Learning and Teaching -- at the same time!

2 Jan 2018

Seventy.

I did seventy presentations across America last year.

I traveled to 34 different states, some with Mr. Kerry and some without.

I met and talked with hundreds, if not thousands of people. I reconnected with colleagues, and met dozens I had only known from Facebook. I met people who had heard me on webinars. Now, I have new friends.

I did it with a torn and recuperating rotator cuff and labrum, and a torn meniscus. I hobbled. I had one good arm. I yelped a couple of times, and hollered a couple of more times.

Sometimes I had to think about what hotel and what city I was in after Kerry called and sung to me to wake me up in whatever time zone I was in.

But, I did it. And, I loved it. And, I hope the people who invited me were pleased that they did.

And so, this year we begin again. I must admit I am scaling back a bit from what I did last year, for I need to catch my breath. I also need the therapy that comes from getting on my little tractor and mowing my field. I have solved every problem in the world on the back of my tractor.

So, some of you I will see again this year! Some of you I'll "see" during webinars. It's good to jump back into the saddle after being off for a couple of months.

3 Jan 2018

Today I'm going to piggyback off of yesterday's post.

One hundred and seventy-nine classes.

Yes, 179 classes that I have had the opportunity to attend or listen to via webinar.

I keep a list of every single class that I've ever taught or listened to, and save them year by year in a Word document. First of all, I do it to report to ICAPGen every five years that I am making an effort to keep my own self current.

But, most of all, I do it for me.

I've had the opportunity -- for free -- to listen in on classes about asylums, chancery court, Freedman's Bureau records, the Fugitive Slave Law and the Underground Railroad, early US religions, funeral homes, new technology, and on and on and on...

I am often asked what I do in between the classes that I am actually teaching. Are you kidding me? I'm in there taking more classes! These are opportunities that may not come around again soon. Every now and then you may find me hanging out with a colleague or two, for we all need a brain break.

But, more often than not, I'm sitting in a classroom learning right along with everyone else from the best in the industry.

Plus, the webinars! Geoff Rasmussen has led the way in providing free education, plus a vast webinar library to draw from.

I am forever grateful for the opportunities for the opportunities and invitation extended to me for speaking, for while I'm there I have even more opportunities to learn.

And, I did that all in one year.

Now, I'm perusing through the schedule for #RootsTech to see what classes I'll attend during my "down time". I've made it a goal to attend classes taught by people I've never heard of before. I did that during a conference this summer, and was totally delighted in the new offerings.

Kerry's dad always counseled his children to "keep their minds active and learning".

And, his mission president advised the missionaries:

"When you're green, you're still growing.

When you're ripe, you're almost rotten."

I want to be green.