Change is bad

One of the Long Suffering Husband's catchphrases is, "change is bad." He really suffers from change. He enjoys a routine and even the smallest change puts him out of his comfort zone. Today is the first day of Ramadan and so his usual lunch partner will not be joining him and this thought has not started his day well.

I've always been a much more chaotic sort of person and so change feels like more of an opportunity to clear out some of the clutter than a bad thing. I try to see the positive side of change; that it allows for something new and exciting. But this is not always easy. With change comes a grief for what you've lost and grief has to be respected. 

This time of year can be very difficult. As schools break up all those little losses mount up. The children you won't teach next year. The teachers you won't work with. The friends your children won't see any more. The fantastic teachers that won't be working with your children anymore.

This year, I am feeling the loss more acutely than ever. The year 6s I teach are the most talented musicians and the school will really miss them, my school band will be different without the trumpet player, the amazing grade 4 flautists and our only 2 guitarists . The choir will not be the same without the brilliant singers who are happy to perform solos with almost no practice and do it brilliantly. At the Youth Orchestra, seven members are leaving this year, as they are off to University, to join the army or to travel the world and although we insist you can never leave our orchestra (once MYO always MYO) we will miss them. One of my colleagues is leaving to go to a new school and I will miss her. She's bonkers and gets my sense of humour and always makes me laugh. And yesterday I found out that a brilliant teacher from the music department will be leaving my son's school. 

The problem with the school life is that everything stops (honestly I'm not complaining. I love school holidays) and you have to sit with that grief and loss for the next 6 weeks. In September, when everything starts again there is a natural replacement. In the orchestra, band and choir the loss of the leavers allow others to step up and show what they had been hiding. I will get new colleagues, who may be just as bonkers. The sign of a good school is one that continues to be just as brilliant if one amazing teacher leaves and although my colleague will be a great loss she will be replaced by another great teacher. 

I hope my son's school is just as good because at the moment I am struggling to get past the loss. This particular teacher is totally responsible for him wanting to go there. She runs the school's award winning choir and gets amazing results from her choirs. We have been attending the school Summer Music concert for 10 years and at the very first we saw, when he was only 5 years old, he watched the choir and the grand finale in awe and turned to me and asked when he could start that school. She taught my daughter, as the only pupil in the year, A level music and she has been a quietly encouraging and supportive mentor for me and we share a passion for the Great British Bake Off. She will be missed by so many and as her Facebook page will, no doubt show her over the next few weeks, she has made an enormous difference to many, many people's lives and that is the true sign of an outstanding teacher.

So, for the next few weeks I'm going to agree with the LSH and think that change is bad. September will, I hope, bring new exciting things for everyone.