Lately, I have felt like I am not on the right path in regards to my career. Don't get me wrong, I absolutely love my job, and my kids are my motivation for all that I do in this world. I would be completely lost without hearing their sweet voices or getting the thousands of hugs they give me everyday. For as long as I can remember, I have wanted to teach special education, but my passions and goals have changed over the past few years now that I have lost the weight. I tell people that in my next life, I want to be a personal trainer. There is nothing more rewarding than helping people set and shatter goals, and this is definitely applicable to my current job. My friends never stop amazing me with all they are able to do. I stopped having expectations because they are constantly exceeding them and surprising my with all they are capable of learning. So how can I combine my passions so that I will feel like I am serving my purpose in this world?
This idea came to me while I was cooking dinner a few weeks ago. Please do not mistake my confidence for arrogance, but it is a phenomenal idea that was too good to brush off. It was a sense of "this is what I want to do when I grow up!", so I knew I had to act on it.
***Drum roll please....***
Fit Friends! Fit Friends is a summer program for adolescents and young adults with disabilities that promotes healthy living and exposes participants to a variety of exercises. The "friends" aspect of the program is that "typical"volunteers will attend the camp and be responsible for devoting one day a week to participating in some form of physical activity with their buddy. This will promote social skills development and hold participants accountable for maintaining an exercise regiment after the camp has ended. I want to have cooking classes where campers and their friends use visual cookbooks to practice preparing simple, healthy meals. I'd like to teach them how to grocery shop for healthy food options and eat a well portioned meal. Campers would attend group fitness classes like Zumba, water aerobics, biking, yoga, etc. in the attempt to discover a talent or passion they never knew they had. Special educators focus so much on preparing their students for adulthood by teaching work skills and independent living skills. Sometimes it seems like health (which is one of the most important aspects of living a successful life) is thrown to the wayside.
Anyone can tell you that I am not one to let things go. I had no clue as to what I needed to do to make this crazy idea become a reality. I began emailing all of my co-workers and friends that I thought would be able to help me. After several emails and phone calls, one of my old professors at JSU said that she love the idea and wanted to help! She came to my school during my planning, and we began to discuss logistics. As it stands, we are hoping to begin Fit Friends this summer at JSU. I am trying so desperately not to get my hopes up too soon. We have a long road ahead of us. We are working on finding fitness instructors that will commit to teaching at the camp. We have to email JSU to see what the process is for applying for housing during the week we would like to host the event. There are so many things to do that I don't even know where to begin. We can add all of this to the chaotic mess of things I already have to do this semester, but I'm not worried. In fact, I feel an overwhelming sense of ease because for the first time in a very long time, I feel passionate about something again.
I ran seven miles with Rachel this morning. I went to bed dreading it, but it was an absolutely beautiful run. I feel refreshed, motivated, and thrilled to have such a big goal again. My dad told me that I need to learn life portion control. He could not be more right, but I enjoy the hustle and bustle of my crazy life. Never a dull moment here!
