I am an educator. It is just what I do. It is who I am. It does not matter if I am in a classroom, walking through a zoo, catching up on FaceBook, or taking a hike with my kids - I feel pulled to educate. It is irrelevant that I have not stood in front of a classroom for more than six years. I am an educator.I believe in the power of knowledge. One of my favorite quotes is by Baba Dioum and says "For in the end, we will conserve only what we love. We will love only what we understand. We will understand only what we are taught."
In my opinion, this concept goes down to the core of our being and the word "conserve" can be replaced with all sorts of verbs - protect, remedy, change, sustain. It just depends on the circumstances. I think this is where the Breast Cancer Awareness campaign has gone wrong. Too much misinformation has been spread around for the general public to understand and believe the truth.
Prior to March of 2011, I knew very little about breast cancer. What information I did have, was basically propaganda from the Awareness campaign. Breast cancer is easily treated. Early detection saves lives. Yearly mammograms starting at age 45 prevent breast cancer. Breast cancer can be tied up with a pink ribbon. I was aware of breast cancer, but I had no real knowledge.
During the past 4+ years, I have gained more knowledge about breast cancer than I ever wanted. Being who I am, I have attempted to educate along the way. I've done it, mostly, in a quiet way. Talking to those who will listen. Sharing on FaceBook. Often, I am saddened and frustrated with the lack of true breast cancer knowledge out in the general public. I tend to forget that I used to share in that ignorance.
I have an opportunity for my story to be a chapter in a book. What a way to educate! That book will be read by more people than I will ever have a chance to have a conversation with. What an opportunity!
Each chapter in this book will have a theme. When I was asked if I knew what theme I thought my story would focus on, I was stumped. I briefly considered backing out, even though I was extremely excited about the possibility of this book being published and truly wanted my story to be in it. It took me awhile, but I finally realized that I want education to be my theme. In all honesty, I probably want education to be the theme of my life.
I had no idea how to get started writing my chapter. I've never done anything like this. A couple days ago, while reading a friend's blog, it occurred to me that writing a blog would be a good way to get started. I plan to use this space to get my thoughts out and organized. Of course, I hope that it can be used to educate at some point. I never thought that I would have a blog, but here goes.
