As Christina Hendricks first said "This is my love letter to ETMOOC"
It is hard to believe that three months have gone by and that ETMOOC has passed so quickly. If you had said to me on New Year's Eve that, "2013 would be the year you fully reconnect with not only your love of learning but your joy of teaching." I would have snorted in disbelief.
Do you remember when you were small and found a treasure on the beach? The sand was warm as it sifted between your toes, your hair was almost hot from the sun beating down on it and the water made a soft, rhythmic lapping sound where it broke along the shore? And then you spotted it? It could have been a magical speckled rock with golden glints, or a shell with that smooth lustre inside and purply grey knobbles on the outside. Or it may have been a gnarled piece of driftwood that looked like a face or the actual bones of an animal? And you would cup it in your hands and race up to your parents or your brothers and sisters to show them the wonder of what you had found? Serendipitously, I found a wonder for my mental beach. ETMOOC.
Life is full of surprises, twists, turns and opportunities. And ETMOOC has been a tremendous opportunity. Not just because I learned new technical skills, or because I embraced my artistic, creative side, or because I was introduced to new ways of thinking and communicating. These have been enormously beneficial to me. But what I have valued most are the people I have interacted with all along this journey.
I feel like I've been on an exploratory mission to a new territory, with some wonderful guides and an enormous group of supporters who read my blogs, provided feedback, answered my questions and made me stop lurking and actually participate, even though what I may be saying is not original or has been repeated elsewhere. Remixing, repurposing and retweeting are part of my repertoire now. I learned that it is okay to share, to be open and that my incessant need to ask questions is what makes me who I am, so ask away! Jeff Merrell said it best when he used the word authentic. This has been an authentic learning experience for me and I hope that the spirit that has infused me during ETMOOC will keep me connected, sharing and questioning long into the future.
Please leave the lights on....
