A Crazy June

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My last day of school this year was June 4^th. By early morning on June 6^th, my family was on the road. For the next eleven days we drove 2,600 miles and spent 42 hours together in the car. We visited Nokomis, Florida; Disney World; and Daufuskie Island. On the 16^th of June we drove fifteen hours straight to be able to get home in one day. The 17^th found my sons and I running errands, restocking the house with food, and me packing. And on the 18^th, I headed out again.

It might be insanity to plan the June I did, but there are times when the opportunities are too good to pass up. I didn’t originally plan an eleven day road trip for my family – just five days in Disney was the original idea. But seeing family for the weekend before and after? Too good to miss.

Final dinner at All Write 

Now I am wrapping up another week away. The All Write conference was in Warsaw, Indiana on the 19^th and 20^th. On the 21^st, I said goodbye to my friend Donalyn and headed west to La Porte, Indiana. The Choice Literacy retreat was scheduled to start there the next day. I’ve spent the last seven days at All Write and Choice Literacy learning about reading and writing. I’ve also spent it with friend—some old, some new—laughing and being rejunivated. Our retreat’s theme is renewal, and I’m feeling that right now.

 

Morning coffee run at Choice Literacy

In just a few hours I will jump in my car and head home, the first real time at home since June 5^th. Almost half of my summer is gone, but that is completely ok. I think sometimes we have to give up something we treasure to get even more in return. I am a homebody by nature. I love staying in pajamas, reading all day, hanging out with my family, and relaxing. These three weeks have been the opposite of the way I would normally spend my June, but have brought me more than I could ever imagine in return. One of my quotes in my classroom is We Do Hard Things. While this summer hasn’t been “hard” in the difficult sense, it was hard to give up a week with my family, it was hard to be gone from home. I also know I wouldn’t have missed it for the world. Thanks for the laughter, my friends. It has been wonderful.