All that has happened

 I know I should be going into the new year with a forward gaze, but I am amazed at what has happened in the world (and in my life!) the past few months. Let me share with you. 

I began this blog and podcast with the intention of combining many different interests into one intersecting conversation. I am a Christian and I view my life through that lens. That is to say, I strive that everything I do would be done to give glory to God in light of His great love towards me and the world, chiefly shown through the death burial and resurrection of His Son Jesus Christ our Lord. (That was a long sentence.) Under that umbrella, I am a Black man whose career is education. I believe that educating young people has a way of changing the course of their future. I have chosen to adopt Montessori pedagogy as the means through which I educate children. While I've been in education for 10 years, I've been on this specific journey of Montessori philosophy for the last 4 years. I've gone from working in a public elementary school as a City Year corps member to a co-head teacher at a private Montessori school. It's been quite a ride. But in all of it, the desire to glorify God through my vocation, in the skin I'm in, has not changed.

The year 2020 was full of a lot of changes. I ended my school year in NYC at a private Montessori school on the Upper Westside (mad bougie, but I digress). By the time the school year ended, we were completely remote, teaching 3-5 year olds online with daily Zoom sessions, recorded storytimes and lots of other craziness. It was a creative time, but a stressful one. At the end of the school year, I didn't know if I had a job. Some of the locations of the school would close down due to the Coronavirus. Not as many teachers would be needed. So I took that as an opportunity to cast my net wide. I already had a plan on leaving the city and pitching my tent elsewhere. Ten years in the Big Apple was enough for me. I wanted to leave before I loathed the place. Through a series of events, I found myself with a wonderful offer from a Montessori school in Massachusetts, where I now live. I celebrated my 33rd birthday unpacking boxes and getting to know my new surroundings.  The tallest structures around me are no longer skyscrapers, but trees. God reminded me of something concerning myself: I am more emotionally and mentally healthy in spaces where trees outnumber the buildings. Even in the city, I always sought out parks and botanical gardens. For this and many other reasons, I'm enjoying my life far more than I have in recent years. I'm quite thankful.More stories regarding this transition will come as I continue posting. 

But perhaps I was wrong. Looking back helps you look forward, so long as you are moving forward. That's why I've always enjoyed the symbol and story of the Sankofa. The bird who looks backward as they move forward. That's what I want to be. And in so doing, I want to have an increasingly thankful heart as it is God who continues to direct my steps.