Took a walk through the new office today, my first step towards starting over in a new place. I just moved across the parking lot, but it might as well be miles away. I didn’t go down my hallway, didn’t peek in my new classroom, I just don’t feel like thinking about it yet. The faces in the office are the same, but it all just felt out of place. My stuff is all in the new place, but the memories are still back across the parking lot…I started my career at Branson over there, my son and his teacher kids friends played games and drove the janitors crazy after school in that building, I watched some teachers come and go, and said goodbye to my mentor and friend as he moved on and up in his career. Most of all though, I felt the love in that building, the bond between teachers, kids, and staff that made it easy to walk through the doors each day and face whatever crazy situation that came up together. As I laid a hand on the door of my new place this morning, I can’t say that I felt comfortable, but the more I visit, the better it will become. Next time I will venture down the hallway, start measuring and thinking about bulletin boards and what will go in each cabinet. Many of my teacher friends made the move with me, but some did not. Change is good, but not always easy. I guess I should be happy I have a job, and I am. I just need a little more time to get over starting over.