October 21, 2014
Jen and I met a little over six years ago. although it has only been in about the last three to four that she and I have become good friends. Prior to that we were colleagues of the "acquaintance" variety given that she originally worked at my school part time and then was on a maternity leave and in a substitute role. As with any great relationship, people have to spend time together to get to know each other and I am ever glad I've had this opportunity!
In common are our "approximate" ages, our love (hate) affair with good food, Keurig coffee, pets, shopping, Grey's Anatomy (I feel like I've blogged about this show before), our sense of humour (she's funny - and I like to think I have a good sense of HaHa too...). We even did a "Starter" triathlon together. One of the most important commonalities, though, is the way we are wired up to work with kids and colleagues and to have an innate desire to lead. I blush inwardly when she sometimes refers to me as one of her "mentors" because this seems far too lofty a regard when I know I have learned just as much from her as potentially otherwise. However, she is currently the assistant principal in the office where I used to assume that same position so I suppose I did share a few pearls of wisdom with her over time.
In her outside sections of our Venn diagram is the fact that she is an amazing mom to three girls who, being in varying stages of their life / career / education, she advises steadfastly and loves fiercely. They all genuinely love spending time together and possibly hold some sort of record for Mother-Daughter selfies. All beautiful people, Jen regularly is mistaken for a sister of her older daughters. (And I don't mean to highlight the word "older" here. It's just that her younger daughter is, like, six!) Jen juggles their worlds, and that of her devoted - though remotely working - hubby. How she manages all of the hockey, dance, part time jobs and various school commitments (her own and her girls') is a feat. I know lots of moms do it, and they all deserve high praise, but this is Jen's Cup of Coffee so we're bragging about her today!
Jen and I met at OJs tonight to catch up on life in general. Despite a lot of "shop talk", including much about our own learning / university programs, the mood was light, time passed quickly and it was just another fun, casual chance to relax with a like-minded soul. Where we used to see each other every day, now we have to carve out intentional moments. This is "good" because it means we have each evolved into new opportunities but it is "bad" because now her Keurig machine is on the other side of the City from mine! Thankfully Jen is always just a text, email or phone call away (yep, still know how to use a phone as a phone!) I'm proud of both of us and especially because our common career trajectories ensure we will get to continue crossing paths.
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