Why I don't teach math

-

Hey, Amanda, he said. Are you counting down the days yet? Only two and a half weeks to go! 

No, no, said I. It's three and a half weeks, and there's still plenty on my to-do list to knock off before I leave. 

Hmmm, he said. Look at the calendar. 

And I did. And he was right. 

Just like that, the time has disappeared out from under me and I find myself today with just 13 working days (17 calendar days) before leaving for retirement. How did that happen? Is this always how it goes? 

I figure I've been working or studying in some combination since I was 5. By my calculation (accurate?), that's 55 years of a certain rhythm and pattern to my years and months. Suddenly that is going to change. 

I feel a bit like I've been on a fast-paced moving-sidewalk (like the ones in large airports) and I'm approaching the end of the ride, readying myself for stepping OFF...onto stationary ground. And just like that, the rhythm will change. 

I feel I am ready for that change. Prepared even, with plans already secured for interesting workshops to teach in the fall. It's just that I thought I had more time before this ride ends and that one begins. 

Oh well. Bring it on, as they say. If I need to ditch my to-do list only fifty percent done, maybe no one will notice. (After all, I am not known for my math skills...)

-----

Land acknowledgement: I respectfully recognize that I live on the original lands of the Anishiinaabe, Cree, Oji-Cree, Dakota and Dene peoples, and on the homeland of the Métis Nation. 

Photo by Hanson Lu on Unsplash

Comments

  1. PamelakatJune 14, 2021 at 6:09 AM

    We always think we have more time.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Amanda Le RougetelJune 14, 2021 at 7:33 AM

      Isn't that the truth, Pamela! Time slips by regardless of all other things...

      Delete
  2. AnnJune 14, 2021 at 6:20 AM

    Life changes are unsettling, but I promise you will survive. xo

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Amanda Le RougetelJune 14, 2021 at 7:34 AM

      i am looking forward to moving well beyond surviving, Ann, to thriving in this next chapter. Here's hoping!

      Delete
  3. danielle-momoJune 14, 2021 at 7:13 AM

    Even when retired, time has a way of disappearing.
    Remember ? You do your best for the last 13 days. After, it is out of your hands.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Amanda Le RougetelJune 14, 2021 at 7:35 AM

      Danielle - thank you for that reminder! Yes, doing my best and then moving on...

      Delete

Post a Comment

Comments are moderated. Please be respectful.

Popular posts from this blog

Life story: I am from...where? who? what?

-
Image
The Le Rougetel family circa 1965: Anne, Charles, Amanda, Katy, Colin I recently attended the celebration of life for a friend’s father who had died at 95. The service was bright with song and lively with memories, and it got me thinking about how we wrap up a life with stories. Stories of fun and adventure, success and achievement, of impact and wisdom. Or maybe stories of hardship and pain, of loss and lack, of hard luck and sorrow. Or, likely, a mix of all that. Regardless, at the end, we celebrate a life in story. It got me thinking about how my story might be told when my end comes. That’s a long way off, I hope, but in the meantime, I pulled out an activity that Deborah and I have used in one of our writing workshops . It’s a variation on the “I am from…” prompt developed by George Ella Lyon , and it’s surprisingly thought provoking. It asks you to dig ever deeper about where you are from — while the cheap answer is Toronto (city where I was born), the richer, more valuable answe
Read more

Looking elsewhere for success: It’s not always found in first place

-
Image
I do not own a magazine. I am not an editor to whom writers submit their work, hoping I will publish it. I am the writer who submits her work hoping it will make the cut with the editor to whom I have submitted it; recently, I have done this without success. But, hang on, what is success for a writer? What is success for any of us? Last week, my writer friend Finnian Burnett made it onto the long list for the 2023 CBC Nonfiction prize . A friend’s success is happily celebrated, so a big HOORAY for Finn ! Reflecting on the meaning of this accomplishment, Finn spoke of feeling proud for having written a piece and thinking it was good enough to submit and then actually submitting it. That is an achievement of which to be justifiably proud, said Finn, because so many writers don’t ever make it to the end of the finish + polish + submit stage. They give up somewhere along the line or disappear down a tangent or never even get started. Finn’s perspective gave me pause and has me reconsideri
Read more

Pulling up stakes and starting anew: Moving pictures

-
Image
My friend Kevin is moving way up north; he and his wife are driving across four provinces to reach their new life and I am with them — in my mind. Their journey is bringing memories flooding back of my own cross-province trip almost four decades ago when I moved from Alberta to Nova Scotia. In a Toyota Tercel. Packed full of possessions that did not include a bed. Or a table. Or a chair. Those were the days.  My former partner (FP) and I were young, open to adventure and keen, so keen, to begin this new chapter in our lives, precipitated by her first post-PhD job offer. 1986: Halifax is where beautiful Bountiful came into my life. We arrived in Halifax after a week of driving and, after just two days of serious home hunting, found a lovely second-floor flat overlooking Bedford Basin. We slept on the floor, used a Pepsi crate as our ‘dining’ table, and, after a little while, gratefully borrowed a sofa and armchair from our friendly landlords who took pity on us and who, quickly and eas
Read more