There And Back Again…

(Mel of Singled Handed Knits was allowing some of her fans be guest writers for her blog. This is what I submitted to her.)

In Happy Chatter Thursday, Mel of Single Handed Knits gave this writing prompt inspired by The Hobbit and I thought I would like to give it a try.

“The prompt is : There  And Back Again….

You need not write about the book. What I love best about writing prompts is that they make the best springboard… catapulting you up and away from where you are and somewhere else! Walk closely on the path of Bilbo or wander so far away from it that it really is an Unexpected Journey that you take us on….”

I had a hard time deciding what aspect in my life that this applied to and I realized that instead of just picking one, I would share how it relates to three important parts of my life.

Hiking: When I was a child I loved to walk about outdoors. My parents were not athletic and not outdoorsy at all and did not encourage it at all. After I got married, my hubby and I joined a hiking club and we love hiking with this group. Many of the members are in their 80s and 90s and hiking faster and farther than I can. Our hiking has led us to many new and exciting places. We figure when we can’t go hiking anymore, we will have many memories to share and talk about.

Knitting: When I was a child, my mother tried to teach me knitting but I just couldn’t get the hang of it. I was intimidated by anything crafty because my mother and two sisters were able to do anything. My older sister was an artist and was fantastic at anything she tried to do. My middle sister could sew, crochet, knit or do crafty things just like my mom. I was the brainy one and therefore didn’t have an artistic or crafty bone in my body. My mother would knit my family sweaters every Christmas until the year she died. After I retired, I learned to knit and love it! I think about how proud my mother would be if she could see me now! Knitting now makes me feel closer to her especially when I am missing her.

Teaching: I loved everything about teaching ever since I was a little girl. I played school as soon as I could read and write. When my friends visited, I wanted to play the teacher. Even when I had an abusive teacher in 4th grade, I loved school. But that 4th grade year made me more determined that one day I would become a teacher that students wouldn’t fear. I would help all students who had trouble learning and never make them scared about learning. We didn’t have a lot of money and my parents really couldn’t afford to send me to college but I was again determined to do whatever was necessary to become a teacher. Some years I worked 3 jobs at the same time all summer to pay for the next year of college. It was tough at times but well worth it! I finally became a teacher and worked hard at being the best that I could be. My last year of teaching after 30 years I was chosen as Teacher of the Year and a top 10 finalist out of 5000 teachers in my district. Now I teach on the university level in order to train teachers to be the best that they could be. I hope to make a difference on this level.

So it has been a wonderful journey, there and back again.

Original photo by Pat Hensley