AuburnChick's Adventures

It’s been a minute . . . or a fortnight . . . since I’ve written but holy cow, the recovery from what was supposed to be an easy surgery has been anything but!  I’m going to try to catch up with a separate post about that tomorrow.  For today, I’m going to answer Joyce’s all-illuminating Hodgepodge questions.  Thanks for visiting, and I’ll do my best to get around to you soon!

1.  What keeps you blogging?

What keeps me blogging is the need to unload things that build up in my heart.  Even though my blogging has been a little inconsistent the last year and a half, words have been busting to get out.

I think I also write with the hope that someone who is reading about my story will connect to it as I so often do when I read others’ stories.

I love the blogging community and miss it when I don’t have time to keep up with it.  We are our own little family drawn together by the intimate nature of our writing, because writing is just that – very personal, raw, and illuminating.

2. Some people like to travel in the winter months. Do you enjoy the beach in winter? According to Southern Living the best U.S. beach towns to visit this winter are –

St Simons Island (Georgia), Hilton Head (South Carolina), Bald Head Island (North Carolina), Seaside (Florida), Bay St. Louis (Mississippi), Cape San Blas (Florida), South Padre Island (Texas), Folly Beach (South Carolina), Chincoteague (Virginia), Duck Key (Florida), Nags Head (North Carolina), and Fairhope (Alabama)

Have you been to any of the towns listed (in any season)? Which on the list appeals to you most this winter?

I live in a beach town, but I don’t go during winter.  It’s about fifteen minutes away from my house, and I don’t feel like dealing with the traffic.  I will brave it to go to the movie theater because it’s a nice one.  I’ve been to Seaside, but only very briefly.  It is very pretty!  I’d love to spend more time exploring – when it’s warm (and when Spring Break visitors aren’t there).  I’ve also been to Fairhope, but I didn’t see the beach.  It was quite a number of years ago, and I don’t really remember much about it.

If I had to choose one to visit, I’d go with Hilton Head.  I like South Carolina; the Mr. hails from Irmo.  I think it would be fun to get out of Florida, where I’ve lived for almost thirty years, and do a bit of sightseeing in another state.

3.  What’s a song you’re embarrassed to know all the lyrics to? Are you really embarrassed or do just think you should be?

“Hips Don’t Lie,” by Shakira, gets people looking at me when I start singing along.  This goes back to when my kids were in high school and I liked to car dance to it whenever it came on which, coincidentally enough, always seemed to happen when their friends were riding with us.

Yes, I was that mom, and I will not apologize for it or pay for any counseling that my kids may need because of it.

Bahahaha.

4.  When you were a kid what’s something you thought would be fantastic as an adult, but now that you’re an adult you realize it’s not all that fantastic?

I’m drawing a blank here.  When I was a kid, all I wanted was to be free from being under my mom’s thumb.  I have that, and I think it’s wonderful.  There are tasks that aren’t that great, but I think I had a realistic view of that part of life when I was younger because I was responsible for many things early on.

5.  Share a quote you hope will inspire you in 2018.

I’ve been through so much since I broke my ankle in November 2016.  I immediately grabbed hold of the following saying:

With a second surgery now behind me, and my recovery slowly in progress, I’m repeating this mantra.

I have always been a very determined person; what others perceive as setbacks, I take on as challenges.

I am stubborn.  This is where that trait helps me.

I refuse to let anything hold me down for long.

With the Lord’s help, I will get strong again – I will run again.

6.  My Random Thought

Today marks the first day of our second semester.

One half of the school year is done.

I’m having a good year and am enjoying my prep.  Watching students achieve their goals and take steps that put them closer to graduation is very gratifying.

Even while I struggled with making new seating charts yesterday, I found myself humbled to be part of their journey.

Each name that didn’t go on the chart represented another young person who, if every “i” is dotted and “t” is crossed, will walk the stage either this May or next May.

Every kiddo who got a spot on the chart represents unleashed potential waiting for the perfect time to showcase itself.

I am very hopeful for the spring and the success that’s in store for my students.

Filed under: This-n-That | Tagged: teaching |