Come Stitch With Me

What motivates you? Why do you do the things you do?  If you drill down deep enough, you’ll eventually uncover your true why.  It may/may not be pretty, but at least be honest with yourself, so you can do what needs to be done to move in the direction you really want to go.

My school handed out copies of Simon Sinek’s book, “Start with Why” as our welcome back to school gift. Then, we were told that we are expected to recite the “why” for everything we do in relation to our jobs this year.

So here goes:

Why is my day job that of a librarian? I love libraries. They were my safe place growing up. I’m a voracious reader, tinkerer, maker and want to know all the things. I like to share information/resources with others.  I feel most at home behind a reference desk or sharing a great story for a read aloud. Although I’ve worked in a public library, school libraries allow me to do the same thing, but on M-F schedule that better suits my family.

Why am I still at my current school?  1. Relationships with coworkers and students. 2a. Administration finally listened and pulled the library out of the specials rotation. 2b. Now the opportunity is there to truly makeover the library, possibly leading toward state recognition as an Exemplary Library Media Program. 3. It’s close to home, which is important because Atlanta traffic can be a nightmare. 4. I’m not ashamed to say there is a financial incentive for staying with my current school district – we’re set to receive a really nice raise which will help with retirement and potentially afford me the option to retire three years sooner.

Why do I have a sewing business? 1. I love to teach sewing to newbies. Kids are a lot of fun, but much more work is involved than with teaching teens/adults. 2. I am a technical editor for sewing/quilting designers because I am tired of spending money on patterns full of mistakes. It’s also a good ROI for time spent. I deliberately keep my hourly rates on the affordable side and work efficiently so my clients get value for their hard earned money. 3.  It serves as an outlet to sell my samples, voluminous stash and other vintage treasures. The thrill of making a sale is very real (kind of like when a reluctant reader  adamant about getting a Wimpy Kid book actually checks out the other book you recommended) 4. It provides a way to indulge my inner entrepreneurial streak while making a few extra bucks. 5. I’m building something that will continue after I leave public education. 6. As the business evolves, I’m finding more ways to tie quilting/sewing with library work (Atlanta Quilt Study Symposium in late September).

These were the relatively easy “whys” that I feel comfortable sharing in public. Some of the whys in the more personal areas of my life are definitely messier and took some effort to unpack. However, this exercise does inform what needs to be done to move me toward the place where my actions are more congruent with my beliefs in all areas of my life.

Again, what’s your why?

When the doctor told me to take the summer off, I did exactly that – no work, no side hustle, no summer sewing camps, no therapy dog visits – no nothing except travel, play with the dog and attend to some summer household chores. While bathing the dog this afternoon, I actually wished we had a CHOA visit scheduled for tomorrow.  My itch to stitch has also returned. I’ve been in my sewing room this evening trying out a darning foot on Crystal. She’s been overly fussy, so she’s going in timeout while I pull out Juliette.  Yep, after nearly 2-1/2 months, I’d say I’m ready to rejoin this thing called LIFE.

The first 3 days of teacher preplanning have been exciting. A new school year always brings the usual can of crazy, but not having to perform the first day of school at 8:00 a.m. (for specials classes) has removed much of the stress I encountered the past two school years. I’ve been able to actually do librarian stuff, which I have sorely missed. The teachers are so excited and some have already reached out to collaborate on lessons. My new parapro has come around to her new work assignment. I think I have figured out a way to divvy up the necessary tasks to make everyone happy!

So glad I already re-homed several sewing machines we used in sewing club.  Looks like sewing club will not be a reality this year.  A bit of a bummer, but it’s time to move in a different direction. This means I am going to re-home/dispose of at least 2 more sewing machines.  My goal is to have only 2 sewing machines (1 grant funded and one loaned) at school for Maker Space activities and uniform repairs.

Now back to experimenting with the new darning foot on Juliette!

Have a great week!

Tonight marks the last night of summer vacation.  Bittersweet, as the summer flew by.

Tomorrow, teacher preplanning week begins (yet again) for another school year.  This year I actually get to flaunt my librarian hat. I’ll proudly wear my ILA Literacy t-shirt knowing that I WILL be able to put into motion the ideas I was unable to implement last year. I haven’t been this excited to start a new school year for some time!  It’s so nice.

I’m also slowly easing my way back into the sewing side of things. Purchased a Cricut Maker for the Maker Space at school (and home). I’ll be experimenting with a couple of smaller projects over the next few days before I try my hand at baby quilt.  🙂

Clothes are laid out, laptop tote and purse are by door. All I have to do is make lunch.

Now, to try and make this night owl get to bed before midnight!