“It's Easy to Ignore Calling”

"There isn’t so much one thing that’s made me who I am. For me, it’s been a combination of all the different experiences and day to day things that happen throughout life that led me down a path that I’m on. 

Growing up, my mom had a daycare at our house, and so we always had a bunch of kids around. And it was the kind of thing where it was fun when I was younger- it was like built in friends and people you'd be playing with all the time. And then as I got older, you're helping out with kids. And so, working with kids has always been something I've just enjoyed doing. Those are kind of formative experiences that I don't think at that point in my life, where in growing up throughout elementary school and high school, and even throughout my like undergrad in college, I never once thought of being a teacher or working with kids professionally in that way. But if you look back on things, that was probably really developmental for me.

I would also just say relationships were really big and came at key times in my life. 

I went to school here at Issaquah High School, which happened very much by happenstance. Because of where I grew up, I was supposed to go to a different high school, but then I had a friend who, on the last day of elementary school, transferred from one school to Issaquah Middle School, and I decided to go with him.  Later, I went to Issaquah High School, and eventually met one of my closest friends. We did a lot of things together over the years, including family vacations, including one where I met my friend’s stepsister from California, and who I ended up dating and have been married for the past 16 years. So, it was all of these little things that ultimately led to the closest relationship of my life.  It is crazy to think that if I had not transferred to go to a different middle school on the last day of my 5th grade, I wouldn't have gone to this high school, and if I had not come to this high school, I would not have met my friend, and would not have met my wife.

And then all of those relationships I built with people here as a student, and throughout college, and growing up and having this daycare at home and whatnot, was this nudge put in the back of my head to get back and be a part of this community and to work with kids in some way. 

And so originally, that was through volunteering with Issaquah students and at summer camps throughout college and being a part of Issaquah in that way. Later I decided that I wanted to be involved with kids in this community in a more ongoing way, so that's why I became a teacher and a coach. I was fortunate to take on those things [teaching and coaching], which then led me to want to pursue other jobs in schools, doing administrative work, to then coming back and realizing, actually I loved my old job working as a teacher. And so yeah, they all come back to just relationships with people over time.

I think that growing up with all the experiences I had, I probably could have figured out what I really wanted to do in life a lot earlier. But I think it's sometimes easy to ignore calling -if you want to call it that- because you have other interests and wants, and things that you want to do, I guess. Growing up, for many different reasons, while I loved working with kids, I made my goal around pursuing success in business beyond high school and college.  How I viewed success was a lot about achievement and progress and income and all these different things. And I applied for early admission to business school at UW, and I was really excited to be there and all that. I ended up as president of the sales program at UW and did these different things because I was very motivated by the picture of success I had in mind; even though I feel like every relationship, every connection, everything I deeply cared about throughout high school and even through college, was all telling me to go and invest in being with kids and building community. 

And now these are things I get to do now and feel so lucky to do. But I ignored and fought a lot of those things because I had this other ambition or desire to do what -in my head- was successful; even though that may not have been in line with all of the ways I was being and called to do. 

And I don't think that's wrong, I think it's good to have those goals, and it's good to have a vision and good to pursue those things, but I also noticed that I feel more at peace, and more comfortable and confident in my direction when I am doing things based off of the feeling of calling and what is right, versus something else I want to aim for. 

And so, it's balancing those things too both where you feel challenged and where you find comfort. I think we all worry about just being too comfortable or too complacent, and I don't want that to be something I fall into, but at the same time it’s valuable to really lean into what we want to do, what you're led to do, where ever that is and whatever it might be doing. I’m trying to learn to pay attention to what gives me fulfillment and joy in life, and to lean into those things as much as possible, and I’m really fortunate and privileged that I get to do that now."