My last first day back to school

     After high school I went to a small college outside Chicago, Illinois. I was going to pursue my Bachelor of Arts in Education. For whatever the reason my career path took a few twists and turns after I graduated and I ended up in the financial industry; first in Chicago and then in New York City. I did not know anything about finance but I learned quickly. I loved the stock market. I loved everything about it. Every day was filled with the excitement and momentum. The closing bell rings but the market never sleeps. My commute was spent catching early trains hoping to score a seat, pushing and being pushed while running up and down staircases to catch the subway and then finally a long walk to the office. Four seasons of wind, rain, snow, heat and humidity; running to get into the city and running to get out at the end of the day. Every day except Saturday and Sunday and two weeks off for vacation. Although I loved every day, in a nod to Dylan, the times they were a-changin'. The stock market was becoming a different place as computers became a staple fixture as Wall Street entered the world of programmed trading. Portfolio insurance gave a false sense of security and risk taking and interest rates were on the rise. It was no longer a simple place of stocks, bonds and options with puts and calls. It was becoming a world I didn't recognize. At the same time I began to realize that my life was consumed by Wall Street; it was time to move on. I left 6 weeks before Black Monday for a job I was only partially certified for.
    Obviously I didn't just up and leave. There was actually some planning to my decision. At some point in the summer of 1987 I decided that I would become a teacher. After all it was what I went to college for. I would be fresh off a wonderful career in the stock market and I felt confident that I would be able to translate that into becoming a Business Teacher. That thought never materialized, instead I found a job in a Long Island suburb teaching Home Economics. Yes, that is what they called it back in the day, Home Economics. I was to be one of 4 teachers teaching one of the 4 modules that NYS mandated at the Junior High level. I would be teaching my students how to be good citizens, to learn the differences between needs and wants and how to make good decisions. I would be teaching personal responsibility! Not the most exciting curriculum I will admit but I was confident and ready to embrace the change. After all, I was from the Midwest and somehow it seemed like a natural fit and extension of my personal self. The only wrinkle was that I was certified in Elementary Education, Nursery, English and Business. I would need to get certified in Home Economics and I would need to get my Masters within 5 years. I was about to become a provisional probational teacher but, I would be a teacher!. I accepted the job and went straight to Queens College to fill out an application to begin a Masters of Science in Home Economics program.
     That was thirty-one years ago. I was excited, I was motivated and my 31 year journey in academia began. Today is my last first day back to school.