Closing the Door

House of Wisconsin Cheese closed it's doors on State Street this week. It had been a Peschel family business until Mike Peschel, Erin and Katie's dad died in 1995. Before that, it had belonged to their grandpa, Jim Peschel, Sr.

The girls grew up playing in the upstairs of the old store but they also learned how to cut and wrap cheese and make gift boxes and party cheese trays. Most importantly, they learned how to wait on customers. They could answer any question related to cheese, ring up sales and make change by the time they were 8 years old. They didn't understand why people would smile but not really take them seriously. Being nice to people was absolutely necessary because the business needed them to survive. In the old store, their grandpa had sold toilet paper and cat food along with cheese gift products...because that's what people bought! When Mike took it over, he pulled all of those products off the shelves and moved to a more streamlined speciality store. Yet, making a living was not possible without adding something other than cheese so he added deli sandwiches. Then the girls learned how to do the daily prep necessary for such a venture.

Every day was a challenge. What will sell? What needs to go? It was a journey like any other that had it's moments of celebration and moments of utter despair. In the end, the girl's dad left parting words that said "No matter what you do with your life, don't go into retail." It was too hard to make it successful!

15 years ago, another person bought the business with confidence and a dream. He believed that he had the right mix and could make the House of Wisconsin Cheese a success. For 15 years he battled with the same demons...What will sell? What should go? He felt that Mike's spirit lived in the store. But this week, without official notification, he closed the door and walked away!

Erin and Katie and I had the chance to walk through the store one last time. With saddness we looked at abandoned memories. We had always thought that perhaps Mike's spirit lingered in the store. Perhaps he helped it to survive for 15 more years. Now it is a picture of random clutter. For 15 years, each of us would periodically visit, holding on to the spirit perhaps! We have come to believe that everything happens for a reason. We look for the lesson in each occurance. What is the lesson here?

For 15 years, the three of us have moved on but also battled with thoughts of why their dad chose to leave. Still for 15 years, all three of us have taken our turn at calling out to his spirit to help with something. The clutter of the store feels now like the clutter of our thoughts trying to work through tough times in our lives. Perhaps we are supposed to realize that Mike Peschel does not have the answer nor does he now, in his spirit world, have some super power that he didn't possess here on earth! Perhaps he has been trying to tell us that. Perhaps we are supposed to let him go so that he can move on. Perhaps the message that we are supposed to carry away from our journey back to this store is...

It's time to close the door!

Reflections

Last week I attended a conference in Washington DC. At 3:30 each afternoon, my traveling companion and I took the RoundAbout bus to view historic memorials. Truth be known, I had never really wanted to visit Washington DC. I am not political. In fact, I tend to view it as formalized game playing! And, I generally avoid war related museums. Once I stayed right next to the Alamo and refused to actually go see the inside of it. The reason I give is that it just seems to me that there has to be a better way for people to solve problems then to shoot at each other! I struggled to know why so many towns have military canons displayed prominently in parks with such pride.

And then I visited the war memorials in Washington DC! Miles and miles we walked, passing display after display that tried to symbolize the number of people who died...for me!

My brother Dave believed that you fight for what you believe in. He was not a war monger. In fact, he couldn't kill anything. Even during the time honored deer hunting season, Dave took his camera instead of a gun. And yet, Dave served in Viet Nam and Desert Storm because he believed that he owed his country something because his country had given him so much. He served to protect that freedom for his own kids. So here I am in Washington DC passing someone else's brother, dad, mother, son, daughter and thinking that every one of them believed that the battle was worth it even if it cost them their life! And, I am ashamed as I sit in my nice house and have the many conveniences of our life but for 59 years snubbed my nose at those memorials. What have I done to preserve our freedoms? What have I done to make a better life for people who follow me?

The war canon that sits in the downtown park now symbolizes something more to me. It symbolizes being willing to fight for what you believe in. It symbolizes pride in fighting for the right to be free!

This November 11th, I will honor the veterans in a very different way! I will honor them with a deeper sense of duty. They died for me! I owe them that!

Fuzzy Morning

A friend sent a twitter message saying that his son got up, looked out the window and said, "Daddy, it's fuzzy outside!" After receiving the message, I grabbed my camera and snapped a picture and sure enough, it was "fuzzy outside!"

So, I enjoyed the beauty of that for awhile and now today I think, you know it's often "fuzzy outside!" and inside for that matter.

Take for example these fuzzy ideas: What prompts us to decide that now is the time to get married, have kids, move, buy a house, sell a house, change jobs, retire?

What brings clarity to a day? Usually the sun burns through.

What causes the fog to lift in us?

Some decisions I have made in my life felt as though someone was grabbing me by the collar and saying, "Time to move on!" Other times, I have made decisions based on whim - my last car for instance was just because I felt like it! Most of the time,though, I feel as though fate moves me! Opportunities are placed in front of me like a door. I ponder the door for awhile wondering if I should walk through or not. And usually I decide that the door was put there for me to walk through...so I do!

I know other people are presented with doors and something causes them to look away. I am going to say that it's fear! I think that people are often afraid to move in an unfamiliar direction...to walk through a strange door. These people are waiting for the fog to lift! They want to see clearly what is on the other side of the door and if they can't see clearly, they do not pass through.

Life is a journey. For me, being fuzzy outside has been part of my journey. I often couldn't see what was coming next and that actually became part of the fun.

Fuzzy mornings are, in fact, beautiful, if you're willing to really look at them!

Another Photo Story Extraordinair!

If you've been reading this blog, then you know that I have been spending hours laboring over the thought of retirement. This wraps it all up!

I just want to know...did I do the right things with my life?

Right now, I think the answer is "No"! or "Yes"! I don't really know!

I'm not sure that I laughed enough or danced enough. I laughed and danced with children at work but I have spent little time actually enjoying the laughter and friendship of adults who are not related to work.

I have loved but I don't know if it has been deep enough! As a Teacher and as a Principal, I can actully say that I loved each and every one of the kids! I loved their honesty, their enthusiasm, their creativity. I loved their hugs, their smiles, their toothless grins, their birthday treats and valentines. I can also say that I love and have loved my own kids without reservation. They are my center, my life! I loved their dad but not enough. I didn't realize the depth of his dispair. I became selfish at that point in my life and wanted to separate myself from his needs. I will always regret the fact that I didn't pay more attention to what was going on in his life right then. I know that leaving him allowed me to move forward but it came at a great cost! And the there is Jim. I love him differently! I love him as a partner and friend. I know that he has needs and I hesitate now to separate myself from those needs in a self centered way. I have to be able to show at least one partner that I can be there for better or worse!

I have never truly relaxed! Even now, on a Sunday, I check work emails! I did reach for the sky and I found that sky with my job. I have deep and profound satisfaction with my career!

But now it's time to reach for that sky for me. Perhaps I will be able to spend more time listening to the birds or going for a walk in the middle of the day. How about running into Milwaukee to be with Katie just for the heck of it or flying to Columbus to spend time with Erin?

And then there is going to Florida or any place warm for the winter with Jim. We are both so tired of dealing with the winter cold and snow! The thought of not seeing a fleck all winter is something both of us would like to experience.

Is it time to move on? Is it time to let the life of work be someone else's paycheck? Am I ready to pass the baton?

Summer Blooms

Summer Blooms

I spent the day out in the sunshine. After days of cool weather, today was a real treat. It's time to think of all the things that are right with my life right now.

I just made biscotti. I love the rich dark chocolate variety. I can hear the birds singing from here and I can see the cat sleeping on her perch on the screened porch. There is such a satisfied calm in the air. Everyday should be this quiet and beautiful.

This week has not been so completely calm. There is beauty around me but there is unrest in the air. Jim and I are struggling with this thing called getting older! We are entering a time in our lives where there are thoughts of retirement but I can't imagine days of unstructured time.

Imagine a life time of marching to the beat of scheduled work days, committee obligations, night time meetings, alarm clocks and stress. A body gets used to the day to day of it all; infact sometimes finds joy in the accomplishments!

Now imagine sleeping until you naturally wake up, lingering over coffee, no real plans for the day - day after day after day!

Do you enjoy the flowers if you see them every minute of every day? Does the sounds of birds make you smile if you hear them day after day?

These are the thoughts that are running through my mind today. This day of beauty, sunshine and flowers...lingering over the final minutes of daylight as I ready myself for another busy week of work. For as much as I always longed for time to just relax and enjoy, now that I have that on the horizon, I worry about leaving the structure that I have had for so many years.

I think I will just linger on enjoying today and let tomorrow take care of itself!

Ok, it's not so bad after all!

Did I just type that? Do I really believe that? Here's the thing...I struggle with the following things:

1) I love my job but hate the stress!
2) I could retire but the thought freaks me out!
3) The thought freaks me out because it feels like a teetering bridge to old age!
4) I don't want to get old!
5) I pretend that I can stop it by just not retiring!
6) Retiring though would reduce the stress!
7) Ultimately stress makes you old before your time!
8) And...I don't want to get old!!!
9) Maybe I'm already old and just don't know it!
10) Can I just concentrate on being young one day at a time?


Do you see the dilemma? There are times at work where I feel completely on top of the world! It's during those times that I think that I could possibly work forever.

Then there are times, I like to call them "the great equalizers" when I feel as though I do something that brings me literally to my knees! It happened this week.

We struggle with trying to tell people as politely as possible that they need to continue to improve their skills so that they stay relevant in today's market. Teachers seem to think that they will always be relevant! I made the mistake this week of using one person by name as an example of someone who had not kept her skills sharp. She retires this year! The conversation happened because we are contemplating not filling her position. This leaves a potentially heavier work load for others but more importantly a change in their schedules. Well, word got back to this poor person that I had "bashed" her good name! I quickly sent an apology but the reality is that I can't stop thinking about how sad the whole thing is.

It saddens me that others in my field hold on so hard to the past that they do not see the changes happening. They don't hear other's whispers. "How soon before Mary retires?" "How much longer are we going to have to keep doing things in this outdated way?" "What is the purpose of her position anyway?" "Couldn't we save money if we just didn't fill that position?"

I said the words outloud! I then apologized because no one should hear something like that two weeks before they retire! I would hate for others to be thinking or saying that about me!

How does one know when it's time if people are afraid to say the words outloud? The great equalizer this week is that this person, who has lost relevance, could be me!

May Day! May Day!

I've let some time lapse since the last blog. I was gently reminded!

As I read through the past one, I realized that the focus was on the potential rough times ahead and now I can clearly say "Yes" it has been a Lion kind of spring! Dealing with change brings out the monster in some people. Let's just say that it has not been easy. Some teachers are actully claiming that the stress of this past year is the reason that they are retiring! Other teachers say that the mood in their school is so toxic that they try to stay clear of everyone just staying in their classrooms and doing their job!

So, why change then? Why go through the ordeal? If the act of changing causes so much anxiety and stress, why do we not just keep everything the same? I think that it's because we truly can not stop it! Whether we want to change or not, change happens! Everyday, we are older - like it or not - and everyday weather changes, seasons change, life moves on!

So...the school district has weathered the storm of a new online learning initiative and a major decision to evaluate the role of school librarians. One would have thought the world was coming to an end! Teachers banded together to bully their collegues into signing petitions against the online movement and still other teachers used students to petition the school board about proposed changes in librarian coverage in our schools. One board member reprimanded the teachers saying this is not the way to communicate your displeasure. Will it stop them though? Probably not. It's a fighter stance where they are holding on for dear life to the past.

Teachers have always thought that their role was so necessary that nothing could take away the need. However, the economy has been rocked this past year. People everywhere are losing their jobs, their homes and more. And in the midst of all of this, teachers are demanding that their union rule. They believe that not only should their jobs be secure but decisions about changes should not occur without their input.

And so, where will it land? Change will happen! What else? It's just too soon to see who the survivors will be!