This is my last newsletter!
When I started this Substack in October 2022, I had an idea of what I wanted and how I thought it would go. I was increasingly frustrated reading think pieces and commentaries and op-eds about education from perspectives that were rarely if ever penned by classroom teachers working in the post-2020 wilderness. And so, to paraphrase Toni Morrison, I wrote the stories that I wanted to read. Stories inspired by my kids and my teacher friends, realistic about the challenges facing schools but still grounded in joy and enthusiasm and possibility.
Narcissistically, I also wanted to write about myself. I had just turned twenty-seven, inching closer to my solar return, and finding myself increasingly reflective on my own educational perspectives and how they were influencing not only work as a teacher but my opinions on the field more generally. Again, I would have loved to read about perspectives like mine and my friends. Stories about contemporary Sub-Saharan Africa, stories about women’s colleges, stories about women and Black people and Africans and about those of us who are all three at the same time. I thought maybe the blog could be a way for me to make sense of my life and record the stories of my friends and my family where we could all live on in the infinity of the internet.
I truly thought no one would read this. Not self-deprecatingly, I just did not think these thoughts would be of interest to anyone beyond whoever I cornered into a conversation at a party who had gingerly asked how work was going. To have people read the blog would have felt like an accomplishment on its own, but to have people like and share and repost and text and bring it up in conversation feels truly surreal. I’m so grateful my heart could burst.
I have the unfortunate privilege of being an eldest daughter, a Virgo, and a woman who came of age during the transition between the third- and fourth-wave feminist movements. All of that is to say despite my best intentions, I am wildly ambitious and I want to take a pause before continuing to do other things. Large emphasis on the pause that will include hours spent in bed daydreaming in ways to cosplay as both Frog and Toad. I am also starting my fourth year of teaching and I want to continue to work on becoming the best teacher that I can be for my kids and their families. The writing will continue and I’ll share it here as soon as I have new work out. In the meantime, my IG (@mcizmane) is public and I’ll be there too.
Asanteni sana for absolutely everything. I am infinitely indebted to you all.
I enjoyed your personal writing. You remind me a lot of myself as a young teacher. Take your time to relax and inhale all the fragrances of life. And whenever you have something to say, feel free to share. Not a goodbye. It’s talk to you soon. Stay safe.
Thank you for all that you’ve shared here. It’s been such a gift to so many. Can’t wait to see where your words land next.