A Place to Call Home

Aug 4, 2019

This week while cleaning our garage I found an old watering basin from Juan Pablo’s cage and was immediately reminded of a blog posted quite a few years back. Perfect timing, if you ask me:

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It seems as if Juan Pablo the Chameleon is Movin’ on Up. [Cue the theme song from The Jeffersons.] Yesterday, we decided to upgrade Juan Pablo’s living quarters, as he was quickly outgrowing his original ones. As I transitioned him from the old to new cage he was downright nasty, hissing and puffing up like a blowfish. Apparently, transitions are very hard for him. Luckily, after awhile he settled down.

I know how Juan Pablo feels. This summer my travel schedule was crazy. It was discombobulating staying in different hotels, waking and sleeping at different hours, and having a lack of consistent structure evident in my usual routine. I’m glad to be home where there is once again a familiar sense of comfort, predictability, and belonging. I’m guessing you can anticipate where this one is headed. Educators, take note.

As we start back up in the classroom, keep in mind we all need the structure afforded by our routines in school. This is especially true for our students, but unfortunately for many of them, school is the main place where this need for structure is consistently met. So, expect that the transition period might be difficult. Some individuals might hiss and puff up like blowfish, but things will eventually settle out.

I’d step out on a limb and say that school feels more like home to some of our students than the place they lay their heads each night. Yes, in the home setting there is a great deal of noise, chaos and crazy, but ultimately, it is the best place to be. Students, welcome to another school year. Welcome home.

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