I spoke at last week’s school board meeting for the first time in my career.
For the last six months teachers have been working without a contract. This stage of negotiations feels familiar to the early years of my teaching career, in this same district. At the time I had little contextual understanding of what it meant to “work without a contract”. I was in survival mode, trying to manage a classroom of 10th graders for the first time, sharing at IEP meetings, and also remembering to take attendance on time— it was a lot! At the time I was also navigating what it meant for me to be in a white-collar profession. My parents were both machine operators at large manufacturing plants my entire life. My mental health was low as an early-career teacher. I persisted and I am happy to say that while the work is still difficult and tiring, I find my work very satisfying and I have a plethora of tools to support my mental health.
Last month I re-started talk therapy. I has been a great refresher of cognitive behavioral techniques that I first learned nearly ten years ago after my first 51-50. Recently, I also started going to acupuncture to address some menstrual health concerns and while it’s still a bit early to determine it’s overall effectiveness, so far I’ve appreciated the weekly time to ground myself in meditation while having multiple needles stuck on me. Sometime last year, I reconnected with a retired colleague who I learned had been in recovery for many years and recently certified as a breathe-work coach. Long story short, we just had our third breathe-work session and it has been nothing short of transformative for me. I do daily cold plunges (either in the shower or at the community pool down the block), regular movement based playtime with disc golf or bouldering, and regular mental playtime with video games like Legend of Zelda or Animal Crossing or the daily NYT crossword puzzle. I study the Bible, keeping a small travel one on me always, and a NKJV with its own station at home. My other daily habits (with accountability) include personal hygiene, rebounding, skincare, speaking life into my body, praying over my boyfriend, drinking at least 1 L of water, and purging clothes or household items that don’t align with my best life. Earlier this year I hired a wellness coach to help me heal my relationship with exercise and food. I sponsor a fellow Alanon member and we are currently working Step 12 after 2+ years. I made a personal commitment to carry the message of recovery and apply the principles of the program in all areas in my life after having (many) a spiritual experience that healed me from self-harm 6 years ago.
Earlier this year I was baptized in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. I confessed my belief in the Lord, repented of my sinful ways and made a promise to follow Christ. Through revelation I asked my uncle, brother of my mother, who lives in a rural town in Mexico to baptize me, even though we’ve had a distant relationship for my entire life. When I visited my mom’s side of the family serendipitously in January I received the message of Christ as our messiah after actively participating in a “bible study” with Jehovah’s Witnesses for about a year. I stopped studying with JWs and miraculously, the Holy Spirit led me to a coffee shop where I met a barista who offered to pray for me (after a 60 second interaction) and when I went to go look for her again she mentioned casually that she offers bible studies. We met a few times to read the Gospel of John and it was what I needed to see the light.
2025 has been a very blessed year. Lots of growth, transformation, revelations. This closeness that I achieved with God is the direct result of many trials that I persisted through this year. I can’t count the number of times I fell to my knees in desperation… to pray. To admit that I felt powerless, that I believed I needed to be restored and the only one with the might to do so was my Heavenly Father. My favoritas verse lately has been 2 Corinthians 12: 8-10 where the apostle Paul writes, “Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But he said to me “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore, I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’ power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.”
I trust completely that 2025 was meant to prepare me for the joys and difficulties that I will meet in 2026. Before I do so, I want to thank 2025 for teaching me the truth of myself so that I am armored that much more against the lies of the enemy that I have often repeated myself. Here are the truths I am thankful to have learned this year:
I am disciplined
I am strong
I am capable
I am warm
I am fun
I am intuitive
I am a loved daughter (of God)
I am healing