"Strength comes from struggle. When you learn to see your struggles as opportunities to become stronger, better, wiser, then your thinking shifts from 'I can't do this' to 'I must do this.'" -Toni Sorenson
To me, teaching is a career where you will always struggle. Whether it's struggling to meet deadlines, struggling with student engagement, struggling with one particular student, or struggling with your students' individual struggles, you will never go through a day entirely free of struggle. Whether you're a first year teacher or a seasoned veteran, there will be obstacles to overcome. With experience, there are some problems you can anticipate (like content related issues), and yet there are others you won't be prepared for. You'll have moments that make you want to pull your hair out, moments when you just want to go home and snuggle up in bed with a pint of Ben and Jerry's (trust me, I've done it before), moments when you think you'll have to quit because you're worried your bus may run off the road, but in the same day, you have moments when you reflect on how far you've come, moments that touch you, moments that challenge you (in a good way), and moments that make you hopeful for the future. This is the beauty of the struggle teachers face. These moments are what make us say, "We must do this."
So today, I invite you to get on the struggle bus with me, as we explore my time at West Point High School. Come and experience my drive through the Mississippi Teacher Corps (MTC), a two year alternate route teaching certification/masters program at the University of Mississippi. I promise, it's not quite as bad as it sounds (well maybe the beginning is, but I'm getting ahead of myself...). I will show you that days spent on the struggle bus aren't quite as scary as they seem. With a little courage, you will see a beautiful journey of my time teaching in Mississippi the past two years.