Teaching and Trekking

There’s nothing like arriving home and seeing my parents after months of fending for myself, moving into a new apartment, long work days, tough classes, and everything else that comes with being an adult. The last time I was here was for Christmas break, when we were trapped in a few feet of snow. As much as I LOVED running around town with my friend in the snow storm (yes, by foot), nothing compares to the Jersey Shore in the summer. First stop, the boardwalk. My mother and I love to walk. We walked around town the first night so that she could show me all that has changed. We passed my old school, St. Joseph’s Regional Catholic School which closed in 2001, when we were all forced to take the bus off shore to a newly built, bigger school. After a half a year at the new school I quickly came back to the island to attend the local public school, which, surprisingly is still holding up. Well, St. Joseph’s, after it has been closed, has been used for CCD classes, and Sunday masses in t...

I came to college in Florida from a small town in New Jersey called Sea Isle City. This town has always been a part of me as not many people have had the experience of living here all year round since it is mostly a vacation town. I am taking a week and a half off my summer job to visit my home town and my family as I have done every year I’ve been in college. The beginning of my journey home: a 2 ½ plane ride. On the plane I was able to finish a novel I had been reading the previous week called “School of Essential Ingredients” by Erica Bauermeister. My mother is in a book club with her closest friends and she mailed it to me months ago with a letter stating that I must read it. This novel is about 8 students coming from very different lives to one cooking class searching for more than just a few new recipes to bring home. The chef that teaches the Monday night cooking classes is a single woman named Lillian and she seems to know exactly what every student needs through what she bri...