Life is funny, sometimes in a "ha, ha" way, and other times in a thought provoking way. I've had a lot of moments that are both kinds of funny, and just had occasion to review 25 worth in one setting.
My oldest daughters are majoring in education, and as they near the end of their college careers, I have begun sharing my own teaching stories. One story in particular involves a teacher named Kay, whom I befriended during my first year of teaching. She already had been teaching for five whole years when I began, and I couldn't imagine having five years under my belt.
"Girls," I reflect to my daughters. "She was so together, and I had so much to learn. Yet, in the blink of an eye, I'm finishing my 27th year in the classroom. Savor every day."
"We know, Mom," they look at me sympathetically, like I remember looking at my mom when she told me these kinds of stories. So I allow them the rest of their today in peace and silently reminisce.
Kay and I became good friends. She took me under her wing at work and invited me to her apartment for girl talk. She shared her secret recipe for a mean pot of chili. We attended the same church and participated in a community choir. In the spring, we sang and danced in a glitzy cabaret show, and we probably would have been close friends forever except for the fact that we didn't have Internet. Social networking was called long-distance phone calls, so when I moved a thousand miles away the following year to teach in Virginia, we soon lost touch.
Last Wednesday, I was eating a bowl of chili-ala-Kay left over from Monday's dinner when the phone rang. It was Mike letting me know he was stuck in traffic.
"It's the strangest thing," he said. "Through a series of events, my path crossed with someone who knows you," he paused, savoring a moment that he knew I'd be thrilled about.
"Her name is Kay," he finished.
"What?! Wow! How?" ... and I launched into the whole story of our friendship so long ago.
When he arrived home, he handed me her email address and I sent her a greeting. Soon she replied with a bit of information about her life — married, living in Missouri, retired last summer. Retired, just like that. All these years later, I will be retiring within the next five years that she was ahead of me.
I began to build a timeline of the last 25 years and was struck at how much I've experienced, good and bad. A successful career, a doomed marriage, children, a painful divorce, a loving marriage, the blending of a family, the birth of another child, losses, opportunities ... a journey. Through the good and bad, I could literally see over time how faithful God has been in his care for me. I believe my reconnection to Kay and subsequent review of my past was a God thing.
For me, another God thing has been this column. I've always loved to write but was too shy and unsure of myself to seek a path to do this. It was only through the invitation and insistence of my editor, Beth O'Malley, more than two years ago that I was willing to put myself out there. Through this experience I've been blessed with so many kind words and encouragement. Even my critics have helped me to grow by helping me to reflect and consider things from a different point of view.
As much as I've enjoyed every moment that I've been privileged to write, I've also been struggling to find a balance in a life overflowing with activity. It's been weighing on me that I need to step back and catch my breath. Yet, I didn't know how to or want to say goodbye to something I've treasured so much.
I prayed and I wept and I prayed some more. Then came life's funny, thought provoking way, when I realized that our journeys are intertwined and that it's very likely that one day we'll meet again at church, through my husband — funny "ha, ha" and thought provoking — or maybe in an opinion column written by the rested, retired version of myself.
In the meantime, thank you for a wonderful two years, and God's blessing on your journey where ever he leads you!
Kim Dailey, of Columbia, is a wife, mother of five, and special education teacher in south St. Louis County who relies on her faith and sense of humor to survive in this crazy world. In her free time she soaks it in, sorts it out and writes about life.
