I have no idea why I have finally got round to creating a blog ! Why ? To tell you the truth I have no idea why I have started blogging at this point. Having avoided participating in such on-line activities for quite some time,probably as a direct result of having recently completed a course in which blogging and social networking was a requirement. The rebellious side of me forced me to abstain for quite some time after successfully completing the course. Now I guess I have chosen to participate and contribute as I can now choose when to partake. More importantly I can choose the content.

I decided, that if I was to have a blog in earnest, that choosing an appropriate identity would be a good start – something which would befit my current state of mind or sense of being. I chose the latter simply because my present state of mind is ever changing and very difficult to define. No, I am not unstable or confused! I am an educator (I think! or try dam hard to be one ) . If you ask any practitioner attempting to facilitate the further development and progression of others will most certainly find themselves in a very similar situation... or state of mind at the end of any academic year.

This past year has been one of constant change ... I often found myself feeling like a character or icon found in one of the PS games my Husband and Son have been playing of late. I have felt that I have been constantly having manover my way through very uncharted territory while at the same time doding bullets and explosives being hurled in my dirction – sometimes successfully ducking them and other times manageing to deflect them and quite often opening a door leading me into a room which offeres respitre or challenges I can easily manage only to be detected and bombarded once more.

The recent past has been particialy rough ride due to the organisation in which I work has been under intence scruity as a result of an usatifacotry inspection. A status which, to tell you the truth was no surprise . However a harsh judgement so say the least. At the time it seemed that all the positive aspects which were in existence were not even discounted but ignored. The consequence... Oh yes ! Change – Oh yes and plenty of it . What do you expect when the skipper of the steadily sinking ship -jumped ship! BUT the ship did not actually sink the rest of the crew pulled together and kept it afloat until the aptly named Recovery committee arrived.

Home life has been equally as turbulent although not as dramatic but as Parents we have been dealing with the ever changing moods and romantic developments of our two teenage children – oh boy they are not children anymore that for sure.... A son who has finally re-joined this planet of fellow humans. Probably because he has successfully landed a job as an apprentice and now not only is permanently employed and attends collage one a week . The real shock is that he now does coursework projects out of his own accord . This is a major break through as he left school with less than the minimum qualifications! Transformation to say the least – I had accepted that he would have a permanent defect which I can only describe as if his facial expression looking as if he had a bad smell under his nose - like he could actually smell his socks!

The Daughter – or the self appointed princess of the household is a whole nether story –with an ever changing mood and fashion sense as the only constant! Some would say it's a metamorphosis I think its more likely that aliens have beamed up my adventurous tom boy and replaced her with this creature. I must admit it's entertaining at best !

But that’s not all ....

Furthrmore I more than qualify for the Dancer of Change titile ... 10 years ago my husband and I re-located to the UK from South Africa. He had lived there most of his teenage and all of his adult life until the big move and I was considered a native –simply because I was born there – I nevery really felt I belonged there . Probably as a symptom of my very Patriotic Garandma who spent the best part of my formative years telling me I was not like them I was English and she even instilled in me to turn over any product and hunt for the “MADE IN ENGLAND” inscription which would garantee the quality and to some extent my Englishness – I was bought up English and to be Proud – This did me no favours when I finally left the nurturing confines of the Convent School run by Irish nuns (no quite English but British at least)

Leaving the Catholic Education System is really where my first dance with Change began.... I chose to go to the local Dule-meidum co-ed Secondary School. Oh my God ! The class sizes were humungous if compared to those experienced at the Convent. At the Convent the largest class I had ever been was 15 (and even that was a double class) My very first lesson and the Government Secondary School was 35 ! Talk about a crowd ! Anyway as they say children are resilient and I soon fitted into the mass education system, which also included getting taught in a second language when the ratio of Afrikaans vs Englsih required . I quite enjoyed it actually one could slip under the radar when I felt like it and soon learnt how to get noticed – also when I wanted . I survived the new education system and once again learnt the first of the valuable dance steps which stood me in good stead later in life.

More Dancing through the changes to follow ....