Here's something you may not know about me: time is my biggest motivator.

Tell me if you can relate to any of these statements:

• I like to have control over my time and my schedule.

• I don't like wasting time or spending it on the wrong things.

• I strive to be efficient and productive and I like bringing order to things.

Knowing this about me, imagine my response when, after 19 months of teaching online, the school where I teach said they were ready to return to in-person lessons. Delight! Excitement! But also a small feeling of dread because this announcement turned my teaching schedule upside-down for two weeks.

My beautiful, organized, color-coded calendar was suddenly a pile of jagged puzzle pieces. Perhaps you can relate.

Twenty students. Eleven moving in-person. Five teaching days. Not enough Schogetten hazelnut chocolates.

And then I remembered this quote I jotted down in my book journal a few years ago:

Well, doesn't that just put things into perspective for us.

The beautiful, organized, color-coded calendar is nice – don't get me wrong – but the heart of our work as musicians and teachers is found in the people represented in those little squares. 

The first week I met some of my students in person, I made note of a few things:

1. They are all so tall!

2. I felt a deep sense of pride. We've been through so much in the last year and a half and I'm so proud of my students for being flexible and for becoming more independent as musicians and learners.

3. I am immensely grateful. It is such a privilege to teach and make music together, whether on Zoom or in person. What a gift it is to do what we do, friends.

In case you need the reminder, some days aren't about what you get done. The question is, who will you empower?