A Time of Change Pt. 1

Well, life seems to come at you so fast. If anyone where to ask me how things are in my life, even a week ago, I would be hard pressed to find anything that was not great. I have the typical complaints that everyone has, but they really aren't much in the grand scheme of things. I have a wonderful wife, three amazing children, a great job with smart and thoughtful colleagues, and I'm going to NZ for three months. What could be better? Nothing, of course.

One week ago my dad called me to say that he has been coughling up blood for three weeks and that he is pretty sure he has lung cancer. Huh?! The breaks of my life came on, it started to veer off the road, and life seemed suddenly different. None of the other things have changed of course, but it was still a shock. So much so that I am still kind of putting it together.

You see, my dad is really a great man. I have never known anyone who didn't like and respect him. He is super smart, very independent, and, as a well read person, has a strong sense of right and wrong. Even after all of the life he has lived he still gets pissed off by the indignity that people show to each other. He hasn't become cynical (much, anyway) and he certainly hasn't become callused. I hope I carry much of that with me every day. As my sister-in-law wrote in an email, quoting Jim Croce, "you don't tug on Superman's cape" because my dad feels like a superman. I know, the intellectual part of me says that we all die, and that statistically he doesn't have a lot of time left, but still, that was all so intangible. Cancer is tangible. At his age it is probably a death sentence. It sucks that it is happening to him, to me, to us! Of course, there hasn't been an actual diagnosis (that comes next week), so I have a hope that it is not as bad, or profound, or real as it seems. Still, I'm sad.

My first thought was that I shouldn't go to NZ. What would I do if he died when I was there. I'll be there until June. It's unlikely, but you never know. In his dad way he said the thing that I wanted and needed to hear (actually he wrote it). To paraphrase, he said the most important thing to him was his family and their chance to pursue their dreams. If he were to die early we could do a memorial service anytime, it isn't time sensitive.

So, to conclude this post, for now, life hasn't changed too much. In some ways it feels better and more real. I feel luckier than ever to have a family like I have ( I still get tired, however), to be in the place I am in (literally and metaphorically), and to be able to do the things that are important to me. Thanks for reading. There is more to follow

We got our Visas!

Carolyn's first Blog here.

As of yesterday, January 16, 2008, it's about as official as it's going to get save for when we actually get on the plane on February 11th. After two rounds of trying and many hours trying to sort out what was needed and what kinds of visas we needed, we got it right. I must say that the NZ Embassy in Washington, though not particularly personable, is efficient. It took only one week from send to receive. Funny thing how the folks at the Embassy here in the US don't even come close to representing what I think the actual people in NZ are like. Every person with whom I've spoken who is actually IN NZ is so wonderfully friendly and warm. The folks in Washington act like they can't wait to get you off the phone. Do you suppose it's possible that living in the US has soured these people? I have to not think about that because the answer might depress me too much.

I have a dear friend, whom I've known since I did a semester abroad in Spain in 1985 who is leaving today with her husband and three children to embark on a round the world adventure for seven months. Sadly, they won't be coming to NZ, but I feel happy knowing that someone from my very first travel adventure is continuing the quest in parallel with me. Some may say it's crazy to take your children out of their home environment during the school year---my guess is that it will be an experience that will shape their lives. We'll see. Stay tuned....

Why Do We Do a Sabbatical?

I had an interesting conversation with a good friend about the "criticisms" I have gotten about the trip to NZ. The main concern I have heard is that I could go anywhere I wanted to go to study experiential education (read: you could do it here). My friend Paul, who I think is wise in many ways, thought it best to think about the trip, the sabbatical, as an enrichment beyond the educational piece. It is also an enrichment of your life. Just living in a culture that is different enough to be challenging will help me to be a better teacher, and person, especially as I get an opportunity to visit different schools. As I have been telling others about my sense of the sabbatical program at Peddie, one of its designed purposes is to give a teacher the chance to be more purposefully introspective about who they are and what they do as teachers. Additionally, NZCER will be tremendously helpful in focusing the direction of my research, maybe more than any other group with which I could spend time. It is really a matter of perspective, hence the picture.