I’ve been staring at a blank post for almost an hour now. I’m having a hard time wrapping my head around the goodbye that is about to happen. A dear friend told me to imagine I was on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert.
“Tell me, Tavia… I hear you have some news to share with the folks at home watching…”
Silly, yes, but it made me smile.
I’m not sure there’s any way to do this, other than to just do it. So here goes…
Last week I accepted a position with Evergreen Public Schools in Vancouver, Washington. At the beginning of August, I’m going to pack my car, one of my cats, and drive 3,000 miles across the country to start a new adventure.
It’s hard for me to articulate what my time as an educator in North Carolina has meant to me. For the past 14 years, I’ve served as an English teacher, school librarian, and digital learning coach. I’ve cared about and loved thousands of students, been inspired by hundreds of colleagues, and had the pleasure to serve educators from literally one end of the state to the other.
At our last convening of NCDLCN, the West cohort coaches and mentors surprised me on my birthday with an impromptu singing of Happy Birthday. I cried because they and you are my people, my family, and a constant source of support, strength, and inspiration to me.
It is my hope that even though I will be on the other coast, our relationships will continue to grow – that we will remain connected – that this isn’t a goodbye, rather a “See you later!”
Thank you for being so compelling. Thank you for working so hard. Thank you for constantly reminding me of my why. Thank you for being in my life and letting me be a part of yours.