About me--2010
Riding the merry-go-round in Florence, Italy
Am I an introvert or an extrovert? Most people would say extrovert, but of course that is the me-that-they-see. The Ms. Meyers and Briggs would say that I am both, and I would agree, which is why I’m spending this winter (as I did last winter) going back and forth from my home in Massachusetts to the cottage by the sea that I rent on the southern Maine coast. My Massachusetts life overflows with extroverted activities: husband, children and grandchildren, church activities, quilting class, and friends, friends, friends. My Maine life shimmers with solitude and silence, and is empty of agendas or obligations.
Teaching kindergarten and first grade when my two children were growing up didn’t lend itself to much introvert time, but I managed to get up at 5 and grab an hour for myself. Every morning at 4:45 I let the dog out, poured a cup of coffee, and sat at my computer writing about what was going on in my classroom. That was my introvert time, whereas trying it out with 25 kindergartners… well you know what that was? At the end of the day introvert time was devoted to sleep.
I retired from twenty-five years of classroom teaching and began traveling around the country giving workshops. During this period my thinking shifted from the work of the teacher to the work of the soul. One day I made a telephone call and the next week, voila, I had enrolled as a divinity student at Andover Newton Theological School. My introvert/extrovert was in balance during those six years going to school. I volunteered at a local hospice, and when I graduated I became its spiritual care counselor.
Once my children went to college I began going on silent retreats, either with a group or alone. I started traveling alone, two weeks at a time, to England, Scotland and Italy. When I told my husband that I wanted to rent a cottage by the sea for the winter he wasn’t surprised. “You’ve been talking for years about living by the sea. And besides, you like being alone.”
So here I am, happy with my extroverted Massachusetts life and my introverted Maine life. I think how fortunate I am to have my cottage by the sea. I believe that many people search out a place, be it a cottage, a room, the back steps, a garden, a tree, the beach, the woods, _______ (you fill in the blank), where they can be alone and experience some silence, solitude and simplicity.
Bobbi (2010)
Teaching kindergarten and first grade when my two children were growing up didn’t lend itself to much introvert time, but I managed to get up at 5 and grab an hour for myself. Every morning at 4:45 I let the dog out, poured a cup of coffee, and sat at my computer writing about what was going on in my classroom. That was my introvert time, whereas trying it out with 25 kindergartners… well you know what that was? At the end of the day introvert time was devoted to sleep.
I retired from twenty-five years of classroom teaching and began traveling around the country giving workshops. During this period my thinking shifted from the work of the teacher to the work of the soul. One day I made a telephone call and the next week, voila, I had enrolled as a divinity student at Andover Newton Theological School. My introvert/extrovert was in balance during those six years going to school. I volunteered at a local hospice, and when I graduated I became its spiritual care counselor.
Once my children went to college I began going on silent retreats, either with a group or alone. I started traveling alone, two weeks at a time, to England, Scotland and Italy. When I told my husband that I wanted to rent a cottage by the sea for the winter he wasn’t surprised. “You’ve been talking for years about living by the sea. And besides, you like being alone.”
So here I am, happy with my extroverted Massachusetts life and my introverted Maine life. I think how fortunate I am to have my cottage by the sea. I believe that many people search out a place, be it a cottage, a room, the back steps, a garden, a tree, the beach, the woods, _______ (you fill in the blank), where they can be alone and experience some silence, solitude and simplicity.
Bobbi (2010)