Who are you really?

What makes you tick?

What turns you on?

Who are you really?

I am a teacher.

I started out as a nurse. Not just any nurse,

but an intensive care nursery nurse in a Regional Level III unit.

The practice of nursing evolved into advance practice nursing.

I started out in an OB/GYN Women’s Health Care Program. It was NOT for me.

Writing birth control prescriptions was where it was at for those students –

I did not fit. Pediatrics became my passion. Kids of all ages: premies to pre-teens to

young adults, I had to learn it all. Birth to 21 – minor illness, developmental stages,

and a few serious diagnoses thrown in  just to keep me on my toes.

Lots of scripts for ear infections, strep throat, and scoliosis screens.

Vaccinating all. Every day. Immunize. Prevent, Guide. Encourage. Heathy Growth.

Practicing nursing, became teaching nursing and nurse practitioners. I was a nurse.

I am a mother.

Motherhood changes everything.  My first night as a mother, I did not sleep at all.

My emotions kept me awake, not my son. I was in awe – I was a mother! At last!

Work could not hold a candle to this little boy who never slept, who was curious, and

sponge-like, absorbing everything, everywhere.  I stayed home.

After a long while, too long, I became a mother again. This little boy was joy!

Again, I had awaited too long for his arrival. But, he was here! He was

healthy,  he was mine! Joy of joys – my second boy. A third chance to be a mother came

without much work.  This boy was surprise. For we wanted, but did not expect him. He

was meant to be.

I am a volunteer.

Three little boys can make one tired, batty, joyful, proud, and busy! Jewelry making in

the closet grants me some peace.  A chance taken, a new offering at the children’s

museum. Craft Time with Carol is born, along with a new role of volunteer. A role in my

life that has given me as much as I have offered others.

I am a gardener.

As my father and father in law, I love to plant and grow. To the Master Gardener

training program, I did go. Twelve weeks invested to change my life, as an idea

starts to germinate. A garden club to grow not only plants but students too – to love

our environment, just as I do. Fifteen years and thousands of  hours later, this

Master Gardener continues to “do” for others too.

I am a teacher.

A garden club forms for kids who care. Science. Plants, Digging Dirt,

Growing, Exploring, Learning, and Sharing. Together, 500 students and me,

learning about our earth. Thirteen years. It never got old.

I am a student.

I love to learn, to write, to grow and share that knowledge, too, with you.

A student of life I will always be, degree after degree after degree. To share what I learn

I need to teach, to learn, and teach again. I see it as a circular cycle that will never end.

I am a teacher.