive improved dramatically, making the rest of the trip more enjoyable and putting much less strain on my car.
Beginnings are important. I love working in a school because every year we have a chance to begin again and take advantage of what we learned during the previous year.
In early July, I find a quiet place to sit and reflect. This ritual has significance to my growth as an educator. I intentionally consider three questions: Where was I a year ago? Where am I now? Where do I want to go from here? In the same way I plot my journey to Cleveland, this practice helps me determine where I will devote my energy in the coming months. After considering these important questions, I commit to a plan and write it down. This last step is crucial. In the same way that an architect draws up a blueprint, my written document provides a visual representation of my ideas and thoughts.
Life gets busy. When I start to feel pulled in different directions or when I feel competing demands on my time, I can refer back to my blueprint, which was created during a calm moment, and reminds me of what I set out to accomplish. This acts as an anchor or a point of reference. Just as we use tall buildings in major cities to orient ourselves, this piece of paper brings me clarity.
As parents and educators, we want to help our children and students begin well and to sustain that excitement and motivation throughout the year. Around hour six in my car, I usually feel like I need to stretch, refuel, and maybe change from a podcast to a playlist. Let’s remember that rest areas are designed to keep us going and that those pauses are essential when we are feeling exhausted. Taking time to stop may seem counterintuitive. I am already committed to eight hours, why would I delay my arrival even more? Well, if that time translates to increased energy and greater focus or attention it is both safer and wiser to stop.
Eventually we will arrive. What does it mean to reach a destination? For me, every destination holds its own surprises and its own lessons. Your intention was to reach your destination, but are you open to what that destination holds in store for you? You say to yourself, “I want to end up here because this is the place where I want to go,” but when you get there your satisfaction may be derived from the unexpected. What may be most rewarding is not necessarily what you envisioned at the beginning. This is what gives the experience depth and what informs future plans. As a result, the arrival is actually an invitation to begin again.
Connie Blunden is the Director of the Center for Public Purpose and an upper school history teacher at Greenwich Academy. Her curricular and programmatic work focuses on social justice, participatory citizenship and service leadership.
