Who are you gonna be?

Yesterday, I met the Travel Answer Man in the waiting room of a hospital, of all places.  He travels and gives advice on tourism.  Sitting for hours listening to his stories of his worldwide travels and the things he's done, my mind simultaneously was racing with "How can I get this job?" and "I'm so glad I teach."

Even though the name I've chosen for my current profession is "Freelance Educator," a born freelancer I am not.  That's why photography wouldn't have worked out for me as a career, although I love it dearly.  My friend, Ian, is an talented photographer, but he has the business sense and work ethic to keep getting jobs (in creative places, like Alaska).  Having that much flexibility would drive me crazy.  I like the school day schedule, and even more the school year schedule.  I like working with the same colleagues and seeing the same students day after day, and feeling like I'm making even a small difference in one place.

I am not a wanderer either, at least not in the way I once was.  The world is a glorious, glorious place and has many wonders to behold- but anymore I'm not wandering wondering.  I know, for the most part, who I am and what I want, and finally have the confidence to live like I know it.  I hope that doesn't sound presumptuous of me.  I have found, as the Travel Answer Man and I discussed, how to take the things I'm good at and enjoy, and turn them into a job.  Most people have that backwards, I believe.  A few years ago, I stopped worrying about what job I could get with which degree, and made a list of the kind of person I wanted to be and the things I wanted to do in life.  So I teach.  And I happen to teach in Russia.  And I travel a lot and I love it.  And I can build on the foundation of my original list.

I am a wanderer, in that I search for new things, places, and ideas, but I am much more rooted in me.  I am very content with where I am right now.  Perhaps I'll expound on this tomorrow...

Has anyone else had a time of their life of wandering wondering?  Are you still in it?  Stories!