Originally posted in May 2022
The internet is full of “why I quit teaching” stories, and it would be easy enough to write another one. I began several times and each time it felt wrong. The truth is I’m so happy and relieved to be leaving that I don’t want to look back long enough to remember the pain.
Very few times in my life have I made a decision of this magnitude and been rewarded with a cloud-parting, angels singing, cartoon woodland animals frolicking to Disney music validation experience. It was as if all deities of all time united with my ancestors and screamed, “It’s about time!”
I will miss a few aspects of pedagogy. Generally speaking, the kids are entertaining while working with them, and it’s an honor to follow their lives and their successes. For the most part, my colleagues and administrators have been exceptional people. The pay, although less adequate each year, was regular and guaranteed. And that’s it. Three reasons to stay.
I wrote a list of reasons to leave, too. After writing 29 reasons to go so quickly my hand couldn’t keep up with them, I began to wonder what the point of continuing could be. I flashed on one of Elaine’s lines from Seinfeld: “Jerry, it’s 3:30 in the morning, I’m at a cockfight. What am I clinging to?” Same feeling here, Elaine.
There was no last straw. No event, not even COVID, to blame. (If anything, COVID helped me see the life I’ve been missing.) The profession is severely flawed, probably beyond repair. None of that is news to me or anyone who is paying attention. However, I became aware that staying another year, dreading every hour and counting the days to any tiny break, would be more dangerous than taking a leap into the unknown.
The unknown looks attractive from where I stand.
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