From Me, To You
Hello speech friends and happy July!
I hope this little midsummer missive finds you doing extraordinarly well, whether your summer is still going strong or, like around here, it’s slowly starting to wind down.
In Wal-Mart earlier this week, I noticed that the aisles of summer gear were being replaced with school supplies. And although I’ve always loved that fresh slate feeling that comes with a new school year, it feels too soon. Perhaps it’s because, personally, this summer has felt a little less… summery? than usual. It’s a strange, transitional sort of year in these parts, and everything feels like it’s in slight upheaval.
Still, it’s inevitable that my mind starts turning to what the next year will bring. And this year, that anticipation is completely different!
In past years, working for my local school district, I’d go into summer break with a 99.9% certainty of what school(s) I would be working at in the fall. I would have a list of students prepared, would have already started looking at their IEPs, and, in many cases, started prepping for any unusual goals or diagnoses I might have waiting for me in August.
This year, I have literally no idea what I’ll be doing in August. As part of my contract with a teletherapy company, school districts make agreements with the company throughout the summer and therapists are assigned schools over the course of June and July. I’m in the waiting phase. I have no actual reason to believe that I won’t be assigned to a district (and every reason to believe I will)—but not knowing what the fall brings after nearly a decade of certainty… it’s interesting to say the least!
I’m trying to view the not knowing as an opportunity. I don’t have anything to plan for yet, so I can enjoy the rest of my summer and continue working on my TpT goals.
It’s hard though!
A Bit of Happiness
I’m fairly certain everyone around me thinks I’m ridiculous, but one of the best things I did for myself this summer was buy a backyard pool.
Not a nice, big in-ground pool. Or even a nice, big above-ground pool.
Just a little, 10 feet long, 2 feet rectangle that’s hanging out on my back patio.
It’s big enough for me to stretch out in, float, and look at the clouds. It’s low enough for me to drape myself over the edge and read a book. It’s small enough that the water is always the perfect temperature—somewhere between perfectly cool and perfectly lukewarm.
Growing up, we always had an above-ground pool in the backyard. And when we weren’t in our pool, we were likely spending Saturdays at the lake: swimming, kneeboarding, boating. For me, summer is synonymous with water and as an adult I’ve had very little of it.
This year, I decided to remedy that and it’s made me ridiculously happy.
Link Love
There’s almost no speechy stuff going on here. However, this post from The Informed SLP literally made me exclaim out loud. I’ve been mentioning and wishing for the last few years that there would be research in this area and was so pleased to find that there was. There is still so much more to learn, but it’s an important start.
Outside of that, I have almost exclusively looked at recipes this past month. And became absolutely obsessed with chai (which is definitely not summery). Still, you should make them. They’re delicious. Next on my list: cardamom buns.
Finding Balance
Earlier this month, I watched a YouTube video in which a summer bucket list was made. I haven’t actually done this yet, so let’s commit to doing it together. What few, small things can you do with what’s left of summer to make sure the season doesn’t pass you by?
Enjoy the rest of your summer, friends. The next time I write, I will hopefully know what this school year has in store for me!
Cheers,
Christin ☕️