I’m a bit obsessed with Adelle Nqeto’s song called Along the Way. You know when you were a teenager and a new song came out and you just loved it and listened to it until you couldn’t stand it anymore? Or if you’re old like me you waited until it was finally played on the radio and tried to record it to a cassette? Don’t laugh, mixtapes were my life for a minute. Or when your kids want to listen to that Disney song for the 10 millionth time (yeah you know the one with the ice). Yup, that’s me with this one. 

There’s a good reason for it. I think it perfectly describes what so many of us are feeling when we want to do something bigger than ourselves. We want to say yes to every opportunity and take a risk that may have us falling flat on our hopeful idealist faces. 

Maybe we’ve fallen down a few too many times to count, maybe we’re in a position where we aren’t valued. Maybe we are so stressed we don’t even know what it means to not feel that way anymore. I’ve been there; I get it. Fear is a clever beast. It’s like sand after a trip to the beach. It gets into everything. It makes us question following what we want in life, and it makes us feel insecure and stuck. 

I love the job I have right now, and and one of the reasons I love it so much is that I get a chance to connect with people. I’m in a wonderful position where I can just have a chat and ask teachers what’s important to them and tell them they’re great because they are! It makes me so happy and I feel so inspired because they are, despite uncertainty and risk, the embodiment of what this song is all about. They are teachers like Drew from St. Louis who believes in learning because it’s fun, and he gets fired up about sharing that excitement with his students. Or Margret when she has an important personal realization. Or Brittany who can’t wait to share lessons about global issues with her students. This was just in one day!

So go out there and find your heart in whatever you do today!