Real, Not Ideal

                 One of my favourite posts I’ve ever written on here is the one where I wrote a love letter to each of my closest female friends. Friendship is something that means a lot to me. I haven’t always had friends in my life, and it’s not something I take for granted.                 Ultimately, I need my friends. They make be better. They inspire me. They show me how to live my life in different ways. I have made so many friends in different circumstances, and I am eternally grateful for all of them.                 I certainly haven’t made it easy to be friends with me. Moving to a different continent will most definitely challenge friendships. However, I’ve had friends visit me in England, keep me up to date on their lives sporadically, and stay strong with virtual wine nights. I’ve lost friends as well, and that is something I struggle with. I feel like I’m a failure. I feel like my friendship wasn’t good enough for these people to hang on to. Even though it may have

 There are two days left until school starts, and I fully admit that I am not ready. I woke up early for a PD day on Thursday, and BOY was it a shock to my system. I also haven’t been in a classroom since March, and it feels intimidating to have to start in a new school. It feels like Grade 9 all over again! I’m starting this year on a long-term supply which I am entirely grateful for. However, this was not the case a year ago (or even two weeks ago). I’m from Ontario where permanent teaching jobs are few and far between. I’ll get there, but for now, I’m happy to have a job teaching English for a couple months. If you’re in the same position as me, I have some advice for you based on my experiences from last year. Enjoy! 1.        Network, network, network. Way back in the summer of August 2020, my dad kept telling me and my sister about networking. We joked that it was the word of week for a while. As it turns out, he was 100% correct. Because of networking, I got a part-time