It’s been nearly a year since I sat down to share a blog post here. There have been many moments when I considered it, but one thing or another got in the way. Life has been full in 2025, to say the least. But, thankfully after the challenge of lost vision in my left eye for the last four months of 2024, my vision returned over Christmas break and 2025 ushered in a season of hope.
As the New Year dawned, I felt a sense of time passing in an entirely new way. Perhaps the vision lost created a sense of vulnerability that helped me recognize that life wasn’t always going to be this way. I’d get older, my kids would grow up and start their independent lives, one day we wouldn’t all be headed off to school together. All around there seemed to be reminders that, as full and busy as life was now, this season would pass too.
During the middle of my vision loss season, I needed something to look forward to, so we planned two big trips in 2025. First, we got an amazing deal on a week-long trip to NYC over spring break! Dennis and I have incredibly fond memories of our NYC trip to see Sara Bareilles in Waitress in January 2018, a wonderful birthday gift from my dad and stepmom. We’d told the kids stories of that trip for years and really wanted them to experience the culture, history, and energy of the city! We knew we’d see a few Broadway shows but waited until we arrived to choose the shows and buy the tickets. In between trips to the MET, Ellis Island, the Statute of Liberty, the New York City Library, Macy’s, we enjoyed a quick walk from our Times Square adjacent hotel for three Broadway musicals – Hadestown, Hamilton, and The Great Gatsby! We really enjoyed them all! It was a wonderful trip with just the right balance of activity and downtime to relax as a family.
The other trip we planned in August of 2024 was a BIG trip! Like, the biggest and best we’ve ever taken and it would be both a celebration of 20 years of marriage and a “professional development” trip for my classes – we were off to Italy and Greece! Both Dennis and I have dreamt of visiting Italy for years and since I teach Classical Greek & Roman History and the Renaissance, both of these countries would provide rich experiences I could take back for my students. Win/win!
I would love to write many posts to share the details of this trip, so that’ll be a goal for 2026! Suffice it to say, for now, that it was an amazing experience that we treasure. We got to spend almost a month together without the additional responsibilities of being mom and dad, teacher or coach, and we cherished being reminded that we’re truly each other’s best friend. Exploring new places was exhilarating, we met some wonderful couples on our tour, and we love sharing those memories now that we’re back home. Also, the trip reinvigorated my love of teaching these subjects and I can feel that my excitement comes through in the classroom as I teach about places I’ve actually experienced for myself!
Our incredible tour guide, Joseph, taught us several Italian phrases during our trip. The most memorable for me was Andiamo which simply means “Let’s go!” He would use it consistently after giving us instructions or explanations and then when it was time to start walking somewhere, he’d call out Andiamo! and we’d respond: Andiamo! Then off we’d go. At one point it occurred to me that this word is a great transition word and I told Dave, another teacher on the trip, that it would be cool to use Andiamo as an indicator to myself and my students that it was time to start class. I can have a tendency to let the “catch-up” time at the beginning of class go on too long, so it would really be as much for me as the students to have a fun transition rather than saying, “Okay, let’s start class now…”
As the new school year started, I was intentional about teaching all my students, the 8th-graders, 9th-graders, and even my senior class, this call-and-respond phrase. I know they thought it was a bit silly and even cringy, but I’ve continued to use it and insist that they say it back, matching my level of enthusiasm! If they respond with a begrudging attitude or say it too morbidly, I say it again with even more zeal: Andiamo! They then muster up the energy and say it again. For me this one little word has so much joy packed into it, given my experiences in Italy. Now I’ve added a feeling of anticipatory joy as I convey to my students: Andiamo, let’s go, you’re about to learn something new!