I had been a teacher of the Deaf for 20 years when burnout set in. I had decided that I no longer wanted to be a part of the educational system despite my love for Deaf children, the teaching process and American Sign Language. I truly did enjoy the students and using ASL. However, I no longer was being rejuvenated by being in the classroom and all the dysfunction that was happening within the larger educational system. It was draining my spirit.
I had taken a leave of absence to travel, which lead me to living a nomadic lifestyle for a year. However, my savings were dwindling and I needed to find a way to earn money. I did return to teaching in order to replenish my savings. I had a wonderful two years in a different kind of classroom situation, different than my previous experience in the classroom. However, I realized after those two years that I still did not want to be in the classroom as I had been before. I still needed to take a break from being a full-time teacher.
During those two years, I was diligent with my commitment to save and not accrue any debt. It was a commitment to be extremely frugal and buy only what I needed, with an occasional treat. I was able to return to my travels because of this commitment. My travels initially brought me to Costa Rica and Panama, attending language school to learn Spanish. I was ready to do something different and was feeling excited by being the student and not the teacher. I found my way to an island in Mexico, Isla Mujeres. I spent three amazing months there, studying Spanish and becoming part of the community and learning about the culture. It was fantastic.
Then, I felt the need to do something more productive. And, this living as a nomad was really about doing all those things that I had put on hold due to living in the traditional paradigm, where I had no time to do those things. I had been a Reiki practitioner for several years now and if I wanted to have my own business I felt as though I needed more than Reiki to be successful. I had been interested in learning other modalities to supplement the Reiki and the time felt right to do so. Spontaneously, I found myself researching massage and bodywork schools online. And, just as spontaneously, I applied to the Sedona School of Massage in Sedona, AZ.
The process was quick and easy. I resonated with Sedona. I had been there several years prior and energetically had an amazing experience. I knew that this was an area that I could live and enjoy for 6 months. The school's philosophy also resonated with me since I was an older adult, and I didn't want to return to a 'traditional' classroom with 20 year olds. I was concerned by my age and not being able to learn things as easily as I did when I was younger. However, my concerns were definitely alleviated when I spoke with the staff at the school, specifically Damian.
Within a week, I was flying back to the States and was at school, starting my career as a massage therapist & bodyworker.
It was as simple as that. I was ready. I knew this was the place for me, and, when it all flowed so easily I knew that the Universe was saying that this was the place for me.
I had started to invest in my second career.
No comments:
Post a Comment