Earning a Master's Degree

I recently earned my masters degree in school counseling and I am still working on my finishing my Pupil Personnel Service (PPS) credential.  I definitely feel I have accomplished something positive that will undoubtedly propel me forward.  It's like anything though, you get what you put in.  I learned a lot while going through the various courses but I could have learned more.  The more you pour in, the more you take out.  "You don't truly know someone unless you know what they want."  I heard that line in a movie I just watched.  It stuck with me because I agree.  It reminds me of something that was said in the show Game of Thrones recently, if nobody knows what you truly want then they do not know your weakness's.  Not that this applies to my life but in Hollywood thrillers and great HBO shows it seems like sage advice.  In real life, in modern times I think the saying "Once you have that piece of paper on the wall, there's no taking it away and that piece of paper can open doors for you."  It really is just a piece of paper, and while I'll be the first to admit I don't know everything there is to know about being a counselor,  I do find it very interesting and something I don't mind doing everyday.  I have always said that being a good listener is a rare talent, or finding a good listener is a rare find.  People who actually stop thinking about what they want to say next in the conversation and actually listen to the other person.  I think that I am a good listener and I believe that is a necessary trait for becoming a good counselor.

January 3rd, 2015 Happy Birthday Mom.

Today would be my mom's 61st birthday.  She passed away in 2005 and I can't believe it's almost been 10 years.  My mother's passing also marks the first year I began teaching.  So whenever someone asks me how long I've been a teacher I equate it to how long my mom has been gone.  Today was like any other and I don't feel sad or mad in anyway.  Grief is a process and it's different for everyone.  I didn't mark today as being special or especially hard as I no longer look at my mom's being gone as a bad thing.  It's like anything in life, you have to make the best of it.  If you choose to look at life's events in a negative light, well then it will be negative.  If you choose to look at life's events in a positive light, then it will be positive.  I spent the day in Modesto buying my son a new Build a Bear stuffed dog.  I owe a great deal of my success to my Mom.  She enjoyed these types of outings, she would have loved to come to Modesto to help Brody pick out a new Build-a-Bear.  In a way that makes me sad for a second but it also makes me happy that she passed on her love for children and her propensity to love unconditionally.  So at the end of the day I smile, I miss her everyday, not just on her birthday but anytime I feel sad or lonely I think of all the love she poured into me and how it's overflowing for my loved ones and for my family and friends.  I owe her for giving me a big heart.  I owe her for teaching me how important it is to love people as much as you can.  I am grateful for the 27 years I got to spend with her and I will continue to spread her legacy on to everyone I come into contact with.  She would have loved that.