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The PTA in Japan presents itself as optional, in the same way gravity is optional. As a result, every parent goes through the same rite of passage: either you serve on a committee, or you learn—quickly and creatively—how to avoid doing so.
During the elementary school years, it was “understood” that each child enrolled at the school represented one year of committee service—not because anyone agreed to it, but because this was simply how it had always been done. Being an educator myself, I know that teachers need all the help they can get. So I didn't really think twice about filling in the yearly surveys, but was also looking forward to the year when I didn't have to throw my hat into the ring. I thought I had served my time when my daughter was in fourth grade. But the following year, fate - apparently unimpressed by prior service, made sure I became the Chair of the Educational Library Committee. Wait, what? OK. 2 years on a committee isn't going to kill me. But then junior high came around. Them: Would you be able to serve on the executive committee? Me: What role? Them: We're not sure. Secretary? Vice President? Me: What would my commitment look like? Them: We're not sure. Thinking I'm helping them out I agree. I can get it out of the way in year 1. Stupid me. 2 years later as Vice President (one of 3 people 🤨) and I'm the only one who has said no to a 3rd. Too many meetings....too many weekends...too many "optional" but mandatory events - but not a whole lot that made me feel like I was supporting the school/teachers. April 18th is my last "official" duty and I can't wait. Until then, I'm keeping my head down and staying off the group chat. I served my time. And then some.
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I tried to write a blog around the time COVID hit.
Me, and a gajillion other people. I stopped because things started feeling...gross. Again. I was two years in a new city, in a new job and still holding onto a lot of guilt about closing my school. and uprooting my family for a new job, which I had been struggling with for some time. Nothing had been really wrong with my school, but I was spread thin. I needed something more sustainable and started working with someone who positioned themselves as one who had all the answers. But this person's road to making things better was tough and required an “influencer-style” presence. Visibility, consistency, personal branding. Things I wasn’t comfortable with to begin with. When improvement didn’t happen — when things didn’t get better in the way the “success” was framed — it was positioned as a personal failure. A lack of effort, a lack of alignment, a lack of commitment. When I started writing in 2020, all those feelings came back. If I wasn’t writing to attract an audience, if I wasn’t building a following, then there seemed to be no point. So I stepped away. But coming back to writing now - and hosting this website, it's not about influence. It's about connection. This space is for sharing ideas, reflections, and teaching philosophies—quietly, honestly, without performance, and without the need for it to turn into anything else. |
Lindsaywriting about whatever has my attention. ArchivesCategories |
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