Recently I told my son the story of the tortoise and the hare. I think I was hoping he’d see that slowing down is often the best way to get things accomplished. Of course, he’s not quite four, so he just liked whole racing aspect of the story.
So, really, that story was for me. You might even see from my blog history that I can be hare-like. I get a lot of energy for one thing, then I go, go, go on that thing until I burn out and quit (or stop for a loooooong time). Or, I get distracted by something else that looks more interesting. That’s been the general pattern of my life. I’ve been really into everything from cosmetics to clean eating. But nothing lasts longer than three months.
But in building a school, the tortoise always wins. The hare won’t even finish. This is the first time in my life where I am doing something I believe in so much, that I am still committed to it after so many years. I have been in love with life-learning for 7 years now, and I am still passionate about it. But my hare tendencies keep sneaking in. I want things to get done now, I want to open the school as soon as possible. I get frustrated at the length of time things are taking, and I have to remind myself to be a tortoise. Slow and steady, Cassi. Slow and steady.
We are still making good time, though. We have developers who are committed to our cause, and donating their time to us. They are also committed to working for free on our project, until we raise the money to pay them. They have brought in architects who are willing to have a similar arrangement. We have our non-profit application in to the IRS, we are building our business plan, and are having our website redeveloped professionally. Our fundraising efforts will start in earnest as soon as our exemption status comes in. All this only 10 months after I put up the original website and started looking for founders.
But the hare in me says, “Ten months! And you are just here now? You haven’t started fundraising yet?” Slow and steady, Cassi. Slow and steady.
All this also to say, sorry, blog readers. I am not the ideal blogger. I write in fits and starts. In the blog, I will probably always be the hare. But, you can know that while I’m neglecting my writing, I am working on a learner-centered school. And hopefully, writing the blog will become part of that process.
Want to know what school I’m talking about? Go here.
12/02/2013 at 7:13 pm Permalink
Hi Cassi, I work for Storypanda and we recently published a new book on the iPad that I think you and your kids might be interested in. Our new book called Waller’s Wild West is a re-imagining of the classic tale of the Tortoise and the Hare. Now in a western setting, a sheriff turtle chases down a bandit rabbit to teach kids the “slow and steady wins the race” but with a twist. We add interactivity that really allows kids to connect with the story. You can check it out here: get.storypanda.com. 🙂